The electric and water interruption caused by energy deficiency we experienced last month is really cause for any mum to worry. I remember the same situation in the 90’s and I cannot imagine how we’d be able to sleep well at night without electricity especially with a little guy who easily gets sweaty to worry about and put to sleep. The few days of interrupted power and water supply were very difficult with no power to charge mobile phones and get most appliances working and no water on the tap to wash dishes, clean up and bathe. The little man was one of the many who patiently waited for the lights to be on again. Thankfully, he was able to while away the time tinkering on our mini microscope which we got a few months back during our trip to The Mind Museum. He also volunteered to do some worksheets and when the weather cleared up was excited to go out for a walk in the neighborhood. Luckily, the power returned during the night allowing us to have sufficient and comfortable rest. Not most are fortunate and some provinces even had to wait for a few days before the power was restored in their places.

The power interruptions is probably just the tip of the iceberg about this energy deficiency hoopla. The continuously-increasing monthly electric bill is but another thing that is getting on mum’s nerves. They are noticeably increasing every month and you worry whether there will come a day you will have to set aside half of your monthly income just so you can settle your monthly electric consumption.

About a month ago, I was relieved to find out that our bill went down and we managed to maintain it for 2 consecutive months. Now am not really sure what we did to make it go down, but I guess spending hours out does help a lot. Those almost 4 hours of being away from home and not consuming any electricity, apart from the fridge, is probably the main reason why we are paying low bills these days. I do hope we can maintain this amount. I guess it also helps that I am trying to put my son and myself on self-imposed time away from the telly and the computer for our own good. I am hitting two birds with one stone in doing so, I was able to discipline my son on excessive hours spent watching cartoons and movies and I was able to accomplish so much more whenever I impose a no-internet day during the weekends, not to mention I am helping reduce our monthly electric consumption.

The news on the lack of power supply in our country, which we shall be experiencing in full swing by the summer of 2015, is really quite alarming. Power interruptions from time to time is inconvenient and annoying already, I wonder how we would all fare if we have to put up with regular power disruptions and on a sweltering summer day at that! This is why I think it really is a must that we consciously do our part in conserving energy and raise our little ones to do their share, too.

Lucky I was raised by parents who are mindful about saving water and electricity that it has become my lifelong habit to turn off and unplug everything especially when we are heading out. Now I am passing on the habit to the little man and I am glad that he is more than willing to cooperate. Even when he is still little to unplug appliances, he can now turn off the electric fan in our room and he has been doing this ever since I thought him each time he wakes up. So all I need is unplug the fan before we head out for school.

Here are a few simple ways you and your children can practice at home so you can help save water and electricity and do your little share. This problem is all our problems, after all, and we must do our very own contribution to help alleviate if not totally eradicate it:

To conserve water

• Make sure the faucet is tightly closed each time. If you have leaks, have them repaired immediately.
• Use drinking glasses while brushing your teeth instead of letting the faucet run as you go about it. Teach your little ones to do the same thing.
• Recycle water used for laundry to water the plants in your yard, clean the bathroom or wash dad’s car

To save up on electricity

• Make sure all the appliances are unplugged when not in use. Even when are turned off, they still consume little electricity if they are plugged to the sockets.
• Switch to LCD tellys as they are so much more energy efficient
• Switch to energy-efficient LED lights. Apart from having longer lives, these LED lights are also very earth-friendly and will enable you to use much lesser amount of electricity.

And here are some tips I got from Meralco’s flyer:

For airconditioners

• Check and clean your air filters
• Follow the prescribed maintenance in your product manual

For refrigerators

• Defrost regularly to make sure your appliance is running efficiently
• Check your door gasket and ensure that your refrigerator doors are sealed tightly to prevent cold air from escaping
• Clean the condenser coils at the back of your ref, these are designed to remove heat from the fridge