Ways and methods to reduce my fuel bill? The fact is it is far easier and more cost effective to reduce fuel bills either gas or electric by way of conserving energy. There are many steps you could take to increase your effective use of energy but there are several you must take… In the U.K natural gas supplies are diminishing and the U.K as a whole is having to import an increasingly larger overall percentage from abroad. Every day in the newspapers, on the radio and on TV we are told about rising energy costs. We have no control over this…. Or can we plan now for the future?
We are becoming increasingly dependent on these imports and effectively the cost of wholesale natural gas is set to escalate even more. Is this the thin end of the wedge? Unfortunately the answer is yes! The proof is there to see fuel bills have been rising. U.K energy companies are slaves to fortune like the rest of us with the wholesale price of gas to them increasing in leaps and bounds. Who ultimately has to pay for the higher cost of natural gas? Yes you guessed correctly we all do just look at your bill!
What can you do right now to stem the tide? … Save energy. Space heating is expensive most of us have central heating. Most of us in the U.K have ‘wet’ radiators. Did you know that a considerable amount of energy is wasted through the walls of the house behind these radiators? A radiator doesn’t just heat the room it has two sides, doesn’t it! Low cost radiator insulation panels fixed to the wall behind a radiator will in simple terms reflect the heat which ordinarily would heat the wall back into the room. The rising air curtain extending 2-3 metres above the radiator prevents heat dissipation through the wall and any window above.
Typically by fitting these simple DIY panels, an 8 - 15% reduction of the boilers annual fuel usage can be expected (when calculated using EEO approved analysis). Energy is saved and your fuel bills are substantially reduced representing a payback period from (6 to 24 months). The panels are literally ‘stuck’ to the wall behind the radiators in a home or commercial building taking 5 minutes per radiator. Refer to our pricelist 8-10 radiators can be ‘insulated’ at a cost of only £64.99 including postage and packing delivered to your front door!
In our opinion no other low cost measure can ‘pay for itself’ in such a short period of time and continue doing its job for years to come!
How many items of electrical equipment around the home do you leave on standby? You would be amazed how much energy is wasted just so you don’t have to flick a switch once a day. For the whole of the period you are not using that item of electrical equipment it is costing you money by using up energy, needlessly! Buy some digital timer switches and set them to switch off the power at a set time after you have gone to bed. If you have left an item on standby by mistake the timer will switch it off for you. You could set the timer to switch the power back on again when you normally get in from work or when you normally use that particular electrical appliance. If you can’t remember the last time you used it then save yourself the cost of the timer switch and just turn it off now! I actually discovered that I had left a video recorder in the bedroom on standby for nine months without watching it. What a complete waste of electricity!
Do you leave lights on in rooms when there is nobody in that room. This is a bad habit, like smoking, leaving the toilet seat up or picking your nose it can be broken, switch it off! If you forget to switch it off then buy motion detector light switches that turn them off automatically for you after a predetermined time.
Thinking about saving money on hot water then consider solar hot water panels they are suitable for heating domestic hot water and swimming pools etc – they make a contribution even in the winter! One unit is adequate for an average household (3-4 people), and it is modular, so you can add more if required. A single panel is sufficient for a 200 litre cylinder, but you can fit 2 or more for high water usage, or for heating swimming pools or under floor heating. Some types of renewable energy are only available in certain locations, however free solar heating is potentially available to almost every house in the UK! Every house should have one -really! And with an overall efficiency of almost 80%, they are much more efficient than electric photovoltaic solar panels (efficiency of 7-15%). If we compare them on a like-for-like basis, the price of an essentialspark.com supplied Solar Water Heater is around 30p/watt (compared to £6+/watt for solar photovoltaics!)
How old is you central heating boiler? Chances are it is over 5 years old, probability is it is not very efficient. Modern condensing boilers are very efficient in comparison. How well does your hot water tank conserve heat? Is it insulated? Is it triple insulated?
What about draught proofing? Any draughts around your outside doors? Letterbox? Window frames? If you have then you might as well take £5 notes and slot them through any cracks and let them blow away! In effect this is what you are doing but you can’t see it! You can however feel it when you get your bill. Draft proofing doesn’t cost a great deal and your average DIY’er can do a worthwhile job. There are many strips and cushion draught excluder tapes available at low cost at your local DIY store. You can even get an excluder for your letterbox!
Have you considered replacement UPVC windows and doors. O.K they can cost you a lot but they can also reduce heating costs. Many companies now provide not just double glazed but triple glazed self cleaning units. If you factor in the time and expense saved on painting window frames and outside doors every few years …it makes you think…doesn’t it!
Is your loft insulation adequate ie thick enough?
What about cavity wall insulation would this be suitable for your property.
If just one energy saving light bulb was fitted in every household in the UK this would be save enough electricity to power lighting in three million homes for a year.
Heat lost in UK homes annually through loft space and walls is sufficient to heat five million homes for a year.
Replacing an old washing machine with one that is energy efficient could save enough money on electricity to pay for your washing powder for up to six months.
