Top tips to reduce your energy bills

Using your heating and appliances more efficiently will make a big difference to your energy costs. Here’s a quick guide on how to use less energy and pay less:

1. Use your appliances more efficiently – changing how you use your appliances, like washing clothes on a lower temperature, washing bigger loads less often and using eco settings on appliances can all reduce energy consumption.
2. Add insulation wherever you can – loft insulation is the cheapest and easiest way to boost your home’s insulation performance. A third of a home’s heat is lost through it’s walls so consider cavity or solid wall insulation.
3. Improve your draught-proofing – stopping heating from escaping through gaps around doors and windows can save around £45 a year (Energy Saving Trust) and can make your home feel more cosy at lower temperatures.
4. Review your energy bill – make small changes like moving to paper-less billing and paying by direct debit can provide small savings. You can also ask for a refund of any credit that’s been built up in your account.
5. Use less hot water – opt for a shower rather than a bath, consider fitting an eco shower head to reduce consumption and keep shower times to less than 4 minutes.
6. Service your boiler – regular servicing means that the efficiency of your boiler will be optimised. Upgrading to a new boiler with a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves will provide savings of up to £355 per year if you live in a semi-detached house (Energy Saving Trust).
7. Adjust your boiler’s flow temperature – ask your heating engineer to reduce flow temperature to use less gas and improve running efficiency.
8. Use heating controls – use controls to set heating to turn on and off when it suits, to heat only the parts of your home that need it and to keep temperatures at a comfortable level without wasting heat.
9. Consider smart thermostats – use your mobile phone to control your heating remotely. Use alongside thermostatic radiator valves to control which rooms are heated and which aren’t.
10. Grants and benefits – check your eligibility for energy efficiency grants and extra benefits https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/home-grants/article/government-energy-grants-for-your-home-avOaP8E1ZGdx