The changes to the energy situation in Finland and Europe were thrust upon us uninvited and without warning.
We are in a better position than most other European countries, but despite this, households also need to save energy and look for energy-efficient solutions as one way of easing the situation.
Consumers have long been encouraged to make smart choices about the way they consume energy at home in order to save energy and make their homes more energy efficient. Only now that energy prices have hit new highs have people taken a keen interest in such efficiency measures. Many households are driven by financial necessity.
Old tricks should increasingly become part of people´s everyday routines.
People need quick energy-saving measures in the home, and many have looked to energy advice for new and simple ways of making savings. However, the most significant means of making savings are the familiar ones: reducing the indoor temperature and the consumption of hot water, as well as using electrical devices sensibly – old tricks that should increasingly become part of people’s everyday routines.
The big question in the coming winter is how households and housing companies can be brought within the scope of demand-side management and encouraged to reduce their electricity use at times of peak consumption. Information and advice can increase consumers’ understanding but may not be enough to push them to change their familiar routines and habits at home.
Some households can schedule their consumption sufficiently on their own and make efficient adjustments to their heating and ventilation. However, the majority of households will probably require more effective guidance and support for this change, and they may be looking for technologies that can handle things for them.
The market is now open to new innovations and technologies that are affordable and easy for households to adopt. They would help people to consume electricity at times when the price and production status are most favourable. Simple, easy-to-use solutions will gain quick uptake as everyday routines in the home must change in order to save energy – and not just through the actions of people, but with the help of technology.
Päivi Suur-Uski is an energy-efficiency expert specialising in energy consumption in housing and energy-efficient solutions for the home.
