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| KILL A WATT device. |
The chorus is well-known across Jamaica, 'JPS a tief', 'Dem fi lack it dung! We need to look at how we can reduce your electricity bill.
Di people dem wey a tief light a di main problem. If most Jamaicans were contributing to the cost of electricity, your cost would be lower. Jamaicans should call on our government to develop a plan and work with JPS to reduce electricity theft across the island.
The cost of oil impacts the cost of electricity. We have no control over that since we do not produce oil. We will just have to hug up that one. Some will say try solar energy. That helps, but the benefit that accrues to you depends on whether you are a high electricity user in the day or the night.
The taxes on electricity and oil impact the cost of electricity. The exchange rate is another factor which impacts the cost of electricity.
What can we do about the high cost of electricity? The insulating material for electrical wires becomes crystallized over time. This can result in leakage of the electricity. Have your electrician check it out because you might need to re-wire your building.
I would stay far from electric water heaters and also clothes dryers. Purchase an apartment in a complex, with facilities for using the sun to dry your clothes.
JPSCo produces 50-cycle electricity while our importers bring in 60-cycle electrical equipment. Let's lobby the government to remove the GCT on 50-cycle electrical equipment. 50-cycle electrical equipment such as washing machines would operate more efficiently and use less electricity.
If you have an old fridge which is 60-cycle and is not energy efficient, you need to get rid of it now! I purchased a new refrigerator. My kWh is now less than 120 kWh, down from approximately 170 kWh monthly. I am saving approximately JAD5,000 per month on electricity costs. That savings will pay for the new refrigerator in less than two years.
There are far more ideas that I could give you, but that would be too much to put in one blog. In the meantime, go online and purchase a KILL A WATT. This gadget allows you to measure how much an appliance uses. The information will shock you, especially for the refrigerator.
Information online states that a refrigerator's lifespan is 10 to 15 years. Most of our refrigerators in Jamaica are 60-cycle when they should be 50-cycle. That would negatively affect the lifespan of refrigerators on the island.
The government should devise a plan to have all old refrigerators in Jamaica replaced. If I moved my usage from 170 kWh to just over 100 kWh per month, can you imagine the national savings to our energy and oil bill!!!
I would like to get responses to this blog from the electrical engineers and all those who can add to the information and/or correct what I have written. The nation needs to start looking at our high electricity bills with solutions in mind.
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Good suggestions, but how many people can afford to replace their appliances. The government should institute a program to promote renewable energy options to minimize the effects of greenhouse gasses and the dependence on petroleum products for energy and transportation..
ReplyDeleteJamaica has sun most of the year that makes solar and viable option to oil, plus the solar industry could provide employment in both the production of panels and equipment and installation.
I think that JPS should institute a Solar Programme. JPS needs to go solar! About 12 years or more ago Bill Clinton visited Jamaica. The main thing I recall from his speech is that the economic strength of the Caribbean people lies in our ability to trap sunshine all year round. I am sure that the initial outlay for the technology including panels is ridiculously expensive, but it IS an investment. Florida Power and Light (FPL) has a Solar Program. There are domestic clients who have air conditioning units running all month long, whose electricity bill is less than USD $25 (JAD $4,000) per month!!! Solar technology! Next point - if we are told that last summer will be our coldest summer for many years to come, the air conditioning unit will become more essential with each passing year. Think about it. We must find a way to use the sun to help us to survive in the sun. We can’t always copy the practices of First World countries, but fossil fuel is limited. I think the Sun is here to stay. It’s only a matter of time.
ReplyDeleteWe first need to look at what we can do to reduce electricity costs and do it!
DeleteNo matter how much you try to reduce your electricity bill, you will still have the ongoing problem with electricity theft
ReplyDeleteI find it hard to believe that the jps is allowed to pad the bills of the people who are following the rules and paying there bills.
Where is the incentive for jps to do anything about the current trend, if all they have to do is charge me extra to cover the cost of those who are not paying for their usage???
A quick audit of any suspected communities will find the perpetrators.
If you have electrical appliances in your home and you do not have a meter then you must be steeling electricity.
I am reluctant to call on government to do everything, but this is an area that needs some serious attention. The use of solar should not be overlooked, it is widely implemented in barbados, adding batteries to your system allows you to store energy when the sun is available for after hours usages.
With all the new developments taking place on the island, I think the developer's could play a big role in this department
R M Toronto
We have been giving JPS tips and very good suggestions. How to combat these hardcore theft. However; it sweet them to stealing from the hard working Jamaicans, who is following the rules of Law in this wonderful county of ours. So if you can make billions from the innocent people of Jamaica. Then it is o.k for others to continue to steal from JPS, while we have to bare the blunt of cost. All because JPS failed to work with the government and other private organizations to put this evil to bed once and for all.
ReplyDelete