Quick wins
Keep the oven door shut as much as possible; make sure the glass door is clean so you can see what's going on. Every time you open the door you lose heat. Use the right tog duvet for the weather (low tog in summer and high tog in winter) to avoid having to use the heating (or air conditioning) unnecessarily. Draw curtains at dusk to keep the heat in for when you go to bed. Wear socks to bed in cold weather to keep toasty. Keep extra blankets by the bed so you can easily adjust your temperature during the night. Remember, if you are sitting in light weight clothes watching TV in winter maybe your heating could be turned down, if only by a degree. (It’s cheaper to put a sweater on than keep the heating too high!) Invest in energy saving light bulbs for your home - they last around 12 times longer than normal bulbs and use 75% less electricity, saving you around £65 over the lifespan of the bulb. Also, the Government are phasing out the old style tungsten bulb, so the next bulb you buy might have to be an energy saving bulb. Why not do it now and save money sooner.
Myth busters:
“I was told it was cheaper to keep my immersion heater on all day as it cost more to keep switching it on and off”
Wrong – you only need to put the immersion heater on when you need water. The energy used when the immersion is not needed is far greater than the energy it takes to reheat the water
“I have gas central heating and a gas fire, but I try to save on my gas bill by only using the gas fire and keeping the heating switched off”
Wrong - Gas fires are not as efficient as a modern gas central heating system with a combi boiler. By controlling the temperatures in each room efficiently (depending on their occupation) it is possible to keep a comfortable temperature in the room most used and be more cost effective.
Some other ideas from the Energy Saving Trust...
Cheap and easy draught proofing
Draughts in the home are a drain on your heating bills, contributing to up to 20% of heat loss in the home. The good news is that draught proofing is one of the cheapest and easiest ways to heat proof your home and save around £60 a year on energy bills.
How to draught proof your home:
First, check round your home for draughts. Look for obvious gaps round windows, doors and pipes.
Chimneys
Unless you have a working real fire, chimneys should be draught proofed to prevent heat loss. Chimney balloons are a simple and cost effective way of doing this, and come in a variety of sizes for every chimney. There are lots of different kinds of chimney caps about, so search around because savings can be around £15 a year.
Letterboxes and keyholes
Letter boxes and key holes can let in draughts. Fit a nylon brush seal or a spring flap and put a cover over a key hole to keep the heat in. Approximately 15% of heat loss is through draughts in a home!
The eco flap is another solution. The ecoflap fits on the back of your letterbox, and is designed to exclude draughts and bad weather from your home. It's quick and simple to install, and starts saving you energy straight away.
Keyhole covers will help eliminate draughts from your keyhole and cost under £10. Or use masking tape for a budget option.
Use a door draught excluder to reduce draught from under doors. There are some novelty ones on the market, or why not custom - make your own?
Doors and windows
Plug any gaps round doors and windows with a sealant. You’ll find different types at your local DIY shop, from silicon gels to self-adhesive strips. The staff at the DIY shop should be able to advise what’s best for your home. This can save around £25 a year.
Pipes and cables
Seal any cracks round pipes and cables that feed through external walls or the ceiling. Try filling gaps with cement or insulation and cover with an interior decorating filler to finish.
Floors and Skirting
Blocking the gaps around the edges of the ground floor or in between your floor boards can save you around £20 a year. Use a DIY sealant, strips of insulation or newspaper between the floorboard gaps. Insulating under the floor boards is the best option to reduce heat loss in this area and will save you more money.
| - Remember to avoid blocking necessary ventilation, like trickle vents on windows or vents near boilers and fires.
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Bleed your radiators before it gets too cold
Air bubbles in your radiators prevent your central heating system working properly. Bleeding your radiators eliminates the air bubbles so your central heating can work at full capacity when you need it.
To bleed your radiator:
1. Turn off your central heating to prevent more air entering the system.
2. Find the bleed valve, this is often a square shaped valve and is near the top of the radiator.
3. Place a bowl underneath the bleed valve to catch any leaking water.
4. Insert a radiator key into the bleed valve and slowly turn it anticlockwise - usually just a quarter or half turn will do. The air will start escaping with a hissing sound. When water begins to dribble out, all the air is out.
5. Tighten the valve as soon as water begins to flow, and clean up any spillages - be careful as the water may be scalding hot.
6. Switch your heating back on.
Wrap up your water tank
Hot water jackets cost about £15 yet can save you around £35 a year on your heating bills, so are well worth the investment. Jackets can be purchased from any good DIY shop and are really easy to fit – just follow the instructions on the pack. You’ll need to measure the height and diameter of the tank to ensure you get the right size. When fitting the jacket, remember to retain access to the thermostat (which we recommend setting to 60°C).
| Use this as an opportunity to check your immersion isn’t switched on if it doesn’t need to be. |
With winter approaching and temperatures changing, getting to grips with your heating controls will save energy and money. Take a look at what kind of heating system you have and how to get to adjust your controls accordingly.
Stop your bills going through the roof
An uninsulated home loses a quarter of its heating through the roof. Investing in 270mm thick loft insulation can save you around £145 a year. Loft insulation costs around £250 to install and should last indefinitely (40 years). You may already have insulation in your roof or loft. However it’s worth checking to see how thick it is and ‘topping up’ if it’s not think enough.
If you have been thinking about double-glazing, now is the time to do it. Look for Energy Saving Trust Recommended glazing and save around £130 a year on your heating bill.
Energy Suppliers are only obliged to read your meter annually, which means very often you will get an estimated bill. This makes it difficult to know exactly how much energy you are using and in turn difficult to know if you are saving energy by taking all the advice and using tips.
If you want to be able to see how much electricity you are using, download this useful Electricity Monitoring Chart.
Don’t forget the woolly warmers
Keeping temperatures down will minimise bills so try throwing on an extra jumper or snuggling under a blanket rather than turning up the heating. Turning your thermostat down by just 1°C can save 10% on heating bills.
Switch the heating off at night and use blankets or a hot water bottle to keep warm instead.
Seasonal recipes for winter
Eating and drinking hot seasonal food and drink can help to keep you healthy over winter. Most winter fruit and vegetables contain the nutrients you need for the season, and there are lots of great recipes to choose from. Guardian Lifestyle has some wonderful winter recipes from across the country. Good to know has a wide choice of dishes from casseroles to delicious desserts. The ever-popular River Cottage is another good option.
And if you need a new cooker, slow cooker or microwave. Or intend to buy kitchen electricals as Christmas presents? Look out for the Energy Saving Trust Recommended logo to save money on running costs.
