Money Saving Tips
Everybody likes to save money especially when it comes to energy bills with an estimated 2 million homes in the UK with electricity as their main source of energy into their homes. But are these Money Saving Tips any good? Some Money Saving Tips require you to payout a small fortune to gain a small reward. And then there is the environmental impact which just can’t be ignored. Here are few tips that don’t require the a great deal of cost, easy to achieve and most are free...
Money Saving Tip 1 - Switch to LED lights. Gone are the old energy saving light bulbs that would take 10 minutes to get bright by which time you’ve left the room. The advance in LED technology and the reduction of costs to buy them makes them a no brainer. There are so many different types to buy with different colours and lumen value (brightness) that it can seem a bit of a mind field. In general, if you have a 60 watt light bulb then you will need 800 lumen LED bulb. ‘Soft White’ or ‘Warm White’ are the most similar colour to traditional light bulbs. A saving of around £35 a year by switching to LED lighting. However, not all LED bulbs are dimmable and some even require a different switch to work them. If you are unsure then give Bawn Electrical Ltd a call for a free quote
Money Saving Tip 2 - Turn off your lights! If you are not in the room turn them off. You will save will more energy by switching off your lights even for a few seconds than it takes to start up a light. Regardless of the tip of bulb you have in your home. You could save up to £13 a year by doing this.
Money Saving Tip 3 - Switch off! Again it seems like a no brainer but how many people switch off their appliances and technology? Most electronics such as TV’s and consoles have a standby function but not an off switch. Chargers are one of the worse offenders as they still draw power even when the are not connected to a gadget or laptop. By switching off at the socket you could save up to £30 a year off your electricity bill.
Money Saving Tip 4 - Wash at 30 degrees. By lowering the temperature of your washing machine and putting a full load on you could use up to ⅓ less electricity.
While you’re at it reducing the use of your tumble dryer will save loads off your electricity bill. Hang your washing outside and dry your clothes for free. If you do need to dry your clothes inside then hang them on clothes racks near radiators, hang shirts from curtain rails above radiators and keep doors closed. But if you do have to use your tumble dryer, use drying balls to speed up the process.
Money Saving Tip 5 - Chill Out. Your fridge and/or freezer is one of your biggest appliance that waste electricity. It’s on all the time and can count for up to 7% of your electricity usage. Every time you open the door it costs you money. Running your fridge and freezer efficiently is easy. Start by setting your fridge temperature to between 3 and 5°C and your freezer at -18 °C. Fill it up, even if it means filling bottle of water and storing them on the shelves/draws. Otherwise you're just cooling down air and making your fridge work much harder. A buildup of ice will stop your fridge/freezer from working effectively but it's also easily remedied. And lastly, hoover the back of your appliances regularly, a build up of dust on the coils at the back will stop them from working efficiently and cause them to use more electricity.
Money Saving Tip 6 - Shut that door! This one is more for the winter months but on spring chilly days it makes sense too. Keeping the doors shut helps to retain heat in each room. If you turn off the heating to a room that you don’t use often and keep the door shut you will reduce the spread of the heat.
Money Saving Tip 7 - Reduce your ‘water footprint’ replacing your current shower head with a water efficient head. This will not only reduce the amount of electricity (or gas) needed to heat the water being pumped through your shower but will also cut down on water bill if you are on a meter.
