Cutting the Energy Bills this Winter and Keeping warm

If you live in a house, rather than a flat, you might have missed some of the many ways to reduce your electricity and gas bills.

Some of the methods listed will save a lot, some just a little

Some will need you to pay an initial cost and some will be completely free.

There is still help available in the form of government grants and payments, if you qualify.

Contents

    Things you can do to stop this whizzing round so fast! 

    Why Have the Energy Costs Risen?

    • Weather Changes.Where hotter climates have even hotter summers, eg Asia, there has been a corresponding increase in need for air conditioning. Where climates have become colder in winter, eg Europe, the need for more heating has risen.
    • Failure of Renewables. There have been several serious droughts, so hydropower has been reduced. 2021 was notably less windy than previous years so return on Turbine power has come down.
    • Post Pandemic. The return to normal operation has just increased demand, thus increasing prices.
    • The Russia Ukraine Conflict. Russia has at present cut off supplies to Europe of natural gas, causing the price to rocket.
    • Some Maintenance is still pending. On service issues, mainly gas, unable to be carried out during the pandemic. On new plant building, some were inevitably delayed and there were supply problems which also caused big delays

    Set Up Your Energy Account Correctly

    By that I mean pay the right amount each month. If you pay quarterly and your estimate is under, you could end up with a massive bill. Similarly if the estimated value is over, you could be lending the power company your hard earned cash.

    The key is to even out your cash flow. Send in your readings each month to your supplier, pay exactly what is owed and no more or less. Especially important if you plan on  moving house, the last thing you need will be an unexpected power bill.

    Identify Which are Your Uneconomical Appliances

    Check how economical each of your appliances are. Chances are, if its over 10years old, more modern pumps, insulation and controls would make a new unit well worth it. Over a year the difference in electricity used between an old worn out D rated appliance and a new ‘A’ or A+ rated one, can be quite significant.

    Use your smart Electricity meter to check the consumption of each appliance, simply by switching each one on, in turn and monitoring the smart meters readings. If you don’t have one, you can buy one of these monitors, by simply plugging the appliance, into the built in socket.  

    Are you still using that big old Fridge?  If your big family has grown up and flown the nest, do you really need that massive American style fridge or that chest freezer in the garage, for just two people. Think about buying a new fridge freezer with an ‘A’ rating.

    Keep the fridge door closed as much as possible, up to a third of the cold air can escape every time its opened. Kids often fail to close the doors fully after they have rearranged the products leaving one sticking out, stopping the door from sealing. Your fridge will have to turn on for longer to lower the temperature back down again, making more expense. If possible keep the fridge fully filled. Empty space makes it easier for the temperature to drop when the door is opened.

    The coils which can be seen on the back of the fridge, need to disperse the heat inside the fridge, to the air in your kitchen. If the coils are full of fluff, it can act as an insulator, stopping the fridge working efficiently, so clean the back, regularly.

    The appliances which might surprise you,  taking the most power, are the fridges, mainly because they are on 24/7 of course, but it does emphasize how important choosing a well-rated appliance actually is.

    Looking at the table above, you could purchase a new Fridge Freezer or TV for the amount that it costs each year to run an old C rated fridge or Plasma type tv.

    Cooking Tips

    How to Cook an Egg

    Save 3/4 of your Gas! A tip from the 2nd World War –  Everyone loves Eggs. Boiled eggs are so easy to cook. Did you know that you can cook a 4-minute egg perfectly by, bringing the pan up to a boil and then turning off the ring? The hot water will continue to cook the eggs, simply set a timer for 8 minutes, which will produce a good 4-minute hard-boiled egg. The pan should be covered, ie with a pan lid, to keep the heat in. Experiment with shorter times if you like yours a bit softer. 

     

    The Last 10 minutes are Free

    In a similar vein, anything cooking in an oven could be switched off for the last 5 or even 10 minutes, as long as you keep the oven door shut and it will still cook just fine for most everyday foods.

     

    Stop Defrosting

     Have we really become totally incapable of planning a meal?

    If you want pork chops tomorrow, simply take them out of the freezer and put them in the fridge, they will be ready to cook, straight away,  no heat needed, no microwave to set.

    Try an Air Fryer or Halogen Oven

    For most foods and meals you can use cookers which are much more economical than your standard Electric or Gas.

    Halogen ovens have been around for a decade and will cook food quickly and to an excellent standard, for very little cost check out the many advantages and best ones to buy.

    Similarly Air Fryers are a huge buzz in the appliance market at the moment, but are they better than the Halogen Oven? Check out the best here.

    The Old “Kettle versus a Pan on the stove” Question

    Lets debunk this one. Yes it is cheaper to make your cup of tea with water boiled on a GAS cooker hob in a pan, than it is to use an electric kettle. BUT do you really want to stand there and watch it boil? Also you may forget it, there is no auto cutoff switch on a hob, it could boil dry, ruining the pan. Even if you boil for just one extra minute, that’s all going on the bill. As the savings are truly pathetic 1 penny verses 2 pennies with the kettle, is it worth it…..NO.

    There is however a second part to this question. If you fill the kettle with more water than you’re going to use, that extra will just cool down again, wasting your money. This can really add up quickly to several hundreds of pounds every year.

    Self Sufficiency with Solar Panels

    Its probably beyond the means of most of us, but you can not only bring your energy bills down to nought, but get paid by the grid, for your surplus.

    What is required ?

    1. Solar Panels
    2. Controller Unit
    3. Batteries for storage
    4. Inverter

    InverterThe panels generate DC which is fed by a controller, to batteries. These can be arranged in banks of batteries. In parallel circuits, to increase the max current available and in Series, to increase the available voltage.

    The most common type of battery is most probably Lithium Ion, the same type of battery storage as Tesla and most other common eV’s (electric vehicles) use.  To use the power generated, in your house, DC from the battery bank has to be converted to AC, which is done by the Inverter or inverters. The capacity of an inverter has to exceed the maximum taken by all your household appliances. Or you can run on a limited basis, carefully choosing the big appliances to run at the same time, to be less than your inverter’s limit.

    Plus the panels need to face the sun, so roof mounting is the usual way, not a DIY task for the average guy, although some do manage it.

    Typical outlay for panels, fitting, controller and Inverter might be several thousands of dollars, but in these times of rocketing energy bills, the break even point is getting shorter and shorter.

    Use LED lights

    Are you still using incandescent lighting? The tungsten filament lamps have remained unchanged since 1904. You can expect an 85% reduction in electricity, when replacing a 100w incandescent lamp with an LED type. Plus these Lepro units come ready for indoor and outdoor use. Excellent replacement for the “stylish” but useless, hot and expensive to run, halogen spotlights, so many people have in their kitchens. Which is fine if you want to chop off your fingers working in your own shadow!  My kitchen is a workroom and I want to be safe with a well lit – right into the corners, room. This means diffuse light and not the shadow forming spotlight type light.

    Switch Off the Lights

    Simply remembering to turn off the lights when you exit a room, can save a lot. If you have rooms that have no daylight and are frequently used for short periods only, like a toilet or hallway, consider a sensor-operated and timed light.

    Adjust Your TV

    We in the UK do an awful lot of telly viewing, more so for older folks and especially in the winter months. In most cases you could switch off, or dim down the room lights, using just table lamps or side lighting. With many modern TVs there is the option to use the ambient light sensor. This adjusts the brightness and contrast to lower levels.   if you’re viewing your TV in a darker room with the sensor switched on it can reduce the power to the screen, without any picture quality degradation.

    What Type of TV are you Watching?

    LED, Oled and LCD technologies have the lowest current consumption. If you’re still using an old Plasma tv, ( or even an old Tube tv ) it is really uneconomical and you should consider changing it. When I upgraded from my big plasma tv, I noticed a drop in the electric bill ! My old Plasma was so inefficient it was heating the room!

    TV Subscriptions versus Freesat

    If like me you look at your monthly Virgin bill in despair as it seems to rise another £3 every month, take a serious look at what you are paying for and what you actually watch. 

    If you’re paying £80 every month  for sports channels you hardly ever watch, then its just a total waste. 

    If you have 19 different ways to watch a programme, live, through various Apps, Catchup TV, streaming tv, recording, etc……

    What is the point? Save the money, install Freesat or Freeview, and you get all the News you want and many hundreds of documentaries and TV series. Plus you can still use TV Apps like BBC iplayer, ITV hub, AllFour, MyFive, and of course YouTube all for free.

    Many people seem to have forgotten that British TV is world-renowned for quality – so why are you paying Sky to watch so many cheap US programmes at such a high price?

    Freesat Box, Plays Records, with a timer and no Subscriptions to pay

    Heating Tips for Your Radiators

    Here are a few easy and quick fixes to make your heating system efficient again.

    If you’ve noticed that the top of a radiator is cold when the heating is on, it is quite likely that air has been trapped, causing a cold spot. Simply hold a jug under the bleed valve, turn the bleed key (  some have a screwdriver slot ) , wait until the hissing of the trapped air stops, and water starts to pour out, then shut off the bleed valve again….. done.

     

    Start at the most distant radiator from the boiler and work through each room. When finished, you will be operating at full efficiency again. The boiler won’t have to work so hard, so you will save money.

     

    Heating the room depends on the air being circulated, in at the bottom of the radiator, and the heated air leaving at the top. Check that there is no build up of fluff inside the radiator cover, its amazing how much that can lower efficiency.

     

    Don’t put your sofa right next to the radiator, you want to warm the air, not the furniture! Leave at least a 1 foot gap between radiator and sofa.

    Insulate Your Loft

    This is a biggie.  Ever stopped to wonder why one house always seems to have a roof full of pidgeons, while its neighbours do not?  Easy, that house has an uninsulated loft!  Compare it to sleeping in mid-winter with just a thin sheet over you. No you wouldn’t do that would you, in winter you would use a duvet or several blankets to keep the heat in. Well it’s the same with a house. If you do not insulate the top, you could be losing a quarter of the heat that you’re paying for ! That’s massive.

    There are big savings to be made by insulating the loft of your house. Yes it is costly, although there is still help available from the government schemes go to ofgem to find out if you qualify for any.

    OFGEM

    https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers/energy-advice-households/find-schemes-grants-and-benefits-help-home-energy. 

    Even if you do not qualify, the full cost of insulating your loft using a trader, can break even in as little as 2 years, in savings of your fuel bills. If you can do it yourself, the cost is minimal.

    The benefit is there forever after completing the loft insulation.

    There are 4 main types of insulation found in a typical house loft:

    1. Rigid Foam boards cut to size to fit between the rafters (pitched roof supports )  sometimes called sheet foam board
    2. Foil backed fibre, which may be felt, glass, rock or mineral fibre. Comes in huge rolls and should be fitted between the horizontal joists , sometimes called blanket insulation
    3. Loose fill mineral wool or fibreglass or cellulose. This is by far the easiest to fit but should not be used where drafts occur as it will blow away. Ideal if you’re boarding the loft.
    4. Blown Fibre Not a DIY choice as it needs special equipment.

    https://householdquotes.co.uk/how-much-does-loft-insulation-cost       

    From my own experience, a little tip. Before starting the insulation installation, be sure that there are no holes visible, its easy to check in daylight hours. The only holes should be the ventilation slots in the soffit, which keep the moisture levels down and your beams in good condition. If there are any other holes, you might be welcoming mice or even rats in wintertime! So do check before making the loft even more inviting to unwanted guests.

    If you install insulation in your loft, don’t forget the trap door!  It’s an easy fix, just attach a block of suitable material to the back, treated polystyrene is light easy to cut and a perfect insulator.

     

    Insulate Your Walls

    The loft is where most houses lose most heat, but the walls too can conduct away your valuable paid-for resource. The type of house you are in, plays a role here, a fully detached house, has 4 walls to the outside, a semi-detached house has 3, and a terraced house has only 2 walls facing the cold outside. Be most concerned with walls which are outside walls. If a room has a corridor or bedroom between you and the outside, there is already some insulating property present, if it is a direct outside wall, that is where the majority of heat will be lost.

    The Most Economical Showers

    Taking a shower is a lot more economical than taking a bath. But heating costs are actually a lot closer than you think. Heating water with gas is quite a bit less expensive than electricity.

    If you have an electric shower fitted, and there are 2 or more people using it every day, it might be worth changing to a shower fed from your hot water supply. It should not be too expensive as it only involves a bit of plumbing, rather than any extra heater unit.

    Time Your Showers

    An electric shower is typically rated at 5 to 10 Kwatts, so its easy to see how long showers can send the bill soaring.

    Take a shower in your off-peak electricity time if you can. A recent Uswitch guide stated that with a 34p/unit cost and an 8.5kw shower unit, that’s 1.42kWh of electricity, so a 10 min shower costs 48p. If you have an Economy 7 (7 hours off-peak price ) then the same shower would be half price. Over a year that could save you a lot.

    Stop Those Drafts

    While ventilation is important to stop rot and maintain fresh air. Drafts are annoying and lose a lot of heating money.

    Heat rises. So any open windows at the top of the window, may be pouring your hard earned heat straight outside. True, we should have fresh air, but too wide open will chill down the room in no time. Make use of the vents in the frame if provided, rather than open the window in the middle of winter.

    They mainly  occur around windows, so even if you’ve had double glazing fitted, if it’s a few years ago, the sealant might have crept back or fallen out leaving a gale blowing in the gap. Carefully check around all the windows, you can use anything light, like paper strip, feather or your hands. Investigate all leaks, to see if there is missing sealant. If not sealed from the outside, rot damage to the wooden sill can occur over time.

    Fit Double Glazing

    Most PVC double glazing panels are excellent and rarely cause problems. Opening windows have hinges that fit really well and seal. If your rubber window seals are damaged, check if you have cats, as they can use them to climb or as scratching posts, and a draft may occur there.

    Electric Space Heaters Are They Any Good?

    Using the central heating all day, if you are only using one room, can be very wasteful. Do make sure all the radiators in all rooms, except yours, are turned off.

    Space heaters can make an economical alternative, in this situation.

    Yes, they certainly work, but don’t be fooled by the marketing hype on the packaging, I checked all the different makes and models available in our local store and found they ALL had the same 1500w specification!  Some were marked medium size room, some for small rooms and the price varied with this ‘room size’ spec.

    No matter what it says on the packaging, the heater will put out the same amount of heat, so the way to choose is only by examining the QUALITY of the product.

    • Is it SAFE, does it shut down if it is knocked over.
    • Is it ROBUST will it last a long time.
    • Is it NOISY, you will not concentrate for long with noisy appliances

    How to Heat a Room with a Space Heater

    Simple, just plug it in? Well yes that will work, but not to the best effect. As a room gets hotter, the losses from drafts, open windows etcetera get much bigger! So don’t heat your room above your required temperature. With heaters made after 2017 a thermostat will be built in. You can now just plug in and the thermostat will stop it heating when the temperature you set is reached.

    But the thermostat is in the same box as the heater. It cannot know how warm you are, say, several feet away, sitting at your desk. And that is a problem, it’s going to cut off the heat before you reach the right temperature.  If you look at a properly installed central heating thermostat, it is usually well away from the boiler.

    The fix is to buy a separate thermostat unit and site it next to your position in the room. This will probably need an extension cable capable of full 1800w power, but it makes all the difference. The appliance then works properly. Many negative reviews I’ve read online do not take the thermostat into account when they say space heaters don’t work.

     

    How Good Are Other Electric Heaters

    • Oil Filled Radiators
    • Fan Heaters
    • Convection Heater
    • Radiant Heaters

    To a degree, it depends on how you are using them. If you are rushing around after breakfast, getting ready for School or work, then a Fan Heater will give you a quick blast. If you are sitting in the same position for a while, the Radiant Heater will work for you, it is direct heat from the element, usually, it has a reflector, to direct the heat better. Keep the reflector clean, so it can do its job efficiently.

    If you are going to be in the room a long time, then the Oil filled radiator would give even heat out, but they take a fair amount of time to warm up, and they continue to give heat out when they turn off.

    Convection is the process used by your normal central heating, it generates heat, which rises to the ceiling and slowly the room will fill with heat downwards from the ceiling. Important consideration must be given then to open windows, drafts and other means for the heat to escape. A convection type radiator like the oil filled one, or electric convection heater, will take a long time compared to a radiant heater or fan heater, to warm up the occupants of the room.

    All of these heaters, since 2018 are required to have a built in thermostat, as discussed above. The Oil filled Radiator then, will cool off much more slowly than the others, as the oil acts as a heat reservoir. So in the process of the thermostat, doing its job, turning off and on, there will be a longer OFF period, when compared to other types, but equally it will then take longer to get back up to temperature again.

    So if you’re considering an electric heater, choose one to suit your activities. Bear in mind the SIZE of the room will make a big difference to the time taken to raise the temperature.

    Desperate Times – Heat or Eat!

    If you are reading this and can’t afford the outlay for any of the projects above, what can you do. We all hope it will not come to the point where energy costs mean its either heat or eat. But if it does, here are a few good pointers: layers, room size and electric blankets.

     

    To successfully survive in a cold climate you need insulation and to generate body heat, in other words, eat food that gives you body heat and wear insulating layers to keep it in.

    For most people some exercise is a must. If you have a dog, it can be a great help here, that regular commitment to getting out and about at a raised walking pace, can keep you not only warm but long term healthy. But to enable that, you really need some protein for breakfast or lunch, try to avoid carbs, and of course stay hydrated, water is essential in all seasons!

     

    If you are sitting for long periods, watching TV or working in your home office, get up and move around at least one every half hour. Blankets, fleece jumpers, thermal under trousers, woolly hats all help to keep that heat in without actual home heating being on.

     

    On a sofa or settee, just sitting watching the TV, an electric blanket ‘throw’ might be a good bet, a burst of heat for even a few minutes can warm you up, then keep it in with blanket layers. I will not go into fine detail here, other than to say, it is a very small cost, just pennies  really, to run an electric throw for the evening. Don’t take the manufacturers figures for granted, the steep cost of living rise, means articles and adverts are often out of date and not updated. Read my Electric Heated Throw article on my BestHomeAppliance.net website

     

    Use a Smaller Room

    Many houses built in the 60s have very large lounges, some combine dining room and lounge. These large and sometimes L shaped rooms are difficult and expensive to heat. As long as it isn’t too inconvenient, and if you are just watching TV, it might be worth considering moving to a smaller room. This could perhaps be a spare bedroom, easier and cheaper to heat, for the winter period. This can be doubly effective, if the younger members of the family pass through the lounge frequently, especially if they leave doors open, this can be a great move.