Saving Energy

Save money and energy in your home

Always remembering to switch off electrical goods is a good start! Remember that it's important to let everyone in your house know about these tips so you can save as much money as possible. Also, don't forget to switch off your computer and unplug your mobile charger from the wall when you aren't using it.

1. Save In The Bathroom

• Take a shower instead of a bath and you will use 40-60% less water and energy.
• Don’t stay in the shower for any longer than you need to.
• Consider turning the shower off when you apply shampoo or conditioner to your hair. This will save 6-8 litres of water every time you shower, resulting in saving nearly 3000 litres a year.
• Make sure your taps don’t leak so you’re not wasting water this way.
• Turn your tap off when you brush your teeth.
• Install energy saving lights in your bathroom.

2. In The Kitchen

• Buy a teapot. If you are making tea for more than one person you can save on teabags and water. Use a tea cosy or use a woolly hat instead to keep the tea warm.
• Place the lids on saucepans while you cook as this helps to retain the heat.
• Use the correct sized saucepan for the correct sized hob and remember to turn down the heat once the water has been boiled.
• Defrost your freezer to maximise efficiency. If you need to defrost frozen food, place it into your fridge the night before you need it instead of microwaving it and wasting energy.
• If you are not using your freezer to its maximum capacity stuff it with newspaper to conserve energy.
• De-scale your kettle and it will boil faster.

3. In your living areas

• Check around your house to see if there are any unprotected openings causing a draft. Apply filler or sealant to these openings.
• Use draft excluders under doors. If you can’t afford these stuff some tights and place them under your doors. You could also place brushes in your letterbox as this can stop a draft too.
• Turn down your thermostat by one degree; this will save you around £40 a year.
• This may seem obvious, but don’t heat the rooms that you don’t use. For example, is the radiator on in your hall or spare room? Remember your kitchen may not need to be heated as it may get heated by your cooking anyway.

4. Cavity wall insulation.

• This could save you around £160 a tear on your fuel bills.
• Insulate your roof as this is where a 1/3 of heat escapes. You could save as much as £205 a year on your bills if you have insulation if you have none at the moment.

5. Washing clothes

• Rather than using a tumble dryer, hang out your clothes or dry them on a clothes rack.
• Wash your clothes at 30 degrees, most washing detergents work just as well at this temperature.
• Look out for ‘eco-cycles’ which use less water and less electricity.
• Clean the condenser coils at back of your fridge or freezer with a vacuum cleaner, the dust can reduce your freezer’s efficiency by as much as 25%.
• Don’t leave your phone on charge for longer than you need to and unplug the charger after you have finished.
• Turn off your oven just before your food has finished cooking as this will save energy.