The holidays are just around the corner. Time to fire up the BBQ, hear the sweet sounds of Michael Bublé, and be together. This holiday season slide one more focus into the stockings underneath the Christmas tree by saving some energy.

Brisbane Solar is here to help, with four tips to save energy over the holidays.

1. Switch to LED lighting

Some may argue the holiday season only truly arrives when the bucket full of lights comes out of the cupboard. Red and greens surround your castle and signal to any who enter it’s time to be merry.

There’s a way to keep your lights bright enough to guide Santa’s sleigh, all while keeping things green. LED lighting gives enough oomph to leave a mark on a starry night, but also possess energy-saving properties guaranteed to save you money along the way.

LEDs aren’t just for bulbs anymore, as plenty of fairy light systems come equipped with LED lighting. If you’re still sporting old bulbs, it might be time for an upgrade.

Pairing a high-quality LED lighting system up with a solar battery would go even further towards reducing your holiday footprint.

2. Throw it on the barbie

All the action is happening outside. Be it beachside or poolside, no one wants to be stuck inside minding the meat, so take your cooking out to where the fun is. What better excuse to take the holiday to the beach than staying eco-friendly!

Keeping a conventional oven on over an entire holiday’s worth of cooking may seem necessary, but the energy usage can pile up fast.

Just because something is a tradition doesn’t mean it can’t be made better. Switch up the menu enough to emphasize the grill. Whatever you were planning on cooking inside can adjust, and it opens up more room in the oven for desserts.

If the weather turns foul as Santa draws near, a quality battery storage system for your solar energy needs will keep the good vibes pumping, rain or shine.

3. Aircon wisely

The holidays bring with them the first true days of summer and we’ll take any method we can to beat the heat. Cranking the thermometer down seems like the simplest answer, but it’s hardly the wisest.

Combine your energy-saving holidays with easy upgrades and find blinds and shades specifically designed to keep the sun’s heat out of the home. You can even plan your day around the heat, ensuring you’re hitting the pool or beach at the optimum time.

Of course, when you do leave your home, don’t forget to raise the temperature even further, as there’s no point to cooling an empty house.

Solar storage technologies may have improved enough to power the air con all day, but that doesn’t mean it has to be done.

4. Unplug, unplug, unplug!

Most large appliances will constantly drain power as long as they are plugged in, even if your computer or laptop has a full battery. Heading around the house and unplugging anything that’s not being used any time soon can have an impact.

This is especially true if you’re heading out somewhere else for the holidays. If you plan on going away over the holidays, unplug any extra appliances at the wall before you go.

It’s always a good idea to keep one light on a timer to fend off any potential intruders if you’re heading out of town. Think about hooking that timer to a solar battery-powered system. These systems can save you energy by storing the power you generate.

This tip goes double for kids home for the holiday! Get them away from in front of a screen and out into the sun for well-rounded entertainment and save some energy while you’re at it.

Solahart has built a collection of the best solar products Brisbane has to offer, focused on bringing your energy down. With a combination of the most well renowned solar batteries and powerful solar storage, your holidays won’t be put on hold.

These 4 tips to save energy over the holidays combined with a quality Brisbane Solar system will bring on a December to remember.