During this year’s holidays, 69% of Poles are planning to pay more attention to saving electricity. Rising prices make rational use of electrical appliances particularly important for households.

As shown by the results of a survey conducted by IBRiS on behalf of the Polish Electricity Association (PKEE) on a sample of 1,000 respondents, only one in three respondents, when leaving for one or two days, unplugs electrical appliances which are not used at the time.

The survey also showed that awareness of the power consumption of devices left in so-called sleep mode is still too low. The mere fact that LEDs on routers, televisions or laptops are lit is not a clear signal to everyone that a device is constantly consuming energy in order to be ready for a quick start-up.

The most dutiful in terms of unplugging unused equipment are residents of cities with a population of less than 50 000. More than half of them (54%) remember to switch off appliances even for short trips. By contrast, only one in three (31%) do so only for longer holidays.

According to the survey, younger people are much more aware of the need to unplug devices – one in two respondents aged 18 to 29 always unplug their devices for short trips. Among 30- to 39-year-olds, one in three respondents (34%) unplug devices even for 1-2 days, and more than half do so whenever they go on a longer holiday.

The PKEE points out that in most homes, the only appliances that really need to be plugged in even when the hosts are away are the fridge and freezer. Others, such as televisions and computers, are far better left switched off and unplugged, both because of the cost of unnecessary electricity consumption and because of the safety of the equipment.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński