How to reduce a hotel's electricity consumption
We've gathered all the little tricks for bringing down your electricity bill!
The rising cost of electricity and environmental concerns have been headline news for several years now. Hotels are among those places that simply cannot do without electricity, and they are watching their bills soar. But at Styqr we always look on the bright side. That is why we have put together a list of all the small things that you, as a hotel, can do to bring your bill down.
Light sources
First of all, you need to make the most of what you already have and what costs nothing. Natural light is your best friend here. Try to take full advantage of it and use it as effectively as possible. In corridors or entrance halls, for example, the more natural light you let in, the less artificial light you will need.
For bedrooms, kitchens and all other communal areas, go for LEDs or low-energy bulbs. You get exactly the same light, at a much lower cost! Finally, you can also fit corridors with automatic sensors. That way, the lights are not left on day and night for no reason.
Heating and air conditioning
This subject is a little more delicate, and we understand that. It is the category that uses the most electricity. All the same, you can hardly ask your guests to shiver through the depths of winter or sweat buckets in the height of summer. Even so, there is still plenty of scope to cut your costs.
Make sure, for instance, that an empty room is not being heated or cooled excessively. You could also introduce a system that resets a room to a standard temperature as soon as it becomes vacant. And in winter in particular, you can check the thermostats in the rooms so that they do not go above 20°. Bear in mind that the temperature of a bedroom should ideally be around 16°.
Smart tools
Do consider fitting your hotel with key-card doors. As well as controlling access to the room, they can also control its temperature: switching the air conditioning or heating on when someone enters the room, and turning it down when they leave.
Smart window sensors can shut off the heating and air conditioning whenever a window in the room is open. And of course, the key to all of this is also having excellent insulation. If you are planning a new build or a renovation, do not overlook your hotel's insulation. A little research will also show you that grants may be available. Who said a hotel could not save energy? Certainly not us!
This table sums up the levers mentioned and the concrete action behind each one.
| Area | Lever mentioned | Concrete action |
|---|---|---|
| Lighting | Natural light | Create light wells in corridors and lobbies |
| Lighting | Low-consumption bulbs | Fit rooms, kitchens and common areas with LEDs |
| Lighting | Automatic sensors | Fit corridors to avoid unnecessary lighting |
| Heating / AC | Empty room | Avoid excessive heating or air conditioning |
| Heating / AC | Capped thermostat | Keep rooms at no more than 20° in winter |
| Smart tools | Key card door | Trigger or lower temperature on entry and exit |
| Smart tools | Window sensors | Cut heating or AC when a window opens |
| Smart tools | Insulation | Cut heating and cooling needs at the source |
Frequently asked questions
What uses the most electricity in a hotel? Heating and air conditioning. It is the heaviest item on the bill and the trickiest one to touch, because you cannot ask guests to shiver in winter or sweat in summer. So the savings come from empty rooms and from settings, not from the comfort of the stay.
What temperature should hotel rooms be set to in winter? Cap the thermostats so they do not go above 20°. A bedroom should normally sit around 16°, which leaves room before comfort is affected. A ceiling set once and for all avoids the 24° rooms you discover at housekeeping.
Should you heat or cool an empty room? Not excessively. Check that an unoccupied room is not running like a booked one, and set up a reset to a standard temperature as soon as it is freed. Once the rule is in place, it is the measure that asks the least of your teams.
Are motion sensors in corridors worth it? Yes, because a corridor lit day and night burns electricity with nobody there to benefit. An automatic sensor switches the light on as someone walks past and leaves the corridor dark the rest of the time. Before installing any, look at what daylight can do in that spot: it costs nothing.
How do you stop the air conditioning running with a window open? Window sensors cut the heating or the air conditioning as soon as a window is opened in the room. Key card doors play a similar part: they can trigger the temperature when the guest walks in and lower it as soon as they leave. Both systems work without asking the guest to do anything.
Are there grants to insulate a hotel? Grants do exist and they are worth a bit of research before you start building or renovating. We are not quoting amounts here, since they depend on the work you carry out. And insulation remains the foundation: without it, thermostat settings make up for very little.
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