During these challenging times we all want to save money on our energy bills. Here, we’ve collated some handy energy-saving tips that should help to lower your energy bills.
1. Adjust your thermostat
Try setting your thermostat to the lowest comfortable temperature. Studies show that turning your thermostat down by just 1 degree can save around £60 a year. Once you’re happy with your thermostat setting you shouldn’t have to change it.
4. Adjust the temperature in different rooms
Remember, not all rooms need to be kept at the same temperature. For example, if you spend most of your time in the living room, you can have a higher temperature there but a lower temperature in the bathroom.
7. Choose showers instead of baths
Showers use much less hot water than baths. Remember the shorter the shower, the more money you’ll save. It’s estimated that reducing your shower time to just 4 minutes could save a typical household around £95 a year. Also consider your shower temperature. Although very hot showers can be enjoyable, it’s a good idea to lower the temperature slightly to save money.
10. Pick energy efficient light bulbs
They might be slightly more expensive than regular light bulbs, however long-term they will help you to save a lot of money. LED light bulbs are considered the most cost efficient.
2. Turn off your heating
Turn the heating off when you’re not in so you’re not warming an empty home. Also at nighttime, when sleeping under a duvet, you can probably turn the heating down or off completely.
5. Don’t leave taps running
When washing up or brushing your teeth, only use water when you need it, instead of having the taps running in the background. A running tap can use more than 10 litres of water a minute. If you don’t have a dishwasher, consider using a washing-up bowl instead of having the tap running constantly.
8. Address dripping taps
A dripping tap can waste thousands of litres of water a year, which will increase your energy bills unnecessarily. Make sure taps are properly turned off and change washers promptly if required.
11. Turn lights off
Make sure you turn lights off when leaving a room. Also consider using natural light when you can, by opening blinds and curtains during the daytime. There might be some areas of the home which don’t require too much light, for example, the hallway. In these instances, it could be a good idea to keep the lights turned off at all times.
3. Don’t block radiators
Make sure there’s nothing blocking radiators, such as furniture or heavy curtains. Keeping space in front of radiators open will allow heat to spread into the room effectively.
6. Install a water efficient shower head
You can considerably reduce your hot water consumption by replacing an inefficient shower head with a water efficient model. It’s estimated that a typical household could save around £45 on their gas bills and £25 on their water bills by switching to a water efficient shower head.
9. Invest in smart devices
Smart devices, such as in-home displays, encourage households to make informed decisions towards reducing their energy use, avoiding waste.
12. Change habits, control your bills
Regularly monitor your bills to see how much energy you’re consuming. Try setting yourself challenges to lower your consumption before your next bill comes in. Regularly checking how much you spend on energy will determine how effective these energy saving tips are. Once you get used to implementing these small changes, they will become second nature and saving money on your energy bills will seem easy.