How much electricity do we consume and how can we reduce our bills?

Hairdryers, irons, vacuum cleaners, rice cookers… more than two-thirds of the typical appliances found in French homes monitored by Ademe consume less than 100 kWh/year. But, at the other end of the spectrum, some rare objects are very high energy consumers.

The average electricity consumption of a swimming pool is thus enormous: 1,690 kWh/year for an inground swimming pool (i.e. 294 euros) and 1,038 kWh/year for an above ground pool (181 euros), according to the example of the panel ElecDom, which confirms the 2006 surveys carried out on twenty swimming pools. A wine cellar will, for its part, consume as much on average as a simple refrigerator (and inflate the electricity bill by around thirty euros per year).

Less well known, security-related objects such as an automatic door are also big consumers of electricity, because they are constantly on standby.

As for air conditioning, relatively uncommon in French homes, it consumes a lot of electricity. A portable air conditioner with an exhaust duct consumes 88% more than a ceiling fan, according to calculations by Topten.

Few households finally have an electric car. The ElecDom panel was able to follow the consumption of one of them: it amounts to 2,782 kWh per year, “i.e. 32% of the electricity consumption of the dwelling concerned” or 484 euros. A weight unmatched by other mobility devices: the average annual consumption of electric bikes, scooters or overboards is 10 kWh per year, three times less than a filter coffee maker.