According to the United Nation, 3 billion of the world’s population still rely on coal, wood, charcoal, and animal waste for their cooking and heat generation. This impacts the environment in negative ways, resulting in 600,000 deaths annually. This is why the UN created Goal 7 which is divided into three targets. The first target reads “By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services”.
In this context, Africa has witnessed enormous growth in energy adoption. The International Monetary Funds (IMF) has projected that the demand for electricity in Africa grows 3% per annum.
However, with the growth of energy adoption in Africa, it is necessary to consider energy efficiency. In clear terms, energy efficiency is the use of less energy required to do the same amount of work. This results in fewer energy bills and also less pollution to the environment. Due to energy inefficiency, a lot of electrical appliances, both in homes and in businesses, use more energy than they require, resulting in energy waste. This begs the question – how does one reduce the energy in our homes and businesses that are used while still maintaining the same level of work?
There are two types of energy efficiency that can be used by residents and businesses.
Passive Energy Efficiency is the use and installation of countermeasures against energy wastage, which includes the use of low-energy-consuming equipment. Yet, even with the use of these low consumption equipment, more measures still need to be considered. Active Energy Efficiency involves the control and monitoring of energy usage. For instance, getting new low-energy-consuming bulbs is passive energy efficiency while ensuring that the bulbs stay off when they are not in use is active energy efficiency.
All in all, through automation and regulation, one can ensure that energy consumption in your homes and businesses can be checked so that you use only the right amount of energy. This is the best approach in avoiding wastage and saving more from your energy bills. Most businesses spend up to 40% of their running costs on power consumption. Energy efficiency can lessen this burden.
Some Examples Of Energy Efficiency
In every manner that energy is used, there is the opportunity to ensure energy efficiency. Here are some examples of energy efficiency in energy adoption in homes and businesses.
- Incandescent light bulbs are less energy efficient because they use only 5% of the energy generated to produce light. The rest goes into generating heat. A typical solution would be to switch to LED bulbs which use 70%-80% to generate light.
- The use of renewable sources of energy such as solar is known to be more energy-efficient than non-renewable sources. This is because these energies are renewable and can be reused. Invariably, they do not rely on any inexhaustible element.
- Insulation not only makes your home cooler during hot weather, and warmer during cold weather, it also helps you ensure energy efficiency in your business buildings and in your homes. Insulation reduces heat loss and cools air. There are several kinds of insulation to choose from such as cavity wall insulation, solid wall insulation, floor insulation, roof insulation and draught-proofing.
Why You Should Ensure Energy Efficiency In Your Homes and Businesses.
If you are not yet convinced, here are some of the reasons why you should make energy efficiency a priority in your place of abode or business.
Procuring the right energy gadgets to ensure energy efficiency enables energy consumers to cut down on their energy bills. These energy products that enable energy efficiency are indeed expensive in the short term. However, they help to accommodate long-term economic costs. For instance, incandescent bulbs only generate light with 5% of the energy used. Even though incandescent bulbs are cheaper than LED bulbs, they cause more spending in light bills than LED bulbs. Would you not rather save more from your electricity bills, even though it means buying suitable and affordable energy products?
Another instance is the case of the electric heat pump water heater. While the energy-efficient version of this heater costs $700 more than the standard heater, it is said to help save almost $3,500 worth in energy bills. This sounds like a good bargain.
Also, reducing energy usage makes the environment more healthy. Energy appliances draw energy from power plants. Most of these power plants rely on fossil energy sources such as coal, which has been repeatedly said to pay a huge contribution to environmental degradation and the eventual loss of lives. This is because emissions from plants contain nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide which lead to harmful pollutants being released into the air that people breathe. Reducing energy use, while maintaining efficiency will solve these problems in the community.
Moreover, paying less on energy bills can mean that families and businesses have more resources to accommodate other areas of their existence to increase productivity.
Enabling energy efficiency for your businesses and homes can be a difficult process, especially when you are new to the system. This is why Energy Project Africa (EPA) is the best solution for your procurement of energy-efficient products. Allow your business the opportunity to save more on energy bills. Contact us to help you procure the right equipment to help you prioritize energy efficiency.
Moreover, energy efficiency is an integral part of your building. Over 90 per cent of the time we used is spent inside buildings, whether residential or home buildings. The energy consumption in buildings contributes a lot to the energy consumption rate of an entire country. This is why it is important to consider energy efficiency when constructing your building. Yet Construction companies rarely are concerned with energy problems. Their main focus is in cutting budgets and penalty clauses.
The figure above shows how energy flows in buildings, putting heating, ventilation, lighting, cooling, air-conditioning, and humidification into consideration. Typically reducing energy demands in a building is a solid strategy to ensure energy efficiency. This process can be divided into different categories. Here are some of the categories:
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Reducing heat demands
This involves reducing the surface area of the building in question. One also news to improve the insulation of the building walls. Also, including ventilation systems with effective control mechanisms will greatly help in reducing heating demands.
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Reducing cooling demands.
This includes manipulating solar gains through a method known as glazing. Furthermore, reducing internal heat gains would prove helpful. Making optimal use of thermal mass and night ventilation to decrease peak temperatures would also be efficient.
If you are considering constructing a building, then ensuring energy efficiency for your building will not only ensure that you save more on your energy demands, it also means that your building is long-lasting and durable. Contact us at Energy Projects Africa (EPA) to guarantee your building stays energy efficient.
Energy Projects Africa (EPA) is a forefront energy company located in Lagos, Nigeria with expertise in procuring energy materials and feasibility studies. We also include the installation of solar mini and micro-grids and other energy-efficient solutions. Also, EPA provides energy products and equipment for corporate and institutional clients for their daily project and operational needs. If you need a partner with hands-on local expertise in the Nigerian and African Energy industry or any of our bespoke solutions/services, send us a message hello@energy-projects.africa
