We are used to being told to turn things off to save energy. Surprisingly, keeping some office machines on can also help reduce your energy bills.
Equipment to keep on
1. Heating
Turn it off when the office building is unoccupied.
Whilst in the office leave it on but lowering set points by just 1°C can potentially reduce your annual heating bill by up to 8%, so reduce the temperature on the thermostat down to the minimum comfortable level.
A 2°C increase in office temperature creates enough CO2 in a year to fill a hot air balloon.
2. Refrigeration
Leave it on
A chiller door left open for 30 minutes a day wastes enough energy in a year to power a lighthouse for nearly 4 days.
3 & 4. Vending and hot drink machines
Vending machines can contain a heating element and/or chiller to dispense drinks and food items. Their energy consumption varies depending on the insulation of the casing, temperature settings, internal lighting and the overall size of the machine; however, there are always savings to be made.
It is cheaper to provide a kettle for staff who work outside normal business hours than to continue to run a drinks vending machine during these times. If left on continuously, a typical vending machine can cost around £120 per year in energy costs.
5. Water Coolers
Many businesses have water coolers; unbeknownst to many is how much energy is used to continuously keep that water cold.
Think about it: Water coolers are generally plugged in 24/7, so they’re ready and waiting to supply you with a cold glass of water if someone happens to drop by the office at 3 a.m.!
Use a timer so you could pre-program the water cooler so it turns on one hour before the office opens and turns off again after everyone leaves.