[Anchor] Reporter Han Jiyeon is here for Thursday's Friendly Economy. Han, it's really hard not to turn on the air conditioner at home these days, and many people must be worried about their electricity bills.
[Reporter] Electricity bills have what you might call a magic threshold. When you cross these progressive consumption tiers, the unit price for the usage beyond that point jumps significantly. So, I calculated just how much this amounts to. With shocking heat that was enough to prompt a serious heatwave warning in Seoul, people are saying things like, "I go to bank ATM booths on the weekends just to stay cool," or "Airports have become a hot spot for seniors these days." This is all driven by the desire to go somewhere with blasting air conditioning and save even a little bit on electricity. So, I looked into how much electricity bills actually come out to. Electricity bills use a progressive system where rates jump sharply by tier. Normally, 200 and 400 kilowatt-hours are the baseline standards where the tiers change, but just for the two summer months of July and August, these thresholds are relaxed generously and increased to 300 and 450 kilowatt-hours, respectively. Therefore, if a four-member household used an average of 419 kilowatt-hours last summer, the bill would be 77,000 won for the month. However, if you blast the air conditioner and exceed 1,000 kilowatt-hours, it could climb up to 370,000 won. So exactly how much can you run it while staying within the threshold? There are many websites these days that calculate this, so I went and checked it myself. According to the calculator, for an average home, the first tier is already filled even before turning on the air conditioner. Based on a 15-pyeong stand-up air conditioner, you can stay within the middle tier for up to 5 hours a day, but at 6 hours, you immediately cross over into the highest tier. However, these numbers can vary depending on the type and size of the air conditioner and your usual electricity consumption.
[Anchor] That's why you prepared some ways to save on electricity bills.
[Reporter] I also have a bad habit—some people turn off the air conditioner when stepping out briefly, but repeatedly turning it off and on can actually result in a loss. There is a so-called "90-minute rule." Researchers at a major corporation actually conducted an experiment. Turning an inverter air conditioner off for just 30 minutes and turning it back on consumed 5% more power than leaving it running continuously, and turning it off for 60 minutes used 2% more. However, once you exceed exactly 90 minutes, turning it off before heading out actually used less power. Why does this happen? When an inverter air conditioner reaches the target temperature, it keeps the compressor running gently and sustains it with minimal power. But if you turn it off midway, the compressor has to run hard to drop the temperature quickly when you turn it back on again. For reference, fixed-speed air conditioners are the exact opposite. Fixed-speed units don't have a feature to gently adjust power like inverters do, so it is more advantageous to turn them off after cooling the space sufficiently. You might be wondering what kind of air conditioner you have at home, but if you replaced it within the last 15 years, it is almost certainly an inverter type, as fixed-speed models are quite rare these days. In addition, just raising the set temperature by 1 to 2 degrees Celsius (2 to 4 degrees Fahrenheit) can reduce energy consumption by anywhere from the 10% range to the 20% range. If neglected, dirty filters also cause the unit to consume 3% to 5% more power, so it is best to clean them once every two weeks. Electricity saved this way also translates back into cash. Originally, you had to save at least 3% to receive a cashback reward, but in the second half of this year, saving just 1% makes you eligible. You can get back up to 120 won per kilowatt-hour for the amount saved. You can apply on KEPCO's main energy platform, Smart Energy Life.
[Anchor] This time, you've organized the parts of the tax code revision that are changing to fit everyday life.
[Reporter] The system of giving tax breaks when a child is born is now shifting to a method of direct budget support. Previously, 300,000 won for the first child, 500,000 won for the second, and 700,000 won from the third child onward were deducted during year-end tax settlements, but this structure meant that households paying less income tax could not fully receive the benefits. Therefore, the government plans to switch to providing direct support at the time a child is born. The specific amounts will be announced in next year's budget proposal. There are also changes related to vehicles. The individual consumption tax benefit given when buying a hybrid vehicle ends at the end of this year. The government's stance is to concentrate support on electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles rather than hybrids, which are already selling well. There are also changes for those who use public transportation. Public transportation expenses paid with cards previously received a preferential 40% deduction separately, but because other support like the K-Pass has been expanded, this preference will be eliminated starting next year, applying only the standard 15% to 30% just like regular consumption.
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