Reduce your energy bills

Reduce your energy bills

There are many ways to reduce your energy consumption, by being more mindful of your usage.

With energy prices on the rise, reducing energy consumption and lowering your energy bills is a priority.

There are many ways to reduce your energy consumption, by being more mindful of your usage and making your property more energy efficient, as a result you will also lower your carbon footprint. 

Understanding your energy bill

By understanding how much gas and electricity you are using you can make changes to your useage to find the best ways to save. 

The Energy Saving Trust provide a detailed explanation to help you understand your bill:

Watch their short video

Top tips for saving energy

Following these three steos could save you hundruds of pounds a year:

  • insulating your loft could save up to £270 a year on energy bill savings
  • draught proofing your doors, windows, and letterboxes leads to less energy that will be needed to heat your home
  • dial down the termostate - just turning down your thermostate by 1 degree could save up to £145 a year on energy bills

More energy saving tips

Select each drop-down below for more energy saving tips.

Smart meters

Smart meters provide an accurate reading of your gas and electric usage rather than energy suppliers working with estimates. The smart meter will send your meter readings to your supplier automatically and wirelessly at least once a month. 

A smart meter can support you in monitor and reduce your energy consumption.

You will be able to see:

  • what energy you are using
  • how much it costs
  • where you can make savings

You can use this to your advantage and manage your energy consumption by identifying higher energy usage periods & which appliances are currently in use. Smart meters are installed through your energy supplier, they are also available for pre-payment customers. Contact your energy supplier to arrange your installation.

Saving energy in the Bathroom

People often forget that our water use at home contributes to our energy bills. There are simple, small changes that you can make to reduce the amount of water and energy you use:

  • shortening the length of your shower to 4 minutes could save up to £70 per year
  • an energy efficient shower head could reduce the amount of water you use even further
  • by simply swapping one bath per week to one 4 minute shower could save £11 per year
  • turning off the tap when brushing your teeth or washing your face can save unnecessary amounts of water being used

Water calculator

Use the Severn Trent water calculator to find out where you can make savings to reduce your water bill and help the environment.

By signing up for free and using the calculator, you will be able to claim free water saving devices for your home.

Saving energy in the Kitchen

Useful ways to reduce your energy usage include:

  • energy smart cooking - simply changing what we cook and how we cook can reduce our energy usage significantly
  • use eco mode - many appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers have ‘eco’ or low energy modes, using these modes will save energy
  • fill them up - when using appliances such as your dishwasher, washing machine or even your oven, make the most out of the appliance’s energy use by running the machines when they are full
  • reduce the temperature of your washing machine - by washing at 30 degrees and reduce use by one a week could save £29 a year
  • avoid using the tumble dryer - drying clothes on racks inside or outside in warmer weather could save £60 a year
     

Saving energy in the Living room

We tend to use a lot of energy in the living room. See a few tips you can do to be more energy efficient:

  • turn off your devices - turning devices off at the plug could save up to £65 per year
  • install radiator reflectors - radiator reflectors increases the effectiveness of the heating system by directing more heat into the room by reflecting heat back into the room rather than allowing it to escape through the walls behind the radiator
  • wrap yourself up - simple but effective, using a throw or blanket is great way of keeping warm without turning up the heating
  • upgrading your TV - try and opt for LED models as they consume much less energy than plasma and LCD models
  • change your light bulbs - LED bulbs use 90% less energy than conventional halogen bulbs

Saving energy in the Bedroom

We have provided a few tips you can do to be more energy efficient:

  • seasonal duvets - duvets that have a higher tog rating for the winter and a lower tog rating in the summer will allow you to rely less on heating in the winter and fans/ air cooling in the summer
  • find alternative ways to keep yourself warm - this allows you to rely less on heating in the winter
  • close your curtains - closing your curtains as soon as it gets dark will help keep the heat locked inside your room and reduce heat loss by 17% (EDF)
  • towel dry your hair - before using an electric hairdryer thoroughly towel dry your hair to reduce energy usage 
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