Joanne Diver is an example of how adopting smarter thinking can reduce energy costs in the face of skyrocketing power charges.

Worried about costs and concerned about the environment, Mrs Diver went to a workshop as part of the Border Eco Living Program last August and found the family-of-four’s energy use was 11kW hours per person per day.

“I felt quite guilty that we had been using that much energy and I hadn’t been aware of how much I was using,” she said.

“Whilst we were always conscious of our use of energy I didn’t realise what simple changes I could make to save energy.”

After ditching a fan heater, turning a second television and video off at the power point and doing more microwave cooking, among a range of steps, Mrs Diver’s household usage fell to 4kW hours per person per day in September.

Her latest bill which factors in summer conditions shows Mrs Diver, her husband and daughter, 7, and son, 3, are using 6kW hours per person per day and her average daily expenditure of electricity has gone from $7 daily in 2007 to $4.

Mrs Diver is keen to keep costs down with plans for energy saving lighting in her kitchen and a power board for her office to ensure the printer and computer is shutdown at night in the four-bedroom home.