I tried going without electricity for 24 hours — here's how I survived

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As we all inevitably spend more time at home in this pandemic, there's no denying that our energy consumption patterns have experienced a marked shift.

In fact, during the circuit breaker and the early stages of our phased reopening, Singapore households used 16 per cent more electricity and 34 per cent more gas compared to the same period in 2019, according to Second Minister for Trade and Industry Tan See Leng.

But is it possible to stay home and save money on electricity? I decided to find out by challenging myself to go 24 hours without electricity.

Of course, as with any challenge, there were rules:

• Anything that requires electricity to power is out. This includes fans, lights and water heaters.
• No devices and no internet. I decided to go off the grid by putting my phone on flight mode, using it only for the occasional picture to document the day.

With that in mind, I picked a weekend for the challenge (I'm sure going off the grid on a work day would not go over too well with my bosses).

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8.30am

I started off the challenge bright and early on a Sunday morning. In preparation for my day without electricity, I'd planned ahead and enlisted my mum's help to wake me at 9am instead of relying on my phone. Like practically all mums do, she woke me well ahead of time — I guess sleeping in was not an option this weekend.

9.30am

My first task? Preparing my morning coffee.

Instead of the usual electric kettle, I decided to try making a fire from scratch with an improvised set-up consisting of an aluminium tray, charcoal, fire starters and a metal stand I'd found in my kitchen.

10:50am

Finally, after some trial and error and lots of waiting, my water was hot enough for my coffee. Sure, I took over an hour to make my instant coffee but that was fine by me — I had nowhere to be and no messages to answer.

11am

Without my electric fan, all I had was my trusty hand fan to beat the heat. I'm pretty sure all the fanning I did also doubled for an arm workout. Either way, the day had barely begun and I was a sweaty mess. Great.

12pm

Besides saving energy, one unexpected benefit of the challenge was the brief respite from the digital world of incessant emails, messages and notifications.

But that also meant the absence of Netflix and the mindless scrolling of social media — my usual weekend staples. I suddenly found myself with hours of free time and virtually no distractions.

By midday, I'd manage to finish a book I'd been trying to get through for a week. Maybe I should go off the grid more often.

1.15pm

For lunch, I abandoned my makeshift stove and opted for a fuss-free salad instead as my family was none too pleased with the smell of charcoal permeating the house.

3pm

Without my phone around to distract me, I even managed to finish some decluttering that I'd been putting off — definitely my most productive weekend in a while.

4pm

It was time for a shower — a cold one, since the heater was off-limits. Without the luxury of a hair dryer, I'd decided to shower earlier in the day so it would have time to air dry before bed.

Honestly, the cold shower wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I've always been a fan of hot showers, to the detriment of my dry, sensitive skin. But thanks to the balmy Singapore weather, a cold shower was the perfect way to cool down.

6pm

For dinner, I made do with another salad as I stared wistfully at my oven. Only about 16 hours to go before I would be able to use my beloved oven again, but who's counting?

7.30pm

Without artificial lighting, I had to complete all my activities for the day while the sun was still out - a first for a night owl like me. Instead of bumming around all day and getting productive at night, I found myself winding down by sunset.

I have to admit, I was itching to check my phone by now and it took all of my willpower to try to distract myself.

9pm

After attempting to do some reading by candlelight and feeling like someone from the Middle Ages, I gave up and went to bed at 9pm for the first time in years.

7am

I woke up feeling a little worse for wear thanks to my room which had turned into a sauna as I slept.

Just two hours to go till the end of my self-imposed electricity ban was over and I'd be able to switch on my trusty electric fan.

9am

Success! With 24 electricity-free hours under my (very sweaty) belt, I definitely have a renewed appreciation for the comforts of modern life.

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Electricity: It's all around us

It's pretty much common knowledge that electricity is indispensable in our lives, but this challenge really drove home just how many tasks in our daily lives consume it.

By cutting out electricity for 24 hours, I found myself having to plan ahead to complete various tasks that usually wouldn't require a second thought.

While going cold turkey and cutting electricity use completely isn't an option for many of us, especially if we have to work from home, switching to energy efficient practices or alternatives can go a long way — both to reduce energy wastage and to help you save on your bills.

3 ways to save electricity and save money

1. Switch off and remove plugs when not in use

This sounds simple, but it's one area that's all too easy to overlook. Besides draining energy, leaving your appliances plugged in and on standby mode can cost you about $25 a year. Leaving the water heater is even worse and can cost you $110 a year.

Even if your switch is off, the plugged in appliances can still drain energy - a phenomenon called 'ghost load'.

2. Use a fan instead of an aircon

It's common knowledge that the aircon is one of the biggest contributors to your electricity bill. Switching to a fan will save you an estimated $400 a year. If you can't give up on using an aircon, you can use it to cool the room, then switch to a fan.

You should also maintain your aircon regularly. Keeping its filters clean will help it cool the room with less energy.

And don't forget to set your aircon at a higher temperature (25 degrees celsius or warmer) to avoid energy wastage.

3. Use natural light during the day or switch to LED lights

If you're lucky enough to get good natural light at your home, take advantage of it and soak up some Vitamin D at the same time.

Switching from fluorescent bulbs to LED lights can also save you up to $35 per bulb per year.

As you can tell, I 'survived' this 24-hour experiment but there were definitely challenging moments that left me wondering how our ancestors ever got by in a world without microwaves, electric fans and the internet.

If anything, I'm fully convinced that energy is 100 per cent essential to our modern lives — so let's not waste it.

kimberlylim@asiaone.com