Energy billHow much money do you spend on energy at home? How do you try to reduce costs? We ask a Dutch person these questions every week. Today: Johan van den Hoven (46) from the municipality of Ede.
How do you live?
,,I live in a corner house from 1999 with my wife and four children. We have a living space of 150 square meters. The insulation is good, but I don’t know what exactly was done. When we bought the house four years ago, it had energy label B.
We have twenty solar panels that are conveniently located south to southeast. So our house is on the corner and the sun heats up the wall all day long when the sun is on it. That’s why I don’t have to spend much. We also have a wood stove, but we use it sporadically. It’s actually just there for fun. I notice that the temperature in the house sometimes skyrockets when I turn on the wood stove. Then it will be 25 degrees and I have to open the doors so that the heat can also go up.”
What kind of energy contract do you have?
,,I’ve been with Vattenfall for about twenty years and I like it. Currently gas is expensive everywhere, so I swallow the bill. I did consider switching a number of times, but that was tenner’s work at the time. I didn’t think it was worth it. Usually I had long-term contracts, but when my permanent contract recently expired, the advice was not to sign a new contract because of the high prices. So now I have a flexible contract.
Last year we consumed 710 cubic meters of gas and only 80 kWh of electricity due to the solar panels. With the wood stove we burned about 1.5 cubic meters of sustainable, dried wood. I prefer to get that from around here. And I paid about 250 euros for that. We paid EUR 57 per month to Vattenfall. In total we come to 78 euros per month in energy costs.”
What do you do to lower your energy bill?
,,When I once started independently in my own flat, I naturally went to see where I could cut costs. I soon found out that this could also easily be done with energy costs. In that regard, I am now also the driving force in the house. I once went to a water purification installation with my children and you do become aware of the consumption there. I also tell my kids not to shower for more than five minutes. Water may not be expensive, but it is precious. Or I tell them to close the doors when they go out. We also have a display in the living room where I can see exactly how much energy is being consumed. So I can see if the children have left their lights on again.
Would you like to participate in this section yourself? Mail to [email protected]. This episode of ‘Energy Account’ has been assessed by energy performance consultant and real estate agent Fabian Grotenhuis from Dieren.
The tumble dryer is the least energy efficient appliance. We notice that immediately. We then turn it on when the sun shines. But because of the panels we don’t have to pay much attention. We also use roller shutters to cover the windows at night so that the heat usually remains inside and in the summer this provides a lot of cooling by keeping the sunlight from the windows. I would like to get off gas completely within two or three years. I have resolved not to sponsor Putin. I then want to cook on induction and buy a solar water heater. And maybe also some extra solar panels and infrared panels in the house for heating.
Those solar panels were my best investment ever. Absolute. I have a lot left over and I use that to pay extra on my mortgage. What I get in sunlight, I pay less in mortgage. A win-win situation.”
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