Energy Saving Tips

Domestic energy contributes about 40% of UK carbon dioxide emissions so saving energy can help significantly to reduce CO2 levels. With the annual household energy bill now exceeding £1,000 and yearly price increases adding 10% or more, it’s making more and more sense to save energy. 

Energy saving measures don't need to be expensive or inconvenient, and in fact some of the most effective ways are the cheapest yet often overlooked. Individual energy savings may not seem much, but added together over time they will make a difference to your pocket and to CO₂ emissions. 

The table below provides information on the costs/savings of energy saving measures.

Where you can cut the carbon (typical pre-1988 semi with gas central heating)

 R= Replacement item: the payback periods assume that the item being replaced is in good condition; if it needs repair or replacement then the payback period is much better.
Grant: these items are usually grant aided and the cost is after deducting typical grant. For grant details ring your local Energy Efficiency Advice Centre (EEAC) 0800 512 012
S= Shower must use hot water from tank; a shower with electricity costs 10p, with gas 4p, so this is desirable even without solar hot water.
X= Payback period longer than life of item.
*To check the rate of electricity consumption of an individual appliance (when on and when “off” on standby) you can buy a plug in energy meter - e.g. £20 from Maplins Electronics. Just a single watt of standby costs a pound a year in electricity.
Copyright M Normanton Walsall FoE 2007 - permission to publish on this website only.

Here are some basic energy saving tips

1. Check how much energy you are using
Do you know how much energy you use or how much it costs you each year? Look at your old bills or better still note down at the end of each month your meter readings to help you monitor how much energy your household uses. This way you can appreciate your energy savings and identify further reductions. 

2. Heating & hot water
Whether you have a hot water or boiler (combined central heating &hot water), make sure that the temperature control is set to what is comfortable for you. If you find that you have to dilute hot water from your tap with cold water, turn the control down. If you have a hot water tank check whether it is insulated. Many tanks these days have foam coatings but an insulating jacket costing less than £15 on top can keep water in the tank hotter for longer. Turning your central heating thermostat down by 1 degree you can save up to 10% of your heating costs. 

3. Insulate your home
Around 40% of all heat lost from an average home is through the roof and the walls. If you are not the freeholder of your home, finding out about the insulation level in your building may be not be straight-forward, and getting improvements made may be more tricky still, but you could raise the matter at a residents’ meeting – after all it’s in the interests of all your neighbours too.  

Thousands of homes in Kingston constructed between 1930 and 1976 are likely to have cavity walls and they may not be insulated. To prevent heat loss through the outside walls cavity wall insulation can be pumped in. Not sure whether there is insulation? Study the outside walls carefully to see if there are any tell-tale marks showing where small holes were drilled and later filled. If you can’t see any, then let the installer’s surveyor check for you. EnergySmart administer a system for obtaining discounted insulation - see the EnergySmart website or call  0845 230 3320.

Wall insulation for a house can cost as little as £100. Get several quotes to check that you get the service and price that suits you. 

4. Energy efficient appliances
 It would be folly to replace a perfectly functioning appliance with a more energy efficient model just to save energy, but if you have to buy a new appliance, choose the model that will use the least energy. New washing machines tend to be more energy efficient because they are ‘cold-fill’ and heat only the water needed rather than using hot water from the domestic supply. Remember that many washing detergents now work perfectly well at 40 degrees rather than higher temperatures. Save energy by washing cooler. 

5. Low energy cooking
 It takes as much energy to bring one saucepan of water to the boil as it would take to heat the amount of air in a small bedroom from freezing to a cosy 21°C. Then, once the water has been brought to the point of boiling, it takes a huge additional injection of heat to make it boil. Boiling water is always exactly 100°. Raising the temperature just one degree from 99° to boiling requires half as much energy again as it took to heating the water from cold.

Yet most vegetables cook at around 90°, meat cooks at any temperature over 85° and almost all germs and health nasties found in food are killed in temperatures over 80° (the few that aren’t need temperatures far higher than you’d ever use to cook). Many foods can be boiled a short time, then removed from the heat and left in the hot water to complete their cooking. Many foods taste far better if they’ve been cooked a longer time at lower heat and heavy boiling can be quite damaging to vegetables.
Some tips:
• Buy saucepans with lids that fit. A saucepan covered with a well fitting lid uses a quarter less energy when boiling than a saucepan without a lid.
• Always keep the lid on the saucepan even when the water is heating up
• Use a saucepan that is the right size for the amount to be cooked and use enough water to cover food by no more than half an inch.

Sources and useful contacts

Energy Saving Trust  provides comprehensive information and advice on saving energy at home and is running an 'I Commit' campaign to encourage people to pledge to reduce their energy consumption by 20%.  

Millfold Group Ltd (Insulation) based in Chessington0800 592200 or 020 8391 3620 Creative Environmental Networks (CEN)  

South West London Energy Efficiency Advice Centre (operated by CEN)020 8683 6655 

South West London EnergySmart (operated by CEN) 0845 230 3320 

Centre for alternative Technology for free DIY energy saving advice.

The Heat Project promotes renewable insulation.

The Yellow House -  a website that tells the story of how a family turned their 1930s ex-council house into an environmental dream home 

last updated December 2007