There are many months in which the electricity bill gives us a bit of a scare. The control of this is not 100% in our hands but there are numerous actions that we can take to avoid paying more than we should, such as, for example, knowing the best time to save electricity.
Time discrimination (division in hours)
It is important to talk about time discriminating tariffs. In these, the user chooses the electricity tariff to take into account the time of day when we use electricity. Ideally, a time discriminating user finds the best time to save electricity and performs all possible household tasks in that time range.
Off-peak hours: this is the time when the price per kWh is cheapest. This is due to the fact that it includes the night hours when energy demand is lower. Specifically, from 00h to 08h, weekends and public holidays. If you organise your consumption in these periods you will be able to save on your electricity bills.
Flat hours: this is an intermediate point between the cheapest and most expensive hours. It runs from the end of off-peak hours, i.e. from 08:00 to 10:00, from 14:00 to 18:00, and from 22:00 to 24:00. These are hours when there is energy expenditure but they are not peak hours. What is the latter?
Peak hours: the peak hour band is the one with the highest kWh price of all. This is because it includes the central times of the day, from 10h to 14h and from 18h to 22h. You can find out what the price of these hours is when you sign up for your electricity tariff and make your approximate calculations.
The most expensive hours are called peak hours. In order to get the best value for money with time discriminating tariffs, try to have a third of your consumption during the cheapest electricity hours.
So what are the best hours to save electricity in Spain?
The night hours are generally cheaper than the daylight hours, as we have seen above. But it will depend on the type of tariff you contract. Anyway, just try to use electricity during your off-peak hours!
And if you want to know more about how to save money on your electric bill, check this out!
And if you just want to know how to eat something for a cheap price, check this out!
By: Alessia Cuofano, University of Naples L’Orientale ’22
