How to leave carefree and energy-saving on vacation

It's time to finally go on vacation. Using these simple steps, save on electricity costs so you can leave on your trip worry-free.

Most people empty their refrigerator before leaving on vacation. But did you know that a full refrigerator is more energy efficient than one that is half empty.

A full refrigerator keeps the cold temperature better than an empty one. No idea what to fill your refrigerator with? Use plastic boxes or bottles to fill the fridge as best you can.

Additional tips: Increase the temperature of your refrigerator during your trip. If you will be away for more than a month, consider turning off the refrigerator completely and emptying it. The door is then best left open.

As for your freezer, it's best to empty it completely. Did you know that ice formation sends your consumption soaring? It only takes 2mm of ice to increase consumption by 20%.

So it is recommended to defrost and empty the freezer a few weeks before you leave. You then also turn it off and unplug it. Again, it is recommended to leave the freezer door open.

Darkening the home is the first step to protect them from the heat. To block the sun and reduce radiant heat, it is best to close all curtains and blinds while you are away. This is how you keep your home cool.

If you are staying home this summer and also want to keep the heat out, you can opt for thermal curtains. The big advantage to these are that they don't let heat through, but they do let light through.

The biggest consumer in your home is undoubtedly your heater. While you are on vacation there is no need to heat your home. Again, you set your programmable thermostat to vacation mode.

If you have a manual thermostat, then by setting it a few degrees lower you can already have an energy reduction. Today, very many homes have remote thermostats.

The advantage to this is that you can turn the heating back on when you return home. Did you know that if you lower your home three degrees a day you can already save 30% of heating costs.

The second largest energy consumer in the home is the heat boiler. If you have a programmable heat boiler, it is recommended that you set it to vacation mode.

The main switch is turned off during your vacation. Once you return, the water reheats to the set temperature within two hours.

Just before you leave, it's best to do another tour of the house to unplug all the plugs. Ranging from radios, TVs, computers to charging cables, toaster, hair dryer,....

Why take these off if you're not going to use them? Well, we do this to prevent phantom load. Phantom load is the phenomenon in which devices consume electricity without using them.

Unplugging not only saves energy but also protects appliances from damage from power surges and reduces the risk of fire.

After the plug round, it's best to go through the house one last time to turn off all the lights. This is something that would be easily overlooked but can become an expensive joke in hindsight if you don't do it.

To deter burglars, you can of course leave some lights on. Then choose to light dark places. This will deter burglars. Lamps with motion detectors are also ideal for this, then choose an energy-saving bulb or LED bulb to save energy.

So, once you have followed these steps, you are all set to leave on vacation worry-free.

Enjoy!