Energy-saving gizmos in high demand

«Energy is in short supply. Let's not waste it.» With this slogan, the Swiss federal government launched its energy-saving campaign in August; similar appeals have been made in Germany and Austria. Given the numerous energy-saving tips, households should be doing their part to avert the impending energy crisis. And if sales are any indicator, they have been doing just that. At Galaxus, sales of energy meters, timers, power strips with switches, water-saving shower heads and candles went through the roof in September.

Battling energy guzzlers

Energy meters are helpful in identifying power hogs in your own home. Such meters have frequently appeared in the shopping carts of Galaxus customers in recent weeks. Sales exploded in September, up 481 per cent in comparison to last year. In addition to energy meters, customers have also ordered more power strips with switches – since September, demand has picked up 174 per cent (+255% year-on-year).

Smart plugs are another popular tool for reducing electricity costs. They’re intermediate plugs that you place between the socket and the device in question. Your lamp, toaster or flat-screen TV can thus be controlled simply by voice or via app – so you can also turn off the light in the living room from the bathroom. And you can regulate a device’s power consumption with a timer so that your router, printer, etc. will turn off automatically at night. Both products are a hit with our customers. In September, 340 per cent more smart plugs and timers ended up in our customers’ baskets than in the previous year.

So far, the recommendation to use more LED technology has only been followed to a limited extent – or perhaps folks had already switched to energy-efficient lighting before the recommendation was made. Valentin Lukacs, Junior Category Business Manager at Galaxus, says that «sales of LED light sources increased slightly in August and September, but we’re not seeing a run like with other products.»

Many people clearly prefer an alternative, simpler way of lighting: by candle. Year-on-year sales skyrocketed by 569 per cent in August, with incoming orders particularly taking off on 7 August. The boom has continued; September sales were up 380 per cent in comparison to the same time last year.

Saving lots of energy with little effort

Heating accounts for the largest portion of a household’s energy consumption. If we were to lower the temperature by one degree, we’d use 640 kWh less electricity every year. With just one kilowatt hour, you could run a 60-degree wash, bake three pizzas or ride an e-bike around the whole of Lake Zurich. It seems keeping the temperature under control at home is important to our customers. This September, 190 per cent more thermometers crossed the virtual store counter than in September 2021. Galaxus customers diligently typed queries about thermometers into their search windows; in the final week of September, it was the third most searched for product.

But even more popular are thermostats. In September, we recorded a 432 per cent year-on-year increase in sales. Modern, smart thermostats that can be controlled via app are particularly in demand.

And lest we think only of how to save on heating the air in our homes, let us not forget how to save on heating water. A 3-minute-long shower consumes the same amount of energy as watching television for ten hours. Thomas Häusler, Climate and Energy Project Manager at WWF Switzerland, gave us a tip. «Shower twice with a water-reducing shower head instead of taking two full baths – and you've already saved 300 kWh of energy and over 5,500 litres of water.» Galaxus customers are clearly already aware of the importance of water-saving shower heads because they’ve been flying off the shelves. The Grohe Tempesta experienced record sales after winning the Kassensturz Öko-Test in February 2022 and has been benefiting from a renewed boost since August when our customers ordered 2,110 per cent more than in the previous year. In September, they ordered 3,822 per cent more than a year ago. The Amphiro digital economy shower head has also been landing in Swiss bathrooms more often. Since July 2022, sales have increased by 1,750 per cent. This shower head provides live data on water consumption and energy requirements.

Shower heads

Grohe Tempesta 100

3 Beam types, 12 l/min

560

Shower heads

EUR33,30

hansgrohe Pulsify Select S 105 3 jet types Relaxation EcoSmart

3 Beam types, 9 l/min

80

Galaxus also found that customers are filtering their searches not only by price and brand but increasingly by flow rate. Patrick Krapf, Category Business Manager at Galaxus, says that «the filter 'flow rate at 3 bar pressure' is becoming increasingly common; it’s being used 36 per cent more than at the beginning of the year». Ranked 18th at year’s start, it was the most used filter when searching for shower heads in September.

Now trending: energy efficient washing machines, refrigerators and the like

According to the TopTen platform (site in German), which lists energy-efficient appliances, the most efficient ones will save you tons in energy over their lifetimes. Our customers use the «energy efficiency class» filter in their searches for washing machines, tumble dryers and dishwashers significantly more often than they did a few months ago. Relatively speaking, the filter is most used in the refrigerator category – one out of every four filters relates to the energy efficiency of the appliance. «We very much welcome this development; a change in thinking seems to be taking place,» says Thomas Häusler of WWF.

Are you also paying more attention to your energy consumption or is this topic getting on your nerves? Are you using multiple power strips so that you can turn off all your power hogs with one click? If you have any energy saving tips of your own, feel free to share them with the Community in the comments section.