Scratch beneath the surface though, and there's a 94 centimetre LCD television, DVD and video players on standby, a 360-litre hot-water system, reverse-cycle air-conditioning and a 37-year-old fridge. In the garage is a bar fridge and chest freezer.

It all adds up to a half star out of five energy efficiency rating for the retirees' four-bedroom Tarro home and power bills of about $200 a quarter.

The Beresfords are one of six families who are striving to improve their energy efficiency through the Hunter's Power Saver Challenge.

"I'm hoping we can get the bill down a bit," Mr Beresford said.

Each family will have a Cent-a-metre device installed to monitor its power consumption, including the energy used by individual appliances.

Participants will be set a range of energy efficiency challenges to help them achieve their targets over the course of four weeks.

Newcastle City Council's energy and resource management team visited the Beresfords yesterday to help them prepare for the challenge.

"They use quite a lot of energy for two people living in a small home; the hot water system accounts for about a third of their energy consumption," energy auditor Karen Toirkens said after visiting the Beresfords.

"There are a number of areas where they should be able to improve their energy efficiency through the challenge."