Energy Saving Tips to Reduce Costs

There are many ways to reduce the cost of your energy consumption, which in turn leads to lower bills.

If you have already found the cheapest tariff on the marketplace but want to reduce the amount of energy you use, then read our energy savings tips guide to reduce your bills and do a little towards the environment.

It doesn’t matter whether you use both electricity and gas or are a wholly electric home; by reducing your energy usage, you also decrease your own carbon footprint and lower your costs even further.

Gas is more expensive than electricity

The average household energy bill is geared around 70% gas and 30% electricity so the more you can save on gas then the more your bill will be reduced. So if you have gas central heating and hot water, then look at ways to reduce the loss of heat through your home and the efficiency of the system generating the power.

Top tips for an energy-efficient home

Here are our tips:

• Get a qualified fitter to service your boiler. It may be energy-efficient, but it may need a service to work better. Look into any boiler scrappage schemes that offer money off a new boiler if yours is more than 10 years old. Industry experts estimate that just by renewing your boiler to a new energy-efficient one could save over £200 off your bills each year.
• Turn down the thermostat by a few degrees – many homes have theirs set quite high, and you should look at both the room thermostat and the one on the boiler.
• Fit radiator thermostats – in some homes, not all rooms are used frequently, so the temperature could be turned down. As heat rises through the home, bedrooms may not need as much heat as rooms downstairs.
• If you cannot afford new windows, try draft excluders and look at the front and back doors as well.
• If you are cooking on gas, then ensure you have pan lids on your saucepans so you can turn down the supply – this is the same for electric stoves.

Other helpful hints to reduce electricity costs

Energy-efficient light bulbs: It is estimated that changing light bulbs from the regular old style to new energy-efficient bulbs can save a home up to £78 a year in electricity. The cost of these bulbs was very high, but with subsidies, the price can now be as low as 10p each. In fact, some supermarkets are giving them away or allowing you to purchase them at very little cost. If you see these offers, then buy as many as you can. The new bulbs last for about 10 years, so you’ll be saving on energy as well as the cost of replacing them.

Consider Economy 7 electricity: The cost of electric power at night is so low that if you can use Economy 7, it can save you a lot over the year. This tariff is generally set between 12am and 8am GMT, but be wary of the tariff because the cost of electricity during the day can be higher. If you choose this, then you can have appliances such as washing machines programmed to come on during the night if you can stand the noise!

Those are the basic energy savings tips anyone can use to reduce their energy bills in the UK.