Home Economics / Home Management · Lesson 11

Water, electricity and fuels; cleaning agents; care of surfaces, floors and furnishings

JAMBWAECNECO

What the syllabus asks

JAMB: Utilities in the home (water: sources, uses, purification, storage; light/electricity: meter reading, electric bill; fuels: cooking gas, kerosene, firewood, charcoal, electricity: uses, storage, control, advantages and disadvantages); Simple home maintenance and repairs (cleaning agents and materials; care of surfaces: wood, tile, Formica, concrete, plastic; floors: carpets, linoleum, mats,…

WAEC: Utilities in the home (water: sources, uses, purification, storage; light/electricity: meter reading, electric bill; fuels: cooking gas, kerosene, firewood, charcoal, electricity: uses, storage, control, advantages and disadvantages); Simple home maintenance and repairs (cleaning agents and materials; care of surfaces: wood, tile, Formica, concrete, plastic; floors: carpets, linoleum, mats,…

NECO: Utilities in the home (water: sources, uses, purification, storage; light/electricity: meter reading, electric bill; fuels: cooking gas, kerosene, firewood, charcoal, electricity: uses, storage, control, advantages and disadvantages); Simple home maintenance and repairs (cleaning agents and materials; care of surfaces: wood, tile, Formica, concrete, plastic; floors: carpets, linoleum, mats,…

What you will learn

Describe sources, purification and storage of water.
Read meters and calculate electricity bills.
Compare household fuels and their safe storage.
Identify cleaning agents and tools, including local ones.
Care for different surfaces, floors and furnishings.
Plan daily, weekly and periodic cleaning.
Make a bed correctly.

Key points

Water: rain, wells, boreholes, streams, pipe-borne; purify before drinking.
Store water covered; clean containers.
Electricity: kWh, meters, bills; save energy; safety.
Fuels: weigh cost, cleanliness, safety, health, environment.
Cleaning agents and tools; care of tools.
Surfaces: wood, tile, Formica, concrete, plastic, glass, metal, enamel.
Floors: carpets, rugs, linoleum, terrazzo, parquet, tiles.
Furnishings and ornaments: gentle regular care.
Cleaning plan: daily, weekly, periodic.
Bed making: air, sheets, blanket, mitred corners.
Maintenance: preventive, simple repairs, professionals for major work.

Start here: Water in the home

Water is essential for drinking, cooking, washing, cleaning, sanitation and gardening. A family needs a safe, adequate and reliable supply.

Sources

Rainwater: naturally soft; collected from roofs into tanks. The first rain after a dry spell washes dirt off the roof and should be diverted. Keep tanks covered.
Wells (shallow, hand-dug) and boreholes (deep, drilled): underground water. Wells near pit latrines or soakaways can be contaminated; a commonly recommended minimum separation is about 30 m. Borehole water may contain iron (reddish colour) and should be tested.
Streams, rivers, ponds and lakes: surface water, often contaminated by waste, animals and farm chemicals.
Pipe-borne water: treated and distributed by state water boards.
Water vendors (mai ruwa, tanker water) and sachet/bottled water: check NAFDAC registration.

Uses of water

Drinking, cooking, bathing, laundry, cleaning, flushing toilets, gardening, livestock, and in home businesses.

Purification at home

Boiling: bring to a rolling boil for at least one minute; cool covered. Kills germs; does not remove chemicals.
Filtration: ceramic candle filters or cloth filtering remove particles (cloth removes some guinea-worm larvae and debris but not bacteria).
Sedimentation: leave water to stand; adding alum speeds settling of mud.
Chlorination: water-treatment tablets or diluted bleach as directed on approved products.
Solar disinfection (SODIS): clear plastic bottles of clear water exposed to strong sunlight for at least six hours.

Storage

Use clean, covered containers with taps or long-handled dippers (do not dip hands or cups); clean containers regularly; keep drinking water separate from washing water; store away from contamination; cover tanks to prevent mosquito breeding.

Water-borne diseases

Cholera, typhoid, dysentery, hepatitis A, guinea worm (now eradicated in Nigeria), diarrhoeal diseases. Prevention: safe water, sanitation and hand-washing.

Conserving water

Turn off taps, repair leaks, reuse rinse water for floors and gardens, collect rainwater, use buckets rather than running hoses.

Worked example 11.B (how long will the gas last?)

A family in Kaduna uses a 12.5 kg cylinder. Their two burners together use about 0.4 kg of gas a day. How long will a full cylinder last, and what does that mean for the budget?

Days = 12.5 ÷ 0.4 = 31.25 days, about one month.
If a refill costs ₦15,000 (illustrative), the daily cost is 15,000 ÷ 31.25 = ₦480.
Ways to make it last: cover pots, soak beans before boiling, use a pressure cooker, match flame size to pot, and turn off the gas at the cylinder after cooking.
Safety: keep the cylinder upright and outdoors or in a ventilated place; test for leaks with soapy water, never a flame.

≈ 31 days; ≈ ₦480 a day (illustrative price).

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Practice questions

1. Energy used by a 75 W fan for 10 hours is

0.75 kWh
7.5 kWh
75 kWh
750 kWh

Show answer

A: 0.75 kWh
75 × 10 ÷ 1000.

2. The body that regulates electricity tariffs in Nigeria is

NCC
NAFDAC
SON
NERC

Show answer

D: NERC
Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.

3. A 12.5 kg gas cylinder used at 0.4 kg a day lasts about

50 days
5 days
31 days
12 days

Show answer

C: 31 days
12.5 ÷ 0.4 = 31.25.

4. Gas leaks should be tested for with

a lighter
soapy water
a match
a candle

Show answer

B: soapy water
Bubbles show the leak.

5. WHO advises boiling drinking water at a rolling boil for at least

1 minute
30 minutes
10 seconds
2 hours

Show answer

A: 1 minute
Longer at high altitude.

Key words

Borehole: Drilled well reaching deep groundwater.
SODIS: Solar disinfection of water in clear bottles.
Alum: Chemical that settles mud in water.
Watt: Unit of power.
Kilowatt-hour: Unit of electrical energy.
Prepaid meter: Meter with units bought in advance.
Tariff: Price per unit of electricity.
LPG: Liquefied petroleum gas.
Carbon monoxide: Odourless poisonous gas from burning.
Abrasive: Substance cleaning by friction.
Polish: Agent that cleans, protects and shines.
Formica: Plastic laminate surface.

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