Not only does conserving energy help the environment, it helps save your money too! That’s why we’ve put together a short list of ways to be more green and economical with your energy usage.
Take a look through this guide, and see what changes you can make at home to benefit your household.
Insulate
Without proper insulation, valuable heat can be lost through the walls or the roof of your home. What does this mean for you? Well, the more heat is lost; the more likely you are to keep your heating on, your boiler running and your costs rising.
To increase the efficiency of your house, consider improving your insulation to keep the heat in – this means you need less energy to warm your house to begin with!
Here are three different forms of insulation to consider:
- Loft insulation: Don’t want to lose 25% of heat through your roof? Loft insulation can save hundreds of pounds of energy being wasted and is relatively cheap to install.
- Wall Insulation: Very similar to loft insulation, internal or external wall insulation prevents energy loss through your walls. A well-known example is cavity wall insulation which traps heat within walls. Install both loft and wall insulation to optimise energy efficiency in your home!
- Double, or even Triple Glazing: Particularly important in older homes where it is not installed as standard, double glazing helps to stop your money going to waste on escaping energy you will never receive.
Upgrade your heating system
Were you aware that heating uses up to 50% of total energy usage in houses?
Radiators are needed to keep your house warm, but there are many ways in which you can control the level of heating in order to save energy, and save money. Take a look:
- Air source heat pump: Easy to install and supported by the RHI government scheme, heat pumps are an incredibly eco-friendly way to heat your hot water and lower energy bills. Consider installing a heat pump to store the excess energy and further reduce your carbon footprint. They are up to 4 times as efficient as the average gas boiler.
- Underfloor heating: This can be 25% more efficient than the standard radiator and 40% more when combined with a heat pump! With the right level of insulation you can make your home an environmental dream!
- Smart thermostats: An ideal way to control the amount of heat you’re using throughout the home – smart thermostats learn your behaviours and therefore understand when to power on, and when to power off. You can also set your heating to power on if the app senses you’re close to home!
See a further article here as to why it is important you install a heat pump now!
Take control of your heating controls
As we mentioned above, learning to become more savvy with your heating controls can contribute to a more energy efficient home and save you massive amounts of money in the process!
See below for tips to optimise your thermostat:
- Timers and Selective Heating: Use a timer to ensure that your heating is on for no longer than necessary but that you are still cosy in your home at all times. Similarly, if you know which rooms you are in at certain times of day, make sure you only heat those rooms then.
- Remote Control: Smart thermostats today are possible to use from outside the home, so it is easier to switch off the heating if for example no one is home.
- Reduce the maximum temperature: Even reducing the heating by 1°C can help reduce yearly energy usage by 10%, so it is definitely worth considering not automatically turning up the heating to the maximum on cold days.
Our team of experts can talk you through the importance of energy efficient heating and the solutions available to you.
As the world becomes more energy conscious, it is important to do your bit to reduce your carbon footprint – but to also future-proof your home.
There are a range of renewable energy solutions available; which in the long-run, will benefit your household and your pocket.
