Dad's home appliance trick to save $150 on energy bills: 'Highest-consuming device'

As a father to three boys and the not so proud recipient of a recent $1,400 quarterly electricity bill from Origin Energy, I’m sad to report I’ve found myself becoming a cliché. Not infrequently I roam the house turning off lights left on in empty rooms and switching off appliances humming away but not being used.

It’s the inevitable path many of us tread. But does it actually make a difference?

I asked my energy provider, and well, it turns out my vigilance is saving me at least something when the bill arrives in my inbox.

When it come to household items and appliances, so-called “phantom power or energy vampires are real,” Duncan Permezel, the General Manager of Retail Sales at Origin told Yahoo Finance.

“But not all of them drain power to the same degree.”

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“The highest-consuming devices are ones with processing units, such as laptops, gaming consoles like Xbox, PlayStations, Nintendos and modern TVs. Even some older devices like printers aren’t great at regulating power usage,” he explained.

For a typical Aussie household, standby power typically accounts for around three to 10 per cent of total household energy use.

“Costing around $100 to $150 per year,” Duncan said.

So it is possible to try and eliminate that from your bill, at least to some degree.

“When dealing with energy vampires, you can shave off some usage by turning off the ‘instant-on’ setting on your TV or gaming console. For the whole entertainment unit, try a smart plug or a powerboard with an off switch so you can shut it all down at once,” he said.

And according to the company, I’m not alone in my anal retentiveness. In a survey of more than 1000 dads by Origin, three quarters admitted to enforcing the “switch it off at the wall” rule in their household.

Another Origin customer recently revealed to Yahoo Finance how they copped a $700 bill just for the month after using their air conditioning a lot during recent heatwaves.

To avoid a similar fate, there are some key things to keep in mind.

“The best two tips are to try cooling a single room or part of the house, rather than the whole house, which could help to save between $361 to $1,232 on annual energy bills,” Duncan said.

“And try setting the temperature at 24 degrees – every degree below this could add 10 per cent to your energy bill.”

It’s also important for homeowners to clean the air conditioning filters multiple times a year, with Duncan suggesting as many four to six times a year as necessary to ensure optimal performance of the unit.

“Blocked filters can restrict the cooling output and increase energy use,” he explained.

The federal government in December ended its Energy Bill Relief Fund which saw $75 knocked off every household’s energy bill each quarter. The subsidy, which began in mid-2023, was extended twice to help alleviate cost-of-living pressures.

Electricity prices are now expected to rise 24 per cent from November 2025 to July 2026, according to figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and a forecast by Westpac economists.

State governments have also been providing their own subsidies. Eligible residents in Victoria can still claim back $100 on the power bill as part of the state government’s $100 Power Saving Bonus scheme, with a deadline of March 31 this year to sign up for the rebate.

But for anyone struggling with bill shock, it can be best to reach out to your utilities provider.

“For anyone who is having trouble paying their energy bills, please reach out to your energy provider today,” Duncan said.

“There is a range of support available for customers, and energy retailers like Origin have flexible payment plans, energy efficiency advice, and hardship programs which include tailored debt management.”

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