How to make your home energy efficient
Whether you're an electricity super saver or a greedy gas guzzler, there are many simple steps you can take to turn your house into a terrific energy efficient home.
Click on the picture below to discover just a few of them.
How much do these appliances cost to run?
Do you know how much of your home's electricity bill goes to make cups of tea or to wash your clothes?
Sort these electrical goods by how much they cost to run.
The figures in our activity refer to how much it would cost, on average, to use an appliance over the course of an hour. Bear in mind you wouldn’t use some of these appliances, like the kettle, continuously for an hour at that particular wattage.
Some of these appliances, (for example, a washing machine) don't use a constant amount of power over a whole cycle, so we have given you an average of their power use.
Answers from lowest to highest:
Fridge; games console; electric radiator; kettle; washing machine; electric shower.
Where can you find electricity in nature?
Electricity isn't just something that is made inside power stations, it can be found in all sorts of unexpected places in nature. Click on the picture to find out more.
What are electric shocks? How do I avoid them?
Electricity is amazingly useful, but can also be incredibly dangerous.
If you touch something with electricity running through it, it will pass through your body before you have any time to react. If you touch something at a high voltage, you will get an electric shock. In some cases, you will feel a small tingle. However, the electrical supply in your home is extremely dangerous - the shock can be enough to stop a person’s heart. You should never go near or touch an exposed wire in your house or use appliances that have frayed or exposed wires.
Click the labels to find out more about electric shocks, how they're caused and how to avoid them.
Does your body contain electricity?
We all know that electricity is very dangerous and can seriously hurt us, but did you know that your body is actually full of millions of tiny electrical charges?
Click on the picture below to find out more.
It's the most wonderful time of the year…
…or at least it is when you find that the tangled mess of cables and bulbs that you've just rescued from the attic actually still works!
But do you know the science behind how light bulbs function?
Click on the image below to find out more, and check your Christmas tree to see which type of bulb you have!
Brilliant and bizarre power sources
Scientists are always looking for new ways to provide power.
Find out some of the more unusual ones by clicking the labels below.
