How to Save Electricity and Reduce Your Gas Bill

Where You’re Bill Actually Comes From

Before jumping into tips, it helps to know what's driving the cost. Heating and cooling typically account for around 40% of household energy use, making it the single biggest category on most bills. Hot water is usually the second-largest use, often making up 15–27% of total household energy, in some homes particularly in Perth, seeing water heating alone eat up nearly a third of their bill. Refrigeration, standby power, lighting, and laundry make up smaller but still meaningful shares. Understanding this breakdown is the real starting point for anyone serious about learning how to save electricity long-term, rather than chasing small wins that barely move the needle. After finding your issue, get a quote and have it sorted out with our licensed and trusted technicians.

1. Get smarter about heating and cooling

Every extra degree on your thermostat adds roughly 10% to your energy use, so setting your air conditioner a few degrees closer to outdoor temperature makes a real difference. Servicing your unit annually and using ceiling fans alongside it also reduces how hard it needs to work and helps in saving electricity.

2. Target hot water usage specifically

Since hot water systems run more or less year-round, small changes compound quickly. Lowering your storage tank's thermostat to around 60°C typically cuts energy use by 5–10% without affecting comfort or safety. Shorter showers and fixing dripping hot taps also add up over a year.

3. Kill standby power

Devices left plugged in but "off" - TVs, routers, game consoles, microwaves are quietly draw 5 to 10% of your total electricity bill. A power board with a switch makes this an easy nightly habit rather than something you have to remember appliance by appliance.

4. Wash smart, dry smart

Switching your washing machine to a cold-water cycle can cut its energy use by around 80%, since most of the cost comes from heating water, not spinning the drum. Line-drying instead of using a dryer saves even more.

5. Check for hidden faults

If your bill has crept up without any real change in habits, it's worth having a licensed electrician check for ageing or damaged wiring, frayed insulation and loose connections let electricity leak away before it even reaches your appliances, quietly inflating your usage every month.

Gas and Electricity: Why Dual-Fuel Homes Need Both Strategies

Most Australian households don't run on electricity alone. Gas and electricity work together for heating, cooking, and hot water in a huge number of homes, which means a savings plan focused on only one fuel leaves money on the table. If you've already tackled your electricity habits, the same logic applies to your gas bill: zone your heating so you're only warming rooms you're using, close doors to unused spaces, and set your thermostat to 18 to 20°C rather than pushing it higher out of habit.

Daily supply charges are also worth checking, These fixed fees apply no matter how much gas you use, and can make up 20–40% of your total electricity and gas costs combined, meaning the plan you're on matters as much as your usage habits. Comparing electricity plans annually, rather than staying on a default rate, is consistently one of the highest-impact, lowest-effort ways to save.

Best Energy Saving Tips for the Whole Household

Pulling it together, the best energy saving tips aren't complicated — they're just consistent:

None of these require a full home renovation they're habit and maintenance changes that, stacked together, meaningfully answer the question of how to save on bills month after month, not just once.

When Usage Habits Aren't the Whole Story

Sometimes the issue isn't behaviour at all. It could be a fridge seal that's worn out, an air conditioner overdue for a service, or an electrical fault somewhere in the home.

This is where getting a professional set of eyes on the problem can help. Mr Handy's licensed tradespeople can inspect and fix these kinds of hidden issues, from inefficient appliances to faulty wiring, so your bill reflects what you're actually using rather than what's being wasted behind the scenes.