The so-called energy crisis of 2022 may be behind us (remember the energy price cap increase?). However, utility bills may be one of the largest essential outgoings after rent and council tax. Learning how to save money on these bills, whether there is a crisis or not, will come in handy. In this article, we introduce tips that can save you money every year by making simple smart changes. Keep reading to know how you can easily and cheaply shave hundreds off your bills.
1. Smart Meter
That is right, just having a smart meter can save you up to £36 per year. The best thing is, your energy suppliers should install it for free. The handy device may help offer insight into your actual usage, but you are actually set to save just by installing it as suppliers use it to have a more accurate reading of your usage. What are you waiting for? Give your energy supplier a ring or go on their website to request your smart meter now.
2. Program Your Heating
You might be wondering if it is cheaper to have heating running on low all day or an intermittent program is better. We are here to settle the dispute once and for all. Setting your heating programme will be the more efficient and hence, cheaper, way to go. It only takes 30mins to come up with a program that works for you and your family. Too many variables come into play when calculating how much money you will save. Number of rooms, state of radiators, cut-off temperatures and insulation. But we can assure you that on a like for like basis, the program will be the money saver every time.
Another tip is to set the boiler temperature at the sweet spots for heating. If your hot water temperature is anywhere above 50 degrees, you are spending money heating water just to cool it down at the taps with cold water. Keep your hot water temperature at 50 and heating at 55. Depending on how high your set temperatures are currently, you can save up to £100 a month!
3. Maintain the Radiators
It may not be clear to everyone but inefficiencies are areas where energy is wasted, and you pay for that wasted energy. By addressing inefficiencies in your heating system, you can and will save money. Some of these inefficiencies relate to the state of your radiators. Don’t worry, we surely don’t want to spend money on new radiators. In fact, following the following tips will not only save you money on energy bills, but also extend the service life of your radiators. Here are the top tips for an efficient heating system:
- Clear out the trapped dust and lint. Ensuring your shell is clear means efficient heating and circulation of air. This means less work and energy to achieve the required temperature, saving you money.
- Radiator cold at top? bleed your radiators out. If the top of your radiator is cold while bottom is warm, this indicates trapped air. Bleeding the radiator is an extremely easy fix that you can do yourself to make sure your radiators are working at full capacity again.
- Do not use the radiators to dry out clothes. You might be tempted to use the radiators as a drying rack. But this is extremely wasteful. Instead, invest in a dehumidifier and a drying rack. This way, you make the most out of a warm room while saving a lot of money compared to a tumble dryer.
4. Avoid Electricity-Intensive Appliances
As a rule of thumb, using electricity to heat things up is energy-intensive. Think electric radiators, showers, kettles, hobs, etc. Minimise the use of these appliances where possible, or better yet, avoid purchasing them altogether. You can actually work-out exactly how much an appliance is costing you using simple maths. The power rating of the appliance is how much energy it uses per second, that is in Watts. Multiplying the power rating by the number of hours it is used in a month will give the amount of energy this appliance uses in Wh (Watt.hour, a unit of energy). Divide by a thousand to convert to kilowatt hours and knowing how much you pay per kilowatt hour (on your bill), you can work out exactly how much the appliance is costing you.
5. Make “Smart” Upgrades
It is has been shown that investing in smart plugs and smart lights saves energy over the long term. They maybe a bit expensive to purchase but once setup, they are likely to pay for themselves and pay you off over the long term.
In Summary
Cost of energy is guaranteed to go up imminently. Combined with high inflation in other areas of your monthly budget, it is imperative to start thinking about ways to save energy. We present 5 inexpensive ways to reduce your energy consumption and make for a more efficient house. Soon, we will dissect the benefits of making larger capital investments such as underfloor heating or installing solar panel, so stay tuned.
