Abstract

The presentation includes an overview of technical options relevant to the various sectors of household management - cooking, refrigeration, dishwashing, waste separating, washing, drying and smoothening (besides ironing) of textiles, lighting, personal hygiene - with the focus on the energy consumption and energy efficiency of the options in terms of kWhs and litres. Knowing the background of real figures of energy is an integral part, when explaining connection of human behaviour and energy consumption.

Annual consumption is the result of individual, and often daily, repeated usage of electricity and water. Each member of the household is constantly engaged in making energy-saving choices. When using the cooker, we make these decisions nearly all the time with a refrigeration appliance forming the other extreme from the point of view of the energy consumption. The foremost decisions pertaining to energy consumption relate to appliance type, size and make, location, and installation.

When compared to saving usage and habits it is possible to use 10-50 % more water or electricity every usage time. The user has to be aware about the effect of various alternatives on energy consumption to be able to influence on his or her consumption.

The issue at stake is partly one of attitude and usage forms learnt at home, partly one of education, of information dissemination and advice, and of research necessary as the base for all these. The following sections review options relevant to Finland. They have been compiled from the results of several studies and experiments

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Panels of

Panel 2: Incentives and instruments to achive greater

Panel 1: Energy Efficiency policies, programmes and their links

Panel 4: Human dimensions of energy use and efficiency

Panel 3: Energy Efficiency options for industry

Panel 5: Energy efficiency in transport