Everyone wants to do their bit to help the environment - and even better if you can save money on your power bills at the same time! It’s good to know that reducing our use of energy and water at home will help to leave the planet in a better state for our kids and future generations. When you shop at 100%, there are plenty of ways we can help you Be Power Wise. For instance, we’re a partner of the EECA Energy Star programme – so we can always help you choose the most energy-efficient appliances. Here are some great power-saving (and money-saving!) ideas:

Save energy cooking. If your kitchen gets hot when you’re baking, then your oven is wasting energy and money. The latest ovens include triple of quadruple glazed doors which keep the heat where it’s needed - inside the oven.

Save energy washing dishes. There are around 800,000 dishwashers in use in New Zealand. If each of these were ENERGY STAR qualified, we would save close to $40 million a year on New Zealand’s national power bill! That’s around $45 per dishwasher.

Save fridge energy. Refrigeration accounts for around 15% of your total household power bill. An ENERGY STAR qualified fridge or freezer is up to 30% more efficient than a non-qualified model, and is significantly more efficient than older models.

Save energy heating your home. Heat pumps are the most efficient way of using electricity to heat your home. But if the purchase and installation of a heat pump isn’t for you, we have a wide range of other heating options in-store to keep you warm in winter. These include fan and convector heaters, gas heaters, electric blankets and electric throws.

Save energy washing clothes. ENERGY STAR qualified washing machines use less power to do the same job, and they also reduce the amount of water needed for the wash cycle – up to 30 litres per wash less. So you’ll also save lots of water by choosing ENERGY STAR. Over a year, you can expect to reduce the water used for washing clothes by more than 11,000 litres.* * figures based on comparatively-sized machines, using warm wash cycles and 1 wash per day, 365 days a year

Save energy using your clothes dryer. Cleaning the filter on your clothes dryer after every cycle reduces drying times, saves energy, and avoids overheating that could damage clothes.

Save energy watching TV. Did you know that some TVs use as much power a as a fridge? For the same great performance and features – without the high energy use – choose an ENERGY STAR television. You’ll find the ENERGY STAR mark on a range of LED/LCD, LCD and Plasmas; in screens ranging from 22-inch to 55-inch.

Save energy on your DVD player. Did you know it costs more to keep your DVD player in standby mode than it does to play two DVDs a week for a year?

Save computing energy. Look for a computer that carries the ENERGY STAR mark. To qualify, computers must use an energy-efficient power supply, operate efficiently in multiple modes of operation (Off, Sleep and Idle), and include power management features.

Follow this link for more Power Wise Information.