Unlike middle-income earners, they have fewer options to cut energy use as they use basic appliances
Mavis Toh & Jamie Ee Wen Wei, Straits Times 30 Mar 08;
THE air-conditioner is the top energy guzzler in the home. But while middle-income earners can reduce the usage of such power-hungry appliances to cope with rising electricity bills, there is less room for low-income earners to do so since they are already using very basic appliances.
This is the view of Madam Halimah Yacob, an MP for Jurong GRC, when The Sunday Times spoke to her and other MPs about the impact on households of electricity tariffs going up this week. 'What they are using now is already so basic, you can't ask them to cut any more,' said Madam Halimah.
From Tuesday, electricity will cost 23.88 cents per kilowatt-hour (kwh) for the next three months. This is a rise of about 5 per cent from the 22.62 cents per kwh charged this quarter.
A family living in a four-room HDB flat, using an average of 355kwh a month, will pay $85 monthly, or $12 more.
The MPs, noting that the tariff hike follows a string of increases in food and transport costs, said the lower-income group will feel the pinch most.
As Madam Halimah said: 'For families operating on a very tight budget, every cent counts.'
With the higher cost of living, the MPs said an average of three residents weekly seek their help for unpaid power bills.
Mr Charles Chong, an MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, has also observed a slight increase in the number of cases where people are unable to cope with inflation. 'In the past, we had one case or even none. Now, with costs going up, we can get up to five cases a week,' he said.
MPs say they will help residents who run into arrears to negotiate instalment payment plans with Singapore Power. Vouchers are also available to help them pay their bills.
Electricity tariffs are reviewed quarterly and revised mainly according to fluctuations in fuel-oil prices. The latest adjustment has pushed the rate to its highest level in eight years.
The National Environment Agency said that besides the air-conditioner, the other energy guzzlers in a typical home are the refrigerator, lighting items, water heater and computer. Its advice: Set the thermostat as high as comfortably possible, use one large refrigerator instead of two small ones, and use fluorescent tubes instead of the regular bulb.
Marketing manager Leonard Chia, 45, whose family of four live in a three-bedroom condominium unit, is already figuring out how to reduce his power bill ahead of the tariff hike.
Since January, his monthly power bill has been $300. It usually hovers around $250. He will disconnect one of the two fridges in the kitchen and stuff all the food into one. As for the five-bulb lamp in his living room, it will be replaced with a lamp with a single energy-saving bulb.
But the MPs noted there are also Singaporeans - including those who do not earn much - who are unwilling to adjust their habits.
Housewife Lam Sow Xing, 45, thinks her monthly bill of $250 is too high but finds it hard to trim it. She lives in a five-room flat in
Sengkang with her husband and two teenage children.
They have three air-conditioners, four TV sets and two computers. Each of these is used for up to 10 hours a day.
'When the kids are at home, the TV sets and computers are on,' she said. 'And my husband can't live without the air-con.'
Ms Lee Bee Wah, an MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC, said she has come across families living in four-room flats and complaining of a $400 power bill. 'They keep all the air-cons on all night, have a plasma TV set and a big fridge. And they say they can't sleep without the air-con,' she said.
North West District Mayor Teo Ho Pin reminded Singaporeans to choose appliances that meet their needs. 'Ask yourself, do you really need a big fridge?' he said. But he added that habits take time and discipline to change.
Meanwhile, town councils and private estates are in a hurry to manage rising costs.
North West District, for instance, is looking at using solar energy to light up the parks and landscaped areas.
A 699-unit condominium in Choa Chu Kang has gone for energy-saving bulbs, and shorter operating hours for water features and motion-detector lights.
How one family of five is cutting back on power consumption
Jamie Ee Wen Wei, Straits Times 30 Mar 08;
THEIR utility bill was over $300, twice that of the national average for a four-room HDB flat.
So when electricity tariffs began to inch up last year, Madam Siti Aminah Bakar, 34, came up with an action plan.
Every day, the clerk, who lives in Pasir Ris with her building manager husband and three children, would check the reading on the electricity meter.
To keep their bill under $300, their power consumption should not exceed 35kwh each day.
They replaced a window-unit air-con in the master bedroom with an energy-efficient multi-split unit.
They now set the air-con on timer mode - it cuts off at 5am. They switch it on only at 11pm.
The water heater in the bathroom is used only between 5.30am and 8am daily.
They do not shower at night.
Other measures adopted include doing the laundry when the machine has a full load, and limiting ironing to work clothes.
'We don't iron T-shirts or bedsheets. I know some families even iron their underwear,' said Madam Siti.
But they have kept some creature comforts, such as three TV sets to watch different programmes. Each is switched on for up to nine hours a day.
Two desktop computers - one for work and one for the children - are used for four hours a day.
'If you want the comfort and convenience, you just have to pay for it,' she said.
Six energy-guzzling appliances
Straits Times 30 Mar 08;
AIR-CONDITIONERS
Energy consumed: A single split-unit air-con consumes about 252kwh a month if used for seven hours every day.
Cost: $60.18 a month
How to save energy:
# Consider a multi-split system if you require more than one room to be cooled.
# Ensure that the unit is the right capacity to match the amount of cooling required.
# Clean the air-con filter regularly and have the unit inspected annually. Poorly maintained equipment can waste a lot of energy.
# Set the thermostat at 25 deg C. It is a comfortable temperature for most, yet will not consume that much energy.
REFRIGERATORS
Energy consumed: A 300 litre frost-free unit will consume about 115kwh a month if switched on year round.
Cost: $27.51 a month
How to save energy:
# Choose a model with an energy-saver switch which will allow you to determine the setting that provides maximum energy savings without causing condensation.
# Adjust the thermostat to the recommended settings.
# Allow hot food to cool before putting it in the fridge and cover all food and liquids to prevent moisture from being released. Moisture increases the amount of energy that will be used during the fridge's defrosting cycle.
# Do not open the door unnecessarily as the cool air will escape.
WATER HEATERS
Energy consumed: A 1,000 watt instantaneous or tankless unit uses 60kwh if used for a total of two hours daily.
Cost: $14.33 a month
How to save energy:
# Use an instantaneous water heater instead of one with a storage tank. The former provides hot water only when needed.
# If you prefer a storage water heater, choose one with a capacity of 23 litres to 27 litres, which is enough for a family of four to six. The bigger the capacity, the more energy consumed.
# Switch on the storage water heater just 20 minutes before taking a bath. Switch it off after that.
WASHING MACHINES
Energy consumed: A 450 watt unit without heater consumes 13.5kwh if used for an hour each day.
Cost: $3.22 a month
How to save energy:
# Wash a full load of laundry each time.
# Don't use hot water to wash clothes as heating up the water sucks up more energy. If you must have hot water, using cold water during the rinse cycle will cut energy use by half.
# Do not put too much detergent to avoid having to wash or rinse the load again.
# Pre-soak or use a soak cycle when washing heavily soiled items to avoid two washings.
TELEVISION SETS
Energy consumed: A 26-inch conventional TV set consumes about 30kwh a month if used for five hours a day.
Cost: $7.16 a month
How to save energy:
# When watching television, keep the lights in the room low. This saves electricity and reduces glare from your screen.
# Switch off the set when not in use, including the main switch.
# Choose a conventional CRT TV set instead of a plasma set. The latter consumes about four times more energy.
# Alternatively, choose an LCD set instead of a plasma set as it consumes less energy.
COMPUTERS
Energy consumed: A 300 watt unit - about the maximum power of a 24-inch iMac - consumes about 36kwh a month if used for four hours a day.
Cost: $8.60 a month
How to save energy:
# Set the power to automatically go into sleep or stand-by mode after 15 minutes or so of inactivity.
# Switch off the computer when not in use for long periods. This applies to the main switch too.
# Use liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors as they consume half to two-thirds what cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitors do.
# A laptop uses up to 50 per cent less energy than a desktop.
SOURCE: SINGAPORE POWER AND NATIONAL ENVIRONMENT AGENCY
