Top Ten Tips
Low cost and no cost things you can do to save energy.
- Turn your thermostat down. Reducing your room temperature by 1°C could cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent. You could save around £40 per year.
- Is your water too hot? Your cylinder thermostat shouldn't need to be set higher than 60°C/140°F. (But keep it above 55°C to stop legionella growing in the system).
- Close your curtains at dusk to stop heat escaping through the windows.
- Always turn off the lights when you leave a room.
- Don't leave appliances on standby - turn them off at the plug instead, and remember not to leave appliances like phones on charge unnecessarily.
- If you're not filling up the washing machine, tumble dryer or dishwasher, use the half-load or economy programme.
- Only boil as much water as you need (but remember to cover the elements if you're using an electric kettle).
- A dripping hot water tap wastes energy and in one week wastes enough hot water to fill half a bath, so fix leaking taps and make sure they're fully turned off!
- Use energy saving light bulbs. Just one can save you £60 over the lifetime of the bulb - as they last up to 10 times longer than ordinary lightbulbs.
- Shower rather than bath, it uses less energy and water.
For more tips on being energy efficient and sustainable, visit our sustainability and climate change pages.