ELECTRICAL ENERGY CONSERVATION IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDING IN CALABAR MUNICIPALITY, CROSS RIVER STATE

Energy is important for the sustenance of life and economic growth of our nation. Reducing the negative impacts of the use of energy has been described as one of the key technical, political and moral challenges facing the world today. Energy efficiency measures have the potential to promote economic development and can lead to job creation and saving of personal income. Also, energy efficiency will play a pivotal role in the mitigation of climate change; a large part of the greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere come from energy generation. This study focuses on the management of electrical energy in residential buildings; though energy efficiency is applicable to other forms of energy. Another objective of the study is to identify commercially and behaviourally low-cost ways of reducing energy consumption in the residential buildings. Such that information from this project can help develop energy efficiency policy document applicable in Nigeria. During the course of this project, energy inefficient behavioural patterns of Nigerians were reviewed and barriers to energy efficiency development were also reviewed. Some of the energy inefficient patterns of Nigerians include; the Dominant Use of Incandescent Light Bulbs; Switching on Outdoor Lighting during the Day; Setting Appliances on Standby Mode; Leaving Appliance on when not in Use. While some barriers to energy efficiency include; Lack of Policy and Legislation; Lack of Trained Personnel and Energy Efficiency Professionals; Inefficient Metering System and Low Electricity Pricing. The technical methods of conserving energy in residential building were identified in the passive design and use of the energy efficient appliances. In this project the latter was employed for a four-bedroom flat. It was observed that the instantaneous energy consumption of the conventional electrical appliances was significantly higher than that of a combination of energy efficient applications and reduce the annual electricity bill by 24%. Although the cost of procuring the energy efficient electrical applications were 26% more than the conventional applications. This difference will be recovered eight months later and reduce the burden on our climate, thus justifying the investment in energy efficient applications.