save gas
You should definitely know these simple tips
The consumer center gives tips on how you can easily save gas in the household.
Saving gas is currently more important than ever. Because the Ukraine war also has an impact on the energy supply; in Germany, the early warning level of the emergency plan for gas currently applies. Here you can find out which small changes help to save gas and thus keep the storage tanks as full as possible.
Protecting the environment and saving money: Actually, there are already enough good reasons to be economical with your gas consumption. But as a reaction to the activation of the emergency plan in the event that gas is no longer supplied from Russia in the future, Economics Minister Robert Habeck is now calling on citizens to save gas in the household too. We have compiled helpful tips on how to save gas in everyday life here.
Saving gas: the current situation
On June 23, 2022, Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (52, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) declared the second escalation level in the gas emergency plan. The reason is the endangered supply situation in Germany due to the limited deliveries from Russia. “We are in a gas crisis. From now on, gas is in short supply,” explained Habeck. Habeck appealed to consumers to reduce gas consumption in their private households. There is currently no acute shortage In view of the coming winter, however, the current stocks stored in the gas storage facilities will not be sufficient. But how can you, as a small consumer, curb your private consumption?
Save gas when heating
- With programmable thermostats, rooms can be heated less or only at defined times. If necessary, the landlords are involved in the purchase of the thermostats – it’s worth asking! But an independent replacement can also make sense (purchase costs from around ten euros). Instructional videos for installing the thermostats are available on Youtube. Just keep in mind that you have to keep the old thermostats. If you move out of the apartment again, they can be reinstalled later.
- Seal windows: Due to leaky windows and doors, a lot of heat energy escapes outside. The best way to check whether windows and doors close properly is to use a sheet of paper: place the paper on the frame and close the window or door. If the sheet pulls out, the window is leaking. Accordingly, the seals can be renewed or the window sashes readjusted.
- Keep heaters free: Pieces of furniture, thick curtains or similar things that cover the radiators minimize the heating effect because the heat accumulates behind them. Make sure that the radiators are as free as possible or that a sofa is placed at a distance of 30 cm from the radiator, for example. The heater should also be cleaned regularly to remove fluff and dust, and radiator covers should be avoided.
- Keep heat in the room: Curtains and blinds in front of the windows help to retain heat in the room.
- Bleed heating: If there is air in the radiator system, the radiators will not heat up properly. The energy consumption increases accordingly.
- turn off the heating system: As long as it is still warm, the heating system should be switched off or switched to hot water operation, according to the advice of the consumer advice center.
- Reduce heating during the heating period:If you reduce the room temperature by one degree, you can already save six percent of the heating costs. Especially when nobody is at home, the temperature can be lowered. That saves a lot of energy. FYI: The distance between each stage on the thermostat is approximately 4 degrees, each small dash between the numbers defines one degree. At level five, the room is heated to 28 degrees. Attention: Not heating at all during the cold season is not recommended. This would cool down the interior walls too much and increase the risk of mold.
- Ventilate properly: In order to ventilate rooms, it makes sense to ventilate rooms instead of leaving the window open. Ventilate several times a day for a few minutes, preferably with a draft from opposite windows and doors. In this way, the components maintain their temperature and the heater then only has to heat up the fresh air.
- Have the hydraulic balance carried out: In the case of a hydraulic balance, the specialist staff calculates the heat output per room and adjusts the radiators accordingly. As Habeck during the press conference on the gas alert level on 23.06. announced that this can also save up to 15 percent on heating costs.
- Insulate: For homeowners, it may make sense to think about insulating the radiator niches and the heating pipes. The roller shutters are also not windproof, which means that heat is lost. Insulation can also be installed here with little manual effort, thus saving energy. In the case of rented apartments, consultation with the landlord is necessary at this point.
Save gas in the kitchen and bathroom
citizens who ye Heating hot water via gas heaters or gas boilers can actively minimize your consumption massively. This saves resources and is also cheaper. Most effective: Save hot water wherever possible. The following tips can help:
- Heat warm water in the kitchen (e.g. for pasta or tea water) externally with the kettle and only use as much water as is actually needed. In addition, the following always applies: use the lid on the pot and the right cooking area!
- Take a shower instead of a bath and turn off the water when lathering up.
- When showering, energy-saving shower heads can throttle more than 60 percent of water consumption.
- Reduce shower duration and shower temperature: Reducing the duration of the shower from eight to six minutes, combined with an economy shower head and a reduced water temperature from 38 to 36 degrees, results in savings of almost 180 euros a year, according to “Bayerischer Rundfunk”.
- Programming the water tank to fixed times: So you don’t have to keep the water at the right temperature, especially at night or when you’re away for a long time. In apartment buildings where the hot water supply is centrally regulated for the whole house, the homeowners are responsible for possibly readjusting the heating times.
- Also with that Reduction of the water temperature in the tanks gas can be saved. But with care: Less than 55 degrees in the storage room threatens the spread of legionella.
Saving electricity is saving gas
Anyone who is not directly supplied with gas for hot water, heating or the stove can also help. Because what many do not know: Saving electricity is saving gas! The proportion of renewable energies in the German energy mix is growing steadily, more than However, 10 percent of German electricity comes from so-called gas power generation. Means: Classic energy tips like Switching off the lights, not leaving electrical devices on standby or using the eco modes of washing machines and dishwashers also help to reduce overall gas consumption in Germany.
Here you can also read tips on how to ventilate properly in winter, how to heat properly and how to save water.
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