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Homeowners across the UK are trying to decrease their carbon footprint and find better energy-saving solutions for their homes. While many are still trying to deal with the changes and costs, many have wholeheartedly accepted that their homes and functioning must change to live an eco-friendly life. The first step to this change is making your home energy efficient and as self-sustainable as possible.
Making small changes like turning the heat off, switching off the lights in rooms that are not in use, turning off the hot water once you’re done using it, and more are great ways to instil new habits in kids and yourself. As you make these changes, you will see a gradual decrease in the monthly energy bills. You will also start saving money for the future. The faster you make these changes, the greater your money-saving will be in the long term.
Let us look at some tips to make your home more efficient.
Upgrade The Boiler:
Nearly everyone knows the importance of upgrading the boiler. Most old boilers tend to pull a lot of energy. Inefficient boilers can add to the bill by hundreds of pounds. Upgrading the boiler to one from iheat.co.uk can help decrease the monthly bills while increasing energy efficiency. Choosing the correct boiler will also reduce the overall carbon footprint of your home.
Loft Insulation:
It is always best to start by checking all the heat leaks in your home. Insulation isn’t only about trapping the warmth inside; it is also about trapping the cold during the summer. Loft insulation is usually a massive reason for energy loss and heat wastage. You may have to get a professional to survey the area, but it is worth looking into and fixing. Depending upon the property type and location, you could look at saving thousands of pounds per year on energy – just by improving the loft insulation.
Water-saving Methods:
There are several ways you can save water in your home. Filling water bottles and carrying them with you instead of purchasing bottles of water will help save water. You can also install water-saving showerheads to reduce water and energy consumption. Many people have also switched to filling up a bucket of water and using the water for a quick soap and rinse instead of standing under a shower for 15 – 20 minutes.
Solar Panels:
While outfitting the roof with solar panels may be expensive, you should consider the long term benefits of saving electricity and reducing the monthly energy bill. Since most homes in the UK are constantly connected to electricity, you could only use the electricity when needed. At all other times, you could consider using the energy from the solar panels and converting the house to a green energy source. If you have excess power, you could even sell some back to the National grid and get a write off on your monthly bill.
Before investing in solar panels, you may have to check the structural fit of the roof. Solar panels can be heavy, and your loft may creak because of them.
Use Large Appliances At Night:
If you do not have solar energy, you could start using large appliances like the washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher at night to reduce the overall strain on the power grid. Many households prefer nightly laundry cycles. You could also turn off the heated air cooling feature of the dishwasher and air dry the vessels instead. Many times, keeping the dishwasher door open for an hour or two helps get the dishes completely dry and ready for re-stacking.
Lighting Choices:
You can make your home more energy-efficient, by changing the current lighting to LED lighting. Earlier all bulbs were compact fluorescent (CFLs). With the advent of LED, you should grab the light change and install all LED lights across the house. Doing this helps decrease the energy bill. These bulbs also last up to nearly nine times as much as the standard ones.
Decrease Standby:
While these things may seem trivial, they are not. Things like wifi routers, TVs, fans, and more are usually left on standby. Taking the extra minute to shut everything can save UK households hundreds of pounds each year.
Wash clothes on Cool:
Many people presume that a hot wash is the only way for your clothes to get clean. The detergent in the machine is what washes and freshens up the clothes. Reducing the heat and allowing clothes to wash and dry out in the cold will help protect the clothes from damage.