Energy Saving Tips

Tip 1 Adopt the 8Rs

Before throwing anything away - whether the product or its packaging -  can I:

• Reuse it in its present form? (e.g. refilling a water bottle with water)
• Reform it and use it for some other purpose? (e.g. use a yoghurt pot to grow seedlings in)
• Recycle it so that the raw materials can be used in the manufacturing process again

In fact these used to be the original 3Rs, which have now been expanded to become the 5Rs Concept, the additional ones being aimed at the manufacturer's production process:

• Refuse - in other words avoid purchasing environmentally burdensome materials
• Reduce the amount of waste material generated

But aren't we missing a trick here? Surely it should be the 8Rs Concept? Shouldn't we also have:

• Repair - if an item is broken, see if it can be repaired first before replacing with new 
• Reassign - if you can't use or re-use an item, can someone else use it instead?
• Recover - if a producer uses excessive packaging shouldn't they be responsible for recycling it!

Please do let the  Energy Saving Centre know if you can think of any more Rs to add to this model?

Tip 2 Enjoy saving a penny

To find the motivation to reduce our energy bills, we all need to get excited about saving pennies. Strangely enough, saving 50p a day is not very exciting for most people, but saving £182.50 a year is. Think about it!

Tip 3 Reduce your lighting bill

Yes you've heard it before, but it will save you pounds; it's the much maligned 'energy saving' lightbulb.

• They use approx 20% of the power of a normal bulb
• They can last up to 10 times longer or more
• You can get small bulbs

So why not try one or two out, especially where the 'quality of life' argument is less likely to be an issue. Try them in hallways, the garage or outdoors. In fact what about the porch light that tends to be left on for long periods, especially during the winter months. However, do have a look at Tip31 before getting rid of all your traditional incandescent bulbs.

We also look forward to the continued development of LED technology which is in its relevant infancy but has enormous potential to reduce our energy bills

Tip 4 Preserve your light fittings

Light fittings will indicate the maximum wattage bulb that can be installed. However, even fitting this bulb will produce a heating effect that will degrade the light fitting, especially the wiring over a prolonged period of time. This effect can be drastically reduced by fitting a lower wattage bulb that gives out the same amount of light. And what bulb does that? Yes, its the same old answer...the energy saving light bulb.

Although an approximation:

20W energy saving bulb = 100W incandescent bulb

Energy saving bulbs will produce less heat and often prolong the life of your light fittings.

Tip 5 Be aware of 'light heat'

If you use energy saving lights throughout the house you may find you have to turn your heating up. Why? because normal incandescent light bulbs convert a larger proportion of their electricity into heat. For a normal 100W incandescent bulb, these proportions are approximately:

3W produces light and 97W produces heat

This means that the replacement of approximately twelve 100W incandescent light bulbs with equivalent energy saving bulbs that only produce approximately 17W of heat, would be the equivalent of turning off a 1kW electric fire. So, during winter months you may need to find extra heat from somewhere.

Remember, this is also why it makes sense to use energy saving light bulbs outdoors. If you use normal incandescent bulbs indoors, at least the house is benefiting from the heat they generate, whereas outdoors you're losing all the heat to the atmosphere.

Tip 6 The most efficient energy saving light bulb?

One that's turned off! Even if you have energy saving bulbs installed, it is a good habit to switch them off whenever you're not using a room. Although you're going to save less than if you had a normal incandescent bulb burning away, energy saving is as much about adopting a mindset where you are not getting lazy and being wasteful. It's a good habit to get into.

Tip 7 Which light bulbs are most efficient?

The label shown below will be seen on the packaging of any light bulb that you buy. This label indicates that your light bulb has a 'Class A' rating which means that it's the most efficient. A 'Class G' rating would be the mean that the light bulb is the least efficient.

For example, energy saving lamps are normally rated in 'Class A or B', halogen lamps usually fall into 'Class D', and traditional incandescent lamps into 'Class E or F'

If you want to know exactly what each of these classes mean, click on the link below to check out 'The Energy Information (Lamps) Regulations 1999': 

http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1999/19991517.htm

Tip 8 Immersion heater settings

Some baths, like the older cast-iron models can use a lot of hot water if you going to have a decent soak. However, if the thermostat setting on your hot water tank is too low you could end up emptying your hot water tank to fill the bath. This will mean heating up another tank from cold which will use lots of energy. And of course, the tank always gets emptied just before someone else wants a bath or you're about to do the washing up. So what happens then? Yes, it's time to switch on the immersion heater and I guess you  know that immersion heaters and the subject of energy saving are not comfortable bedfellows!

One answer is to raise the temperature setting slightly on the hot water tank thermostat. This will mean using less hot water to fill your bath as you'll need to add some cold water to get the bath temperature just right. However, don't raise the temperature if you have any concerns about the water being too hot, especially where children and the infirm are concerned. 

Tip 9 Cavity insulation for solid walls

You're right, it's a nonsense, just the same as putting solar panels on your roof would be if you had a 'listed building' or a house in a conservation area. However, there's a message here. Although these are obvious cases, we're all being constantly bombarded with advertising material and tempting offers of energy saving improvements which are less clear cut. The moral here is that you should know your home and it's environment well enough to be able to make a sound judgment. And if you don't, please get professional advice first before you commit yourself.

Tip 10 Letter box draughts

Letter boxes are notorious for letting in a draught.  One solution is to fit brush strip over the letter box. However, the downside is that these devices make it almost impossible to push newspapers and magazines fully through. This means that you'll probably arrive home from work to find that the newspaper will be rolled up and sticking out of the letterbox, and creating a worse draught than you would have had before the brush strip was fitted. It's your call on this one.

Tip 11 Turning the heat down

Turning down your central heating by just 1°C is supposed to save you in the region of 10% on your heating bills. Obviously you don't want to be cold, but if you're in an environment where it's too warm, you have a very good reason for turning the heating down. 

Tip 12 Insulated jackets

Do make sure that your hot water tank is protected by an insulated jacket. Check with your retailer or the manufacturer to ensure you get one that is of the correct size and thickness.

Tip 13 Recycling wood

It's amazing how many people have wood to dispose of following a bout of DIY or other house maintenance activity. Much of this will go into skips or be burnt on bonfires as a means of disposal. However, there are many people who would be delighted to use the wood as fuel for their kitchen ranges or wood-burning stoves. Do ask if anyone locally would like it as it could help you with your disposal costs as well as reduce their fuel bills.

Tip 14 Choosing the right car

One of the areas we can help ourselves and our environment is in our choice of cars.  If you are feeling moral about the whole thing and are not a "Mrs Hyacinth Bucket" go to this featured site before choosing your new car. It has long been appreciated that we all have our part to play in reducing the impact of the motor vehicle - and you don't need to be a rabid tree-hugger to help.  This site will help buyers of new cars to minimise the impact of any vehicle they might buy by identifying those areas whereby the environmental impact can be minimised.

The site is: http://www.vcacarfueldata.org.uk/index.asp

Tip 15 Here's some more excellent tips!

1. Delay the need for turning on the heating by wearing more clothing - in
layers not necessarily thicker clothing. Turn it off earlier in the spring by the same practice.

2. Don't use partial loads in your washing machine or dishwasher and the next time you change, buy one of the new "drizzle" type machines they save up to 60% in water consumption and 40% in energy.  Only use a tumble dryer in an emergency - get your clothes outside on the garden line. As well as saving energy they smell better.

3. Adding loft insulation, and taking the heating down by three degrees can easily save 20% on heating bills - perhaps more.

4. Put a timer on your immersion heater (mechanically driven if you can get it - they are quite difficult to find but they ARE available).  Ensuring that you keep it off at every available opportunity can save nearly as much as the last tip. Water immersion heaters are massive consumers of electricity.

A bit of philosophy... Some of these tips seem trivial, but THINK!  Multiply the trivial tips by 23 million (the number of households in the UK) and see how trivial that is!

Tip 16 Save paper...and trees

Whether you're a business user or an individual, you can help encourage people's thinking as well as demonstrate your own green credentials by putting this message on the bottom of your emails: "Think Green - Please do not print this email unless it's absolutely necessary"

Tip 17 Let radiators radiate

Radiators are less effective when they have furniture put in front of them. For maximum efficiency keep the space in front of radiators clear to allow them to radiate their heat into the room, not warm up the back of a sofa.

Tip 18 Daylight is free

Daylight is an alternative to having an electric light on. However, for maximum effect and efficiency, make sure windows are kept clean. Even slightly dirty windows will seriously reduce the amount of light coming in. 

Tip 19 Buy local produce

Try sourcing your food locally so that you keep down the cost of transportation and get fresh products that won't need preservatives.

Supermarkets are large convenience stores and we like them because they are exactly that - convenient. So why not make an effort and try finding out where to get locally grown and produced food such as bread, vegetable and fruit. And if you are in a supermarket look out for any local produce they may have.

Changing our lifestyle and habits, even just a little bit, may seem inconvenient but it will be worth the effort - and taste that much better!

To find out where to find your local producers, go to www.bigbarn.co.uk 

Tip 20 Use a vacuum flask

If you're going out for the day you might decide to take a hot drink with you in a vacuum flask. But why not do that even if you're staying in! Make your tea of coffee first thing in the morning and it will save continuously using the kettle to make another cuppa. So, if you have a kettle that's rated at 3000 Watts say, although it's only on for a relatively short time heating up the water, there must be some scope for saving some electricity.

Tip 20A More powerful kettle = more efficient

Please be aware that a kettle rated at 3000 Watts will boil more quickly than a similarly sized kettle that is rated at say half the power. This means that the less powerful kettle will take longer to boil, but should still use the same amount of power overall - or will it? Because this kettle is taking longer to boil there will a greater amount of time for heat to be lost through the body of the kettle which will also cause a measurable delay in the ability of the kettle to reach boiling point. This means that a more powerful kettle is probably cheaper to operate. However, it may not be cheaper to buy but that's a choice we have to make.

Tip 21 Operating the refridgerator

To operate your fridge in an energy-friendly fashion you might like to consider the following tips:

1. Buy a fridge thermometer (Less than £5) and keep your fridge as close to 4° centigrade as possible - more than 5° centigrade may be dangerous from a health point of view but any colder is wasting energy and totally unnecessary. You will also prevent your soft greens like cucumber and lettuce from icing up

2. If you haven't got a frost-free fridge then de-frost regularly, as soon as you cannot see the metal surface of the freezer compartment because it is covered in frost - iced up fridges use more energy

3. Clean the rubber edge seal on the door of your fridge, frequently and regularly - even the tiniest gap wastes energy

4. NEVER put hot or even warm food directly into the fridge - let it cool completely first

5. Think ahead and defrost frozen food in the fridge. It will take about four times as long but saves significant amounts of energy by helping to keep the fridge cool

6. When buying a new fridge consider an under-the-counter drawer type - they are more expensive but you will save the extra cost in around 15 months by avoiding dumping cold air into your kitchen everytime you open a fridge door

Tip 22 Avoid steaming kettles

Have you noticed that when you boil a kettle, a lot of the energy seems to go into making steam, especially if the switch takes a while to cut-out. You can then just imagine the extractor fan in the room being put on to get rid of the steam; or the kitchen door be opened to let it (and the room heat) out! Excessive steam means that energy is being wasted producing something that you don't want. The answer? Once your kettle has boiled, consider switching it off manually. And if you rely on the automatic cut-out working effectively and it obviously doesn't, see if your kettle needs de-scaling.

Also, don't overfill your kettle when making drinks. Most kettles have a minimum level to fill to for safety reasons but it is usually more than enough for making two cuppas.

Tip 23 A little kidology

Make a game of telling children that you will give them 2p every time they switch off a light in a room that nobody seems to be using or that is not needed. In fact with the rate that energy prices are rising make that 3p!

Tip 24 Standby or standoff

If you turn off an electrical device that uses standby you could save a small fortune! Some of the large modern flat screen televisions can use in excess of 300watts ON STANDBY!  Go and look at the power cord on your new television - it's a great big thick one compared with 20 years ago... I wonder why? This almost represents half the cost of running an electric kettle continuously - would you keep an electric kettle running all the time 24 hrs/day?  That is what you are doing every other day by leaving one of the large modern flatscreen TVs on standby.

Tip 25 Should you be charging

Your mobile phone charger can use about £10/year by being left plugged in and switched on - even if the phone is not connected!  Also turn your mobile off overnight if you don't need it, so you have to charge it less often. And how many mobile phones are in your house?

Tip 26 Make your car go further

Some fairly well acknowledged hints to get better fuel consumption from your car:

1. Make sure your tyres are correctly inflated

2. Remove roof boxes when not in use

3. Turn off the air conditioning if not needed

4. If you've got two or more cars, use the one that gives the best fuel consumption

Tip 27 Bleeding radiators

It's a fact of life that air will eventually get into the central heating system and get trapped at the highest point. One of the favourite hiding places for air is the top of a radiators, which is exactly where you should find the 'bleed valve' to let it out.

How do you know if a radiator needs bleeding? One common sign is if the top of the radiator is colder at the top than at the bottom. And often the radiator worst affected will be the one that is at the highest point in the central heating system.

A radiator that has air in it is not working efficiently, so it pays to keep an eye open for this problem.

Tip 28 Real cost of motoring

Remember that when you get in your car, the running cost is not simply the petrol you use. Do make sure you factor in what you've had to pay for road tax and insurance; and of course there's the cost of servicing as well as depreciation and more besides. So how much does it cost to drive a mile? At best, reports seem to indicate that 25p a mile for petrol cars is probably the minimum, but its highly likely that many of us are probably paying closer to 40p or even more.

Although a rough estimate, it puts in perspective the cost of making a quick trip in the car to get a pint of milk. So what would be the real cost of that pint of milk? The moral - think whether your journey makes economic sense before making it.

Try the ETA car cost calculator to get an idea of how much you could be out of pocket after you've driven the next mile: http://www.eta.co.uk/car_cost_calculator 

Tip 29 Sea of loft insulation

Make sure your loft is well insulated. However, be aware that if you use glass fibre matting to a depth of say 250mm, but your floor joists are only 100mm high, then your loft will be a sea of glass fibre and you'll have difficulty using the space for anything else. Improving your loft insulation may also mean that, dependent on your situation, you may be able to get a grant to help you with the cost.

So, if your serious about energy saving it sounds like there may be a compromise to be made when it comes to using your loft. Unless of course some 'bright spark' sees this as a business opportunity and develops a product with the necessary insulation properties that will actually fit in a 100mm joist and let you use this valuable space in your home!

Tip 30 Mobile never flat

Although you'll be doing the climate a great favour by using a wind-up charger for your mobile all the time, it's also an indispensable aid to have with you when you're sailing or camping and out of reach of electricity!

Tip 31 Are you dim enough?

Not sold on those those expensive and poorly developed "Energy Saving" bulbs, except in continuous duty outdoor passage situations for which they are well suited? 

The traditional incandescent bulb with its tungsten filament is a masterpiece of well developed design using the minimal of materials, all of which are recyclable and none containing highly toxic mercury compounds found in "Energy Saving" bulbs.

One energy saving suggestion is to retain your incandescent bulbs but have them on dimmer switches. The lower the dimmer is set, the less energy used. The dimmer switch works by switching the electricity off for an imperceptible time i.e chopping it up and not using standby current. Very often you do not need your light on full but it is nice to be able to get a good strong light instantly for reading etc. The biggest bonus is that the bulbs should last much longer, especially if you never run
them quite flat out. Another factor is that the tungsten filament 'bounces' when having 240V applied to it. This often results in the incandescent bulbs blowing when switched on. However, with a dimmer switch you could gently introduce the power to avoid the initial jolt.

Dimmer switches can be cheaper than a single energy saving bulb if you shop around and you can easily replace the normal wall switch. However, do not attempt it if you're not competent with electrics and check that the electrical rating is correct for each application.

Tip 32 Pre-heated water 

Another penny pincher! When you've emptied the electric kettle to make a cuppa, immediately refill it just to cover the element. If the kettle is then reused a short time later, the water is already pre-heated, resulting is less time and energy to bring it to the boil.

Tip 33 Are you over-shadowed

The sun gives free light and warmth. However, if your home is over-shadowed by trees or hedges which are poorly maintained and have got too tall, you will be losing out on receiving the benefits of this free energy source. The worst culprits are firs which grow fast - hence their popularity - and which don't lose their foliage in Winter, providing you with year-round darkness.

Tip 34 Stop junk mail

Rather than keep on recycling mail that you don't want and didn't ask for, stop it arriving through your letterbox in the first place. Sign up now for the Mailing Preference Service (MPS), and it's FREE!

Click here to go onto the MPS site and find out more about their service. The website also allows you to register online, simply and easily.

Tip 35 Avoid direct debit overcharging

If you have an electricity or gas tariff where you get billed quarterly, you may find that because of the recent hikes in energy costs your direct debit has suddenly gone up. However, if you think that your usage is overestimated and you suspect your energy company is using you as a 'cash deposit account', there may be an answer.

If you have an Internet account with your energy supplier where you enter your meter readings every quarter, check to see if you can enter your meter readings voluntarily every month, instead. This will enable you - and  the energy company - to get a much better feel for the amount of energy you are using, and hopefully give both parties a better chance of establishing an equitable amount that should be paid each month.

If you only take four reading a year, there is little chance of establishing a number 'points on the graph' to be able to establish your true pattern of usage. We think that energy companies could be more pro-active in helping their customers and suggesting this as an initiative. Anyway, would you be happy with getting a bank statement just once every three months? Almost definitely not because you wouldn't know with any certainty what was going out, or if you had a problem. We rest our case.

Tip 36 Sustainability is a state of mind

An important part of achieving a sustainable future is the need to change our relationship with the materials we use and dispose of. Next time you throw something in the dustbin - milk carton, potato peelings, beer can, used envelope or whatever - you should at least for a few seconds have considered if there was an alternative to using up what little space is left in our landfill sites. If the thought never even entered your head, maybe it's time to adopt the 'sustainable mindset'.

Tip 37 In a jiffy

With the increasing amount of household items that get sold on Ebay and Amazon - especially unwanted CDs and DVDs, the amount of padded bags that we use has increased dramatically. Not only that but a new padded bag can cost anything from 25p to 50p dependent on size. So what is the message?

When you receive goods in a Jiffy bag or similar, open it as carefully as possible so that it can be re-used. Even a slightly ripped padded bag can soon be robustly sealed using packing tape. Remember that any packaging must effectively protect the contents whilst in transit. We believe that 'green packaging' can do that, but you may have to compromise on the aesthetic effect. Maybe you should think of a re-used bag as a green 'badge of honour'!

And if you don't want the bag, someone close to you almost certainly will; and it will save them money as well as stopping the bag going to landfill. Ask around before disposing of it.

Tip 38 Choose suppliers that care

If at all possible, buy products and services from suppliers that genuinely care about the green agenda, instead of using it as a marketing gimmick.

For example, a bank recently sent out leaflets asking customers to opt for online statements. Customers with basic banking arrangements could receive up to four letters in the post each month - at today's 2nd class postage rates that's £1.12, not including cost of paper envelopes and sorting. That's a big expense for the bank. So what was the proposed solution?

A leaflet was sent out appealing to our 'green conscience' asking customers to print off statements at home instead. Delighted to assist of course, but what was the incentive for not only helping the bank to avoid paying the postage, but of course accepting the cost burden of printing statements when needed? Absolutely nothing, as they wanted to keep the savings.

In fact the bank's commitment to saving the planet was to send three identical leaflets in the same envelope! If they truly wanted encourage me, my bank would have credited my account with a 'green' reward of £13.44 a year for the postage I've saved them. That would have truly showed their motivation was 'green' rather than using it as a disguise to increase their profitability.

Tip 39 If it's broke...

Now here's a novel suggestion. Try and get it repaired!

I know there's a caveat here and that repair may make sense from a sustainability angle. However, it may not make sense from a financial standpoint if the item that's broken is beyond economical repair. So as a possible solution to this problem we suggest that manufacturers should design products to be repaired where possible, rather than simply disposed of. 

Now if any manufacturers are listening out there, maybe this could be the angle you've been looking for to gain competitive advantage as well as get in our good books and the increasing number of people who share our values. Yes, we know that you'll sell less products because they'll last longer, but you'll still make money out of providing spares.

And of course, this could revive a business sector that has very nearly vanished...the repair shop!