10 Top Tips for Reducing Household Expenses

June 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Regardless of the economic climate, it is always a savvy move to assess your expenditure and look for ways to cut your energy costs. Small changes can make a big difference to your energy efficiency and reduce your outgoings significantly.

1. Know Your Accurate Energy Usage

Do not pay for estimated resources. Using a smart meter will tell your exact energy consumption and means you simply pay for your actual confirmed gas usage. So many customers are unknowingly trapped into paying for estimated energy, which can be very costly.

2. Secure an Suitable Tariff

Once you have established your actual gas and electric consumption using a smart meter, speak your energy supplier regarding the various available tariffs.

There are over 120 tariffs available for energy in the UK and there is definitely one to suit all households. Being more assertive in this area can save you money instantly.

3. Let There Be (Energy Efficient) Light

Lighting accounts for up to 40 per cent of our individual electricity bills.

Change light bulbs to energy saving bulbs for a progressive way of reducing your energy expenses. As energy efficient bulbs last ten times longer than normal high-watt bulbs, any cost in making this switch will be quickly recuperated.

Although many days in the UK are dismal, cleaning windows and opening blinds means that rooms can generally be lit with natural light.

4. Don’t Tumble Dry

Tumble drying your clothes is one of the most financially and environmentally expensive appliance usages. Though energy efficient products are now available, try to make use of any other means you have for drying clothes.

During the winter months, fill indoor clothing racks and radiators within items to be dried. Summer washing is generally less of a problem, with warmer temperatures meaning you can hang loads of washing outside to dry naturally.

5. Switch Off Electrical Equipment

Turning your electronic equipment off at night can cause impressive yearly reductions in your expenditure. Encourage the family to turn all laptops, consoles and computers off during the night, and unplug phone chargers when not in use.

Simply switching off a computer overnight saves £35 on the cost of running the equipment 24 hours over the course of a year. Once you have factored in the number of computers and other electronic equipment in your home, this could amount to quite a saving.

6. Moderate Your Heating

Turn your heating down by just one degree. Such an unnoticeable alteration to your thermostat holds the potential to cut your energy bills by a whopping £55 per year.

Enhance your savings by becoming more energy efficient. Rather than switching on heating and cooling systems, use doors and windows to regulate temperature.

7. Invest In Energy Saving Appliances

Most appliances on the market now offer detailed insight into their environmental impact. Buying eco-friendly products not only benefits the climate, it also benefits your pocket. The lower the amount of energy the appliances consume always equals lower energy bills for your household.

8. Reduce Water Waste

A dripping tap can cost up to £400 per year. Paying out for plumbing services now will definitely save on your water bill.

Rather than bathing daily, swap alternate baths for showers. Showers typically use 35 litres of water, whereas baths take more than double this amount at 80 litre of water per tub. Though this varies depending on the type of your shower, according to South Staffs Water, power showers still save approximately 20 litres on the average bath.

9. Replace Your Old Boiler

If your home currently uses an old G-rated boiler, of 15 years of age or more, then you may find that investing in a new A-rated boiler will save you money long term.

Gas burning boilers eat energy and money and are a costly way of fuelling your home. The government currently offers £400 to those who are looking to purchase a new energy efficient boiler, with companies such as British Gas doubling this grant.

10. Insulate Your Home

Alongside grants for new A-rated boilers, companies are being encouraged by the government to offer discounted (and free) loft and wall cavity insulation. Take the time to see if you are eligible for this as it can make your home significantly warmer, reducing your reliance on central heating.

Be assertive to how you are using resources within your home, small changes can make a big ecological and economic difference.

This is a guest post.

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The heat(er) is on! 5 winter home energy saving tips

October 27, 2011 By 2 Comments

This is a guest post.

Turning the heat on can strike fear into the hearts of many a home owner. Rising heating bills are not a thing of the past. They are present and there is no end in sight. Relief for high winter heat costs can be found in every leaky window, poorly sealed storm door, inaccurate thermostats and many other locations in and around your home. Seeking out the cheapest gas and electricity prices from local suppliers can help reduce total energy costs and should include home energy audits and payment plans to equalize summer and winter energy bills.

Top 5 Tips for Year Round Home Energy Savings

1. Obtain a free energy audit kit from your local electric or gas provider. Approach your home energy audit as a family. Involving children is one of the best ways to decrease overall energy consumption. Teach the kids about leaving doors open, leaving lights on and the television on when not in the room. Appoint an energy officer for the house who will be responsible for reminding family members about energy conserving activities.

2. Install a digital thermostat, which can be programmed to automatically raise or reduce home temperatures when the house is not occupied such as when parents are at work and the kids are at school. Lowering temperatures to 60 degrees on mild winter days for just six hours during the work day can save on your heating bills without compromising comfort. By limiting the time not to exceed six hours the cost for bringing the home back to acceptable living temperatures is minimal; much longer and the bounce back time is increased sufficiently to mitigate any daytime savings. Reducing overall temperatures by one degree Fahrenheit can save as much as three percent on the total heating bill. Reduce the household temperature by five degrees Fahrenheit and experience a 15 percent saving which is a number most families can easily live with.

3. Comparison shop for the cheapest gas and electricity from local private energy suppliers. Ask about payment plans, adjustable billing cycles and energy reform programs. State and local governments have options for lower income homes, providing subsidies for high winter heating bills. Grants for home improvement along with energy conservation tax credits, which can be applied to heating costs, are another way to reduce budget impacting heating bills this winter.

4. Close vents, use energy efficient space heaters and alternative heat sources for additional energy savings. Closing vents to unused rooms will reduce energy consumption for the entire house. Heating less square footage will require less energy. When closing vents, be sure to seal those rooms well. Install thermal window coverings to reduce heat loss and temperature fluctuations and reduce air exchange at door thresholds with the use of a draft dodger. Using an energy efficient space heater in cold rooms can improve comfort without increasing overall heating costs. Spaces such as basements and laundry rooms can benefit from temporary use of space heaters to increase temperatures for those rooms temporarily. Consider alternative heat sources such as wood stoves and fireplace inserts. Fireplaces are generally inefficient as heat sources. However, wood stoves using catalytic converters can have energy efficiency ratings that rival high tech heat pumps.

5. Appliance energy hogs such as hot water heaters, washers, dryers, ovens and dishwashers should be evaluated each season. Lowering the hot water heater temperature and insulating the water heater and the pipes can reduce energy consumption of this one appliance by as much as seven percent. Wash clothing on cold water settings whenever possible, reserving hot water for only items needing sterilization, such as sick room bedding or cloth diapers. Never start the dishwasher if it is not completely full. The same amount of water and energy will be used to wash five plates and three glasses and will be required to wash a full meal’s worth of dishes for a family of six.

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Why Going Green is Good for the Pocket

June 8, 2011 By 1 Comment

Going green is about making changes, some of them very small, to lessen the impact you have on the planet and its precious resources. But if it can be both good for the planet and good for your pocket then who would seriously not want to ‘go green’?

Saving money is at the top of most people’s minds at the moment, so check out your credit card at Moneysupermarket to ensure you are getting the best deal and see how going green can affect the rest of your finances.

Most of the things we can do to reduce our consumption of both energy and materials are automatically going to save us money.

Some of the more obvious steps to make your home more energy efficient can result in substantial savings, such as fitting good insulation, having double glazing and putting up thick curtains to keep the heat inside.

These simple tips are not all that can be done in the home, as by starting to think differently about how you use the different areas of your home, you’ll find out how zonal living can save you even more.

Zonal living is about only using energy as you need it in the home. Heating can be varied from room to room, ensuring that the temperatures in each room are adjusted according to when and how the room is used.

Keeping bedrooms cool at night, for example, not only saves you money, but also promotes better sleep. You can achieve zonal heating by fitting thermostatic valves to your radiators and using electrical timers to switch heaters on and off at appropriate times.

Most of us now have more electrical appliances in our homes than we actually use and each of them can be steadily consuming energy even when not in use.

The worst culprits are probably the TV and DVD player, because it’s so convenient to use the remote to switch them off. You might think you’re turning them off, but all that’s happening is you’re putting them on standby. Spend a few seconds actually switching off appliances at the plug and you’ll be amazed at the savings over the course of a year.

The same applies to cell phones. Nowadays, most of them recharge in a couple of hours or less. If you leave them to charge overnight, you’re simply wasting energy and money.

Could you cut down on your usage of the tumble dryer? Nothing in the white goods department uses up quite so much energy as these noisy machines so, if you can, buy a washing line and rediscover the joys of laundry dried by the breeze and sun; your bank account will reap the benefits.

Fuel costs only ever seem to go up, so adopting a more efficient style of driving will help your pocket as well as the planet. The Drive 55 campaign claims that keeping within the speed limit of 55 mph can cut as much as 50% off your fuel bill.

When you move away from a junction or lights, you can use up large amounts of gas, so learning how to use your gears smoothly is another way of saving cash.

None of these steps require great changes but taking a little time and putting a little thought into your energy consumption will help save you money and help conserve energy and resources.

Post by Moneysupermarket.

 

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