As the mercury drops and winter approaches Ausgrid is urging households to think carefully when buying a new heater and to use it wisely.

One of the coldest December months on record has helped drive down average household electricity use by more than five per cent across the Ausgrid electricity network, new analysis covering the last six months of 2011 shows.

Energy use across the Sydney CBD fell by about 10 per cent during Earth Hour, according to analysis from Ausgrid’s energy efficiency team.

Low income households are ditching their old energy and water guzzling fridges and washing machines and saving up to $200 off their annual household bills via a scheme being trialled by electricity distributor Ausgrid.

Work to connect four 40 tonne transformers, electrical switchgear and protection equipment has started as part of the replacement of two major electrical supply points in the Sutherland Shire.

Ausgrid Managing Director George Maltabarow has thanked the past management of Ausgrid Stadium for the opportunity to support the local sporting community as the naming rights sponsor for the past 10 years.

Starting today, Ausgrid is searching for a family to live rent-free for over a year in the Smart Home in Newington, to test new energy and water technology and blog about it.

In the height of summer households generally look to the air conditioner to keep them cool but choosing the right one and using it wisely can help keep your energy bill down.

Above ground power lines will be removed from a section of River Road, Greenwich and placed underground to improve the reliability of power supply to the local area.

The search is on for the Jetsons 2.0 – the next generation smart home family to test energy savings technology and home power generators as part of an experiment with new smart grid applications.