Warm and Well is a service which offers free, local energy efficiency advice to households across Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire. Local Warm and Well advocate Mike Ellaby recently came to our Carers Rights Day event and ran a workshop for carers about keeping warm and healthy in their homes.
Here are some of Warm and Well’s Top Tips for saving energy in the home.
- Programme your heating
Make sure you have a programmable thermostat and are using it! If you’re not sure how to do this, you should be able to find manuals for most thermostats online, or ask the Warm and Well energy advisors to help. - Turn down your thermostat
Turning down your heating by just one degree could cut your heating bill by up to 10%. Avoid using plug-in heaters if possible, they are expensive to run. - Turn things off
Get into the habit of turning off appliances and lighting that you’re not using. Turn lights off when you go out of the room or during the day and don’t leave appliances like bathroom extractor fans on for long periods as they use a lot of energy. - Use low-energy lightbulbs
Replacing your lightbulbs with low-energy equivalents can make a huge difference to your energy bill. LEDs can use 90% less energy than standard lightbulbs. - Shrink your bills, not your clothes
Ninety percent of a washing machine’s energy is spent heating the water, so wash your clothes at 30-40°C instead. This will help look after your clothes for longer and save you money. - Save in the kitchen
Boiling only as much water as you need and using a bowl to wash up instead of running dishes under the tap can save both energy and water. - Insulate your hot water tank
If your home has a hot water cylinder you can insulate the tank to keep your water warm for longer. - Keep the heat in and the cold out
Insulation is one of the best ways of saving energy. Draft-proof your home whenever you can feel cold spots. Warm and Well can often help fund this. - Check your tariff
If you haven’t checked your tariff in a while, then compare gas and electricity prices to make sure you’re on the cheapest tariff for you. - Speak to Warm and Well
There is often grant funding available to help you make your home more energy efficient, including installing boilers, insulation and central or low-carbon heating. Speak to an Energy Advisor on 0800 500 3076, where you can also arrange for a free home visit to look at specific ways you can save energy at home.
Please note, Warm and Well services cover households in Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire only. CLICK HERE to visit their website for more information.
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