Energy sobriety, every action counts

Energy sobriety is an approach that aims to reduce energy consumption without compromising comfort. It is necessary to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and to tackle climate change.

There are many actions that can be taken to achieve this goal. They can be implemented at every level, from individuals to businesses and local authorities.

Switching off the lights when leaving a room, turning down the heating, choosing public transport or cycling, reducing water consumption, insulating lofts and windows, replacing household appliances with more efficient models, or investing in renewable energy solutions such as solar panels or wind turbines…

Energy sobriety is a collective effort that requires everyone’s commitment. By adopting simple everyday habits, we can all help to reduce our energy consumption and protect our planet.

The French Ministry for Energy Transition has published a 50-page brochure, available on its website, recommending a number of actions to reduce energy consumption.

10 actions for greater energy sobriety:

1. Set your heating to a maximum of 19 °C and lower the temperature to 16 °C at night.

2. Install a programmable thermostat to manage your heating.

3. Turn the heating down from 19 °C to 18 °C on days of high strain on the electricity system, when the EcoWatt* signal is red.

4. Set your water heater to 55 °C and take shorter showers.

5. Car-share, take the train rather than the plane, and choose the train and public transport over the car whenever possible.

6. Switch off all your appliances that are running or on standby when they are not in use.

7. Shift your use of electrical appliances outside peak periods (8 am–1 pm / 6 pm–8 pm).

8. Switch off the lights when you leave a room and change to LED lighting.

9. Generate solar PV power for self-consumption and feed the surplus back into the grid.

10. Keep your smartphone or PC for longer, or opt for refurbished equipment.

* You can check the EcoWatt “electricity weather forecast” at any time, in partnership with RTE (the French transmission system operator). A genuine weather forecast for electricity, Ecowatt rates the level of consumption in France in real time. At every moment, clear signals indicate the right actions to take to keep everyone supplied with electricity. It is the reference indicator of the level of strain on the electricity system. Much like the Bison Futé service for road traffic, the Écowatt system shows the level of strain on the electricity system using three colours.

• Green 📗: normal situation
• Orange 📙: electricity system under strain, in principle without power cuts, but without enough margin to cope with an unexpected event. Actions to reduce consumption are welcome.
• Red 📕: the electricity system is under very heavy strain and forecast consumption cannot be met. Without a voluntary reduction in consumption, targeted power cuts are inevitable.

An orange or red Écowatt signal is announced three days in advance, by text message for registered users or via the RTE app, so that every consumer can plan ahead as best they can.

Reducing our impact on global warming is everyone’s business!

NodOn offers solutions to help you reduce your energy consumption, switch lights off automatically, stop radiators and air conditioning when you open the windows, monitor your solar PV production…