Know your enemies

In Dante’s Inferno, the Fourth Circle of Hell is reserved for those souls who either overspend or hoard. This region of Inferno is dedicated to those guilty being greedy throughout their lives. If Dante was right, this is the place I’ll go when I die, not because I’m a hoarder, but because I’m such a miser.

I joke about being a miser but the truth is I’m a low maintenance person. I hate buying stuff, hoarding stuff, spending money on useless stuff and then regretting buying them. Since I’m constantly changing apartments, cities and even countries, I had to learn to live with the strict necessary. And I really like it. I aim to be a minimalist one day.

I thank my father for giving me this adorable personality trait. He taught me since I was little the value of things, the importance of saving resources and caring about the environment.

That’s the reason I don’t mind having a TV, microwave, mixer, blender, air con, smart watches, or lots of electronic stuff. Although I do miss my former roommate’s AirFryer… and I wish I had a vacuum cleaner to get rid of all this absurd amount of dust that flies over Milan and ends up laying on every surface of my apartment. And I do have an Alexa, but since I haven’t signed up for internet service yet, she’s unplugged. Also, I barely ever use the elevator. And since I can’t drive, I’m used to taking the public transportation system, which in Milan is really great.

At the beginning I was curious and also personally challenged. The idea of saving even more made me a little pleased, I’m not gonna lie. After measuring my regular consumption of energy I found out that my average daily electric usage was already lower than 4kWh. So I knew that I would have to challenge myself if I wanted to cut it even more.

I started by identifying my true enemies. So I made a list of all the electric powered devices I use in a regular basis:

• Lamps (lots of them);
• A laptop;
• A smartphone;
• Wireless earphones;
• A power bank;
• A Kindle (that I barely remember to use, so never mind);
• A hair dryer;
• A fan;
• Refrigerator;
• Dishwasher;
• Washing machine;
• Stove hood;
• Water boilers;
• And a Kettle.

It’s easy to assume that if we use some device very often it’s probably expending a lot of energy, but it is not necessarily true. I discovered that the house lamps, my laptop and cellphone are not my real problem since their consumptions are surprisingly low.

My number one enemy is the washing machine with its incredible consumption of 2,35kWh/day. Fortunately, I don’t get to use it everyday, but twice every 15 days. But I am not the only one that uses it, so I had to talk to my roommate and we agreed on:

• Only using the washing machine on its full capacity;
• Only using it on the eco/fast modes;
• Never using warm/hot water;
• Trying to use my every day clothes more than once.

The second enemy I encountered was the dishwasher, representing a 1,9kWh every time it’s used. My flatmate and I had no problem on getting to this agreement:

• We’re not going to use the dishwasher on a daily basis;
• The only exception is when we throw a dinner or party with many guests.

The third enemy was actually two in disguise: the kitchen and bathroom water boilers, representing a consumption of 1,2kWh and 0,75kWh respectively. This topic was tough, since my friend and I are both from Brazil, a place where people take at least 2 showers per day (this value can increase during summer). We couldn’t agree in the shower issue but I’ve decided to commit to:

• Only washing the dishes in cold water during summer;
• Taking less frequent, shorter and colder showers (people say they’re healthier… God please help me on this one);
• Washing my hair every 3 days instead of every 2 days;
• Washing my face in cold water from the sink, simultaneously reducing the shower length and protecting my skin from the harm of hot water.

Lastly, the fourth enemy I identified was the fan. This device was saving me from the hot Milanese nights and from being devoured by the zanzare, those huge bloodthirsty Italian mosquitoes. I decided to cut sleeping with the fan on, but with an open window instead — at least until the end of summer season. I’ll be devoured by the mosquitos? Yes. But I will survive, and also save around 0,66kWh daily, so I think it’s worth it.

Being devoured alive by thirsty mosquitos sounds like a torture from Dante’s inferno? A little, but no pun intended here. I’ll get myself an insect repellent cream and keep you guys updated about this challenge :)