b'10. Switch off any lights youre not using and take advantage of natural lighting whenever possible. Choose the appropriate strength of bulb for the area. Dont use a 100 watt bulb for a bedside lamp, when a 40 watt one would be suf cient.11. Clean your lights and lampshades regularly to receive maximum light. Lampshades need to look good, but more importantly, they need to work for you too. Dont be fooled by something pretty if it leaves you squinting for more illumination.12. In a large open-plan space, have your lighting wired to different circuits, with switches to turn on only the lights you need. You usually dont need to have 15 halogens on at once, if its just you in the room. Selective lighting makes for a better ambience, anyway.13. Fridges and freezers work most ef ciently when theyre full, but not overloaded. Defrost your freezer regularly to reduce the ice build-up. Use the most ef cient temperature settingsset your freezer at -18C and your fridge between 2C and 5C. 14. Leave space around the back of your fridge or freezer for air to circulate and avoid placing the appliance next to your oven or stove, or in direct sunlight. 15.Avoidopeningyourovendoortooofteneachtimeyoudo,the temperature drops by up to 15C. Use your oven to cook several things at once. Keep lids on the pots when youre cooking and make sure theyt well. Put small pots on small elements and large pots on larger elements.16. When youre not using appliances, unplug them or switch them off at the wall. Even standby mode wastes power. The biggest culprits are microwaves and televisions.17. Wait until the dishwasher is full before you use itand use the economy cycle. If your dishwasher can generate its own hot water, then use this function, as its more ef cient than using hot water from your cylinder. 18. Dont overload your washing machinealthough its better to wash full loads than half loads. Adjust your wash cycle to match the load and try to wash using cold water. Use shorter wash cycles if possible and make sure your clothes are well-spun before putting them in the dryer. 19. Use your clothesline as often as possible. Try to use your clothes dryer only when its raining, and then make sure youll itits more ef cient to dry a full load. Use the low heat setting on your dryer whenever you can. Ventilate the clothes dryer to the outside and clean its lintlter every time you use it. 20. When buying a new appliance, look for an energy-ef cient model for long-term savings. You can check out the star rating on most new appliances. The more stars they have, the more energy ef cient they are.'