Myth vs Reality: Common Energy-saving Misconceptions Debunked

With environmental awareness on the rise, people are increasingly interested in adopting energy-saving practices. But with abundant information circulating online, it is sometimes difficult to tell fact from fiction. Here are several examples of urban myths that make you waste rather than save energy.

Myth 1: It wastes more energy to turn lights off and on than leaving them on all the time

Although modern lighting does use a bit of extra energy when you switch them on, the tiny increase is less than the energy needed for keeping the lights on. 

Incandescent lights should be turned off whenever they are not needed because they are the least efficient type of lighting. As for compact fluorescent lights, the rule of thumb is to turn them off when you leave a room for more than 15 minutes.

LED lighting is the best pick in this case, as it is the most energy efficient and its operating life is unaffected by the frequency of turning them on and off.

Myth 2: Electrical appliances don't use energy after you turn them off 

From TV sets to computers, you may believe turning appliances off means they no longer use energy. In fact, when they are plugged into a power source and stand ready to be used, they consume standby power. Estimates show switching off all such standby appliances may reduce household electricity consumption by up to 3%. 

The best way to reduce standby power consumption is to switch off or plug off appliances from their power source after use. For easier management, you can plug your appliances into a power strip with on/off switches and flip off the power strip when these items are not needed.

Myth 3: Your home will cool faster by turning the thermostat of an air-conditioner way down

During hot summer days, some people crank the air-conditioner(AC) thermostat to 16°C once they reach home, hoping the room can get cooler quicker. In reality, the cooling will run at the same speed and the AC will unlikely reach the abnormally low temperature.

Rather than setting the AC to 20°C, it would be equally comfortable and more energy-saving to set it at 24-26°C or above while using fans to improve air circulation. Every 1°C increase in the set temperature can reduce the AC's energy consumption by about 3%.