The weather outside is frightful and we’re all doing everything we can to keep warm! But with that extra heating comes extra energy costs, not to mention the extra lighting from all your Christmas decorations. To counteract this, we’ve got some ideas to help you save energy instead – our 12 energy saving tips of winter!
1. Switch Off the Standby
We’ll start with a simple one. Did you know that you could save up to £80 a year on your energy bill just by switching things off at the plug instead of leaving them on standby? The worst offenders are our luxury items, like TVs, game consoles, and laptops. Make it part of your night-time routine to switch all of these off at the plug and start saving energy!
2. Reflective Radiators
Another little-known energy drainer fact is that your radiators aren’t putting all their energy into your rooms. Some of their energy gets absorbed by the wall behind them. Get more from your radiators by putting something reflective behind them, like kitchen foil.
3. Bleed Your Radiators
Speaking of radiators, are yours working as well as they could be? Check for cold spots on your radiators while the heating is on. If you find any, it’s time to check out our maintenance guides and bleed your radiators. Once done, your radiators won’t have to work so hard anymore, and your energy bill will thank you.
4. Service Your Boiler
For more general maintenance, look to your boiler. We recommend you service your boiler annually. So, if yours hasn’t been serviced in the last 12 months, it’s time to book an appointment. If your boiler is more than 8 years old though, it might even be time to upgrade it. Newer boilers are more cost-efficient, and you could be wasting a lot of money with an inefficient model.
5. Eliminate Draughty Spots
Loosing heat is not good at any time but especially not in winter, when you want to be conserving as much heat as possible. If you’ve got badly sealed windows and doors, invest in some draught excluders and weather strips. You could even think about improving your insulation to stop even more heat escaping.
6. Put Down Rugs and Carpets
For some quick and easy insulation, put down a carpet. Hard floors take more to keep warm. If you like your hard floors though, you can choose rugs instead. They’ll help you keep warm in winter, and then you can put them away again for summer.
7. Turn Your Thermostat Down by 1°
It may seem counter-intuitive, but this trick could save you another £80 a year! Most of us probably won’t notice the difference between 21°C and 20°C. However, if you do, you can always pop a jumper on and some slippers.
8. Optimise Your Heating Schedule
While you’re at your thermostat, take a look at your heating schedule. Is your heating on while everyone’s at work? There’s no point heating up an empty house, so make sure your schedule actually suits your lifestyle. Plus, don’t forget to turn the heating off if you go on holiday for some winter sun or to visit family over Christmas!
9. Only Heat the Rooms You Use
Similarly, don’t waste energy heating up rooms that aren’t being used. For example, if you work from home, your office might be in use but not your bedroom – so turn off the bedroom radiators during the day. Keep your internal doors closed as well to keep the heat where you want it.
10. Switch to LED Lights
LED lights are highly energy efficient. You can use less energy and still get the same amount of light, plus they have longer lifespans. Conventional bulbs need replacing every 1-2 years, but LED bulbs could last around 22 years! Even if you don’t want to go around replacing every bulb in your house, it’s something to think about when buying Christmas lights.
Bonus Tip: Put your indoor Christmas lights on a timer so that they don’t stay on all night and consider solar powered lights for outdoor decorations.
11. Make the Most of the Sun
There may not be much of it but there is some sunshine in winter. Try to arrange your living spaces so that daytime activities are near windows so that you can use the natural light where possible. This is particularly important if you work from home during the day. Plus, keep your curtains open during daylight hours to let heat in – especially south facing windows – and close them when it gets to dark to trap the heat inside.
12. Leave the Oven Open After Cooking
Finally, here’s an easy way to get extra heat without putting the heating on. Simply keep your oven door ajar after cooking so that all that heat doesn’t go to waste. It’ll also help your oven cool down quicker so, if you have a fan oven, the fan won’t be working as long.
If you’re one of those people thinking about upgrading their boiler to a more efficient model, we can help. Get a quote for a new boiler today to get the ball rolling.
