Are you sick to death of how expensive your utility bills are? Of course, you are, everyone is, but you can’t complain until you’ve done something about it. There are many ways that you can try to beat energy companies, and decreasing your usage is only a small part of it. Between 2006 – 2016, there has been a price increase of around 62.6% to the average electricity tariff, jumping from around £298 per year to £483. However, with the help of the following tips and tricks, you’ll be able to move significantly closer to the good old days and spend your hard-earned cash on the things that matter.
The Basics
Increase Insulation For Your Walls, Roof And Floor
Whether you are trying to heat or cool your home, it is important to ensure that the temperature remains as close to a constant as possible. By trapping the air inside your home, you won’t need to use your central heating or air conditioning nearly as much. However, insulation can be pretty expensive, so if you’re on a limited budget, you should perhaps prioritize the cheaper forms of insulation that will still have a noticeable effect, like flooring. Here’s a rough guide to how heat leaves your house:
Walls – 35%
Roof – 25%
Floor – 15%
Windows & doors – 25%
Get Double Glazed Windows
As mentioned above, 25% of heat leaves your home via your windows and doors, meaning you should invest in double-glazed windows to keep that heat trapped. Not only are double-glazing windows much more energy-efficient, but they are also great for security and soundproofing.
Switch Old Light Bulbs To LEDs
Changing your light bulbs from filament incandescent will, without a doubt, drastically reduce your electricity usage on lighting. LED light bulb technology has been developed to the point that it now uses 90% less electricity than the average incandescent bulb and 75% less than halogens. In addition, LED bulbs are not expensive at all, and if you signed up for a tariff with Utility Warehouse, they’d switch them for you for free.
Switch To Efficient White Goods
White goods are large domestic appliances such as fridges, freezers, washing machines, and dishwashers. We use them regularly in our homes and are frequently switched on for large amounts of the day, if not throughout all hours. Therefore, making sure that your white goods are energy efficient is crucial to your money-saving mission. It is now easier than ever to scope out the energy rating on each white goods item with the easy-to-use rating systems in place. Many types are now even required to be at least A-rated or above.
Switch Your Gas And Electricity Tariff
Switching your energy tariff is, without a doubt, the number one method of saving vast amounts of money from your bills. If you’ve never turned before, your eyes will soon light up with joy the minute you get your initial quotation, seeing how much money you are looking to save in the next year. Finding the perfect energy tariff has never been more accessible, with the number of comparison services available and the easy-to-use switching tools directly through each supplier. You don’t need mountains of documentation or bills; most companies can switch you by having your name and address.
Bonus Tips
Upgrade Your Boiler
Today’s boilers are much more efficient. They heat the water much quicker and without using as much gas in the process. You can also be safe in the knowledge that if you’re switching your old boiler, the new appliance must be at least 88% efficient, with most scoring more than 90% anyway. Depending on your situation, you may also receive help from the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme, which will help you with the costs of upgrading your insulation and boiler.
Use A Water Efficient Showerhead
Some power showers use more water in five minutes than a whole bath does. Not only is this using vast amounts of water, but you’re using a severe amount of electricity or gas in heating it, depending on the type of shower you have. Switching your showerhead can reduce your use of water, and thus electricity, by around 50%.
Hang Thick Curtains
Your windows may be double glazed, but giving them that extra reinforcement never hurt anybody. It can also be an excellent temporary improvement on your single glazed windows if you are on a bit of a tight budget. Remember, around 25% of heat leaves your house through the windows and doors, so get them covered up and keep your home nice and toasty.
Install Solar Panels
Solar panels are pretty expensive. That’s just the way it is. However, they make a significant long-term investment if you’re thinking about the future. The average solar panel price in 2017 works out at around £3,000, which would usually take about 14 years to see a return on investment. Over 20 years, this would see you make a 4.8% return on investment. Solar panels are available in all shapes and sizes, meaning the more you’re willing to invest, the more electricity you’ll generate and the more ROI you’re looking to see in the future.
Prevent Heat From Leaving Through Your Chimney Breast
If you have a fireplace in your living room, a large amount of heat is likely escaping through the chimney breast. There are two main ways that you can stop this from happening:
Buying a Chimney Balloon, which inflates inside your chimney breast and ends heat escaping while you aren’t using your fireplace. It is completely reusable and can be taken out when you decide to put the fire on.
Using an external fireplace cover, you can easily block the heat’s escape route; however, if you like the design of your fireplace to be obstruction-free, you may want to go with the first option.
Have you ever thought about how you navigate the mountain of energy suppliers nowadays? Find the Best Energy Supplier and start saving money now!
