> The electric power consumption at our place is under 5.5 kWh per day on average, with very few peaks. Slightly less than average for Belgium,
That's an average of about 230 watts. How do you get that low?
An idling iMac with Intel processor is around 70 watts, according to Apple. My refrigerator is suppose to average about 50 watts. That's halfway to your usage right there. In the summer, when I don't need heat, I usually have a box fan in a window to circulate air, which is another 50 watts. Add another 10 watts for my cable modem and router. There's probably another 20 watts total for various other things like TV in standby, a couple of smart speakers for voice control and music, and network switches.
So that's got me to 87% of your usage just from things that are happening all the time when I'm not even doing anything! (Oh, and there is an outdoor security light that comes on at night. I have no idea what its power use is (or even what technology it uses [1])).
Then there are the things whose power depends on what I'm doing. Microwave and toaster oven once a day to make breakfast, and sometimes to make other meals. About 40 minutes walking on my treadmill. Electric pump at my well to supply my water. Electric lights. Electric water heater for my hot water. I also actually use my computer and my TV at times, so they are often using quite a bit more than idle or standby power.
That's got me way over your usage on an ordinary day when I'm just doing my daily things. Looking at my records, the lowest I've gotten down to is about 12 kWh in a day, which I can hit in summer, although average in summer is a little higher due to things like an electric washer and dryer that I typically use a little more than once a week, and an electric dishwasher used a little less than once a week.
The internet tells me that about half the households in Belgium have natural gas. Are you doing with gas some of the things I do with electricity, like water heating and cooking?
[1] Seriously, I have no idea what the heck it is, except that it is not LED. It has been there as long as I've owned the house, running every night. It has accumulated at least 50000 on hours since I've been here, which is quite a bit longer than the expected lifetime of every kind of bulb I've found that otherwise looks like it might be the same technology.
> That's an average of about 230 watts. How do you get that low?
That's not considered low here. That's slightly below average.
> An idling iMac with Intel processor is around 70 watts, according to Apple.
We don't have desktops idling. We do have an old thinkpad with the screen switched off running as a home server. We use laptops plus two large screens.
> My refrigerator is suppose to average about 50 watts.
No idea of our consumption. I just chose one of the less energy consuming freezer/fridge combinations.
> In the summer, when I don't need heat, I usually have a box fan in a window to circulate air, which is another 50 watts.
We have heat recovery ventilation.
> Add another 10 watts for my cable modem and router.
Fritzbox dsl modem with builtin basic routing.
> There's probably another 20 watts total for various other things like TV in standby, a couple of smart speakers for voice control and music, and network switches.
No TV. One additional network switch, and a printer in deep sleep.
> Microwave and toaster oven once a day to make breakfast, and sometimes to make other meals.
Microwave, toaster, cooking hobs, oven, water cooker. All relatively simple appliances here. The cooking hobs are inductive. That saves a bit of energy.
> Electric pump at my well to supply my water.
We get our water from the city. No well pump.
> Electric lights.
All LED.
> Electric water heater for my hot water.
This is really the big one. One 24 kW flow-through natural gas heater.
> an electric washer and dryer that I typically use a little more than once a week, and an electric dishwasher used a little less than once a week.
We use an electric dishwasher very often, at least every other day. It's a fairly energy efficient one. Clothes we usually dry on a rack, though we sometimes use a dryer. Fairly energy efficient one, heat pump based.
I also run around 6kWh/day. Natural gas for heating, hot water, stove (but electric microwave and oven). I run a mini-itx Intel i5 server 24/7, a PS4 constantly I standby, a bunch of ESP8266 smart plugs and sensors, a projector in place of a TV (I think it uses 500W when it's on). No dryer, no particular effort to reduce electricity usage beyond what I was taught as a child. Three people (one of which working from home) and a bunch of pets in a 110m2 house.
That's an average of about 230 watts. How do you get that low?
An idling iMac with Intel processor is around 70 watts, according to Apple. My refrigerator is suppose to average about 50 watts. That's halfway to your usage right there. In the summer, when I don't need heat, I usually have a box fan in a window to circulate air, which is another 50 watts. Add another 10 watts for my cable modem and router. There's probably another 20 watts total for various other things like TV in standby, a couple of smart speakers for voice control and music, and network switches.
So that's got me to 87% of your usage just from things that are happening all the time when I'm not even doing anything! (Oh, and there is an outdoor security light that comes on at night. I have no idea what its power use is (or even what technology it uses [1])).
Then there are the things whose power depends on what I'm doing. Microwave and toaster oven once a day to make breakfast, and sometimes to make other meals. About 40 minutes walking on my treadmill. Electric pump at my well to supply my water. Electric lights. Electric water heater for my hot water. I also actually use my computer and my TV at times, so they are often using quite a bit more than idle or standby power.
That's got me way over your usage on an ordinary day when I'm just doing my daily things. Looking at my records, the lowest I've gotten down to is about 12 kWh in a day, which I can hit in summer, although average in summer is a little higher due to things like an electric washer and dryer that I typically use a little more than once a week, and an electric dishwasher used a little less than once a week.
The internet tells me that about half the households in Belgium have natural gas. Are you doing with gas some of the things I do with electricity, like water heating and cooking?
[1] Seriously, I have no idea what the heck it is, except that it is not LED. It has been there as long as I've owned the house, running every night. It has accumulated at least 50000 on hours since I've been here, which is quite a bit longer than the expected lifetime of every kind of bulb I've found that otherwise looks like it might be the same technology.