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How to reduce your bill

At Power and Water we’re looking for new ways to help our customers reduce energy and water usage, thereby reducing power and water bills.

Virtual energy audit

Use our Virtual Energy Audit to see how much energy your household uses and how much money you could save in each room of your home.

This is the new TV commercial for our Virtual Energy Audit.

The 45 second commercial is part of our energy efficiency campaign, highlighting how much electricity household appliances use daily, weekly and monthly. The commercial was produced locally, preview it here.

Home water use calculator

In conjunction with the savewater!® Alliance Inc a home water use calculator has been developed to provide a simple guide to your home water usage. It allows you to see where you are using the majority of water in and around your home and how this compares to the Northern Territory average.

Renewable energy products and publications

The links below will provide you with more information and details about our renewable energy products and related publications:

Available assistance and rebates

Use these links to see the available assistance and rebates from other NT Government and Federal agencies and eco groups:

  • ecoBiz NT (Department of Business and Employment) - A program offering energy audits and rebates for small to medium businesses.

Power and Water is providing a one-off rebate of $100 to small to medium businesses in conjunction with the ecoBiz NT's free six-step program and government grant rebate scheme. The ecoBiz program is aimed at providing small-to-medium businesses with individual and professional advice on energy, water and materials saving opportunities. The rebate will be deducted from the participating business' next electricity bill, on advice from ecoBiz NT. To be eligible to obtain the $100 rebate the business and premises must:

  • be a business customer of Power and Water;
  • be situated in the Northern Territory;
  • only receive the rebate once;
  • fit ecoBiz eligibility requirements; and
  • be approved and surveyed by ecoBiz NT.

The rebate is offered from 10 April 2009 until 30 June 2010.

  • COOLmob - A community project offering walk-through home energy and water audits in Darwin, Palmerston and Katherine.
  • desertSMART COOLmob - A community project offering home water audits in Alice Springs and Tennant Creek.
  • Energy Smart Rebate NT (Department of Natural Resources, Environment, The Arts and Sport) - A program providing households with a rebate of up to $200 after purchasing selected energy saving devices.
  • NT Waterwise Central Australia Rebate Scheme (Department of Natural Resources, Environment, The Arts and Sport) - An Alice Springs program providing rebates for specific water saving products and plumbing services.

    For a limited time, Power and Water is increasing several of the rebates offered through the scheme including the purchase and installation of 4-star or higher toilets, 4-star or higher WELS rated washing machines and Smart Approved WaterMark swimming pool covers. To see the some of the savings made by these increased rebates click on the following:
  • Alice Solar City - As part of the Federal program, this project aims to empower the community to become energy champions through improved awareness, energy efficiency measures, solar energy technology and smart electricity metering and tariffs.
  • NT Government Programs - Outlines a range of programs supported by NT Government seeking to address climate change.
  • Rebates (Federal Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts) - Provides a range of Federal water and energy rebates and grants.
  • LivingGreener - A Federal government website listing information about energy, water, waste and transport including State and Territory rebates and assistance.
  • Installing rainwater tanks (Australia Community Guide and Australia Business Directory) - Provides information on installing a range of rainwater tanks available in Darwin.
  • savewater!® Alliance Inc - National website portal providing information on water conservation.
  • AusIndustry, the Australian Government's business program delivery division in the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research has grants available of between $10,000 and $500,000 through the Re-Tooling for Climate Change program. Projects funded to date include the application of water capture and recycling technologies and the use of renewable energy sources to fuel production, including use from water biomass production. For more information call the Regional Manager Northern Territory on 08 8941 6261. 

Practical ways to help reduce your power bill

Here’s some practical ways to help reduce your power bill by about $900 a year:

  • Turn your air conditioner’s (large air conditioner) thermostat up by just one degree and save up to 10 per cent off its running costs, about $80 per air conditioner per year.
  • Reduce the running time of your air conditioner to five hours a day and save about $165 a year, based on running a 1.5HP air conditioner 180 days for eight hours a day.
  • Turn your television, DVD and stereo off by using the button on the unit (not the remote) or turning it off at the wall and save about $30 a year, about $10 off each appliance.
  • Switch to energy saver bulbs which use up to 80 per cent less electricity and save up to $100 a year per 10 bulbs changed.
  • Install a timer to turn the pool filter on and off automatically and save about $75 per year.
  • Cut the time you use the pool filter from seven hours to five hours a day and save about $100 a year.
  • Minimise heat loss with an economical pool blanket and save about $230 per year.
  • Use steamers and pot dividers to cook all your vegetables at once and save about $100 a year.

Practical ways to help reduce your water bill

Save about $400 a year off your water bill by changing to these water saving habits:

  • Cut your showers by two minutes and save up to $40 a year, based on a household of four having two eight minute showers a day.
  • Convert to a water efficient shower head and save up to $185 a year, based on a household of four having two eight minute showers a day.
  • Sweep your driveway instead of hosing and save around $25 a year, based on an average 30 minutes of hosing a week.
  • Use a water efficient washing machine and save $25 a year, based on five loads of washing a week.
  • For a household of four, a dual flush toilet will save about $50 a year over a single flush toilet.
  • Reduce the time you water your garden by 30 minutes a day and save up to $75 a year, based on watering your garden for 200 days a year.

Try saving 10 buckets of water a day, it's easy.

On average, each Top Ender uses 55 buckets of water a day. In Alice Springs each person averages 70 buckets a day – more than twice as much as most Australians. Find out how you can use 10 less buckets of water a day - save money on your bill and preserve our natural resources.

Here's some ideas to help you save buckets:

PRIVACY | DISCLAIMER | EMERGENCY 1800 245 090 | CUSTOMER SERVICE 1800 245 092 | POWER AND WATER CORPORATION | ABN 15 947 352 360

The Power and Water Corporation is the Northern Territory of Australia's provider of electricity, water and sewerage services.
We are one of the largest businesses in the Territory with assets in excess of $1.2 billion and servicing over 80,000 customers.