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All around the World, the cost of energy is increasing. And along with that comes the cost of pretty much everything else! With that in mind, it's a good time to take a look around your home and see if there are any easy, do-it-yourself changes you can make to reduce your energy bills and save yourself some cash!
With that in mind, here are 5 simple, DIY hacks to reduce your energy bills. Let me know what you think of them or if you have some of your own to share, please let me know in the comments at the bottom of this post!
Shutters for your Windows
Shutters are an excellent way to improve a home's energy efficiency as they improve heat retention by stopping the draughts from escaping and keeping the warmth in. Just what we want in our home! Plus, let's face it they are gorgeous to look at!
There is a huge cost benefit in choosing DIY shutters over full-service shutter installers. You still get that luxury, beautiful look at a much lower cost than getting fitted shutters. DIY shutters offer plenty of easy-to-follow guides and videos to guide homeowners through every step, including measuring up windows, ordering bespoke shutters and tips on installing them themselves.
Shutters are made from quality materials, afford better privacy and look stylish. Plus they're made to measure and to suit any style! They look particularly lovely in a bathroom and afford that extra bit of privacy. You can't go wrong with bathroom window treatments for that extra privacy, and style and to help reduce those energy bills.
Use a Thermostat
If you are in the habit of cranking up the temperature of the house when you get home in the evening, you may be spending more than if you maintained an even temperature throughout the day. Using a thermostat to regulate your heat is more energy efficient than turning the gauge up and down because it takes less energy to maintain a steady temperature. You can still set the thermostat to be cooler at times and warmer than others.
You can also set a thermostat for your hot water, so it too is at a steady amount. You can gauge the time of day hot water is most used as well so you aren't keeping a hot supply when it isn't needed.
Of course, it is also worth trying to turn the temperature down a degree and see if you are still comfortable. A small bit of a change like that can make a difference on the monthly bills and it is a simple change you can easily do yourself.
Energy Efficient Light Bulbs
Another simple change is switching to energy-efficient light bulbs. Generally, the most energy-efficient lighting technology you can buy for your home is the Light Emitting Diode (LED). A quality LED produces the most light with the least electricity and improve your EPC rating. Fortunately, their purchase price is also continuing to go down.
Savings come in a few ways. First, LED bulbs last significantly longer, as long as 6 years vs roughly 5 months with a standard bulb. Also, LED bulbs use more than 75% less energy than incandescent lighting. At low power levels, the difference is even larger. Bright LED flood lamps use only 11 to 12 watts while creating a light output comparable to a 50-watt incandescent bulb. So over time, the savings of making this change is pretty huge!
Upgrade Old Appliances
If you have old appliances around the house, they could be guzzling electricity. You can test how much electricity your appliances use with an energy usage tester that you plug in, it will read what it is consuming and you can do the maths to see what you are burning per year with that appliance.
We recently replaced our old dryer that was 16 years old and was very hard on electricity for a new heat pump dryer with an excellent energy rating. Over the course of the next couple of years, the dryer will pay for itself and then we will have savings after that!
Switch Suppliers
Another change we made this year was to switch our electricity suppliers. By doing so we were able to get a cheaper rate as a new customer. It takes a little bit of time to make the change but it is well worth it! I'd recommend marking on your calendar when your price plan will increase so you can look into changing to another company again. That way you avoid getting caught out with a huge bill when the price hikes up.
Have you made any of these changes this year? Or something else? Let me know in the comments!
