Unless you are fortunate to live in a super eco friendly house, you will have noticed an increase in your gas & electricity energy bills.

Energy UK have forecast that gas and electricity bills could rise by up to 50% by spring 2022 seeing most combined fuel bills increasing to an average of £2000 per year. This is mainly down to wholesale gas prices which have increased by 250% since January and rose by 70% in August alone (source National World)

Chris O’Shea, chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica, told BBC News that there is “no reason” to expect gas prices to come down “any time soon”.

Mr O’Shea suggested three things the UK Government to help the energy price crisis:

  • Defer the cost incurred by surviving suppliers from taking on customers of the many companies that have gone bust, rather than it be added to upcoming bills.
  • Take the 5% VAT off energy temporarily or permanently
  • Move levies charged to fund a green transition from bills to general taxation.

Given the current climate, what can homeowners do to save energy?

Energy Savings Tips

  • Switch off appliances and equipment on standby mode 

This easy saving energy tip can save up to £40 a year just by remembering to turn your appliances off standby mode by turning them off a the plug.

  • Choose Energy-Saving lightbulbs and A+++ rated appliances such as fridges, washing machine and tumble dryers.
  • Install a Smart thermostat 

Smart thermostats are here and they’re finally worth some serious consideration and come with promise of energy savings of 20-30% (source Guardian).

  • Wash clothes at a lower temperature (ideally at 30 degrees or less)

Washing at 30 degrees rather than 40 degrees can help reduce your energy usage, and if you can cut out just one wash cycle per week you’ll clip £5 off your annual energy bill (source Money Supermarket)

  • Be savvy with your kettle usage

Kettles are one of the most used appliances in the kitchen. Avoid boiling a full kettle and opting instead to just boil what you need could save up to £8 per year on your energy bill.

  • Fill your dishwasher

Only run your dishwasher when at full capacity and reducing your dishwasher use by one run per week for a year could save you £10.

  • Simply turn down the thermostat and install smart TVR

Consider turning down your thermostat particularly during the day if you are not at home. Furthermore, installing smart TVR can help to just heat up the rooms that you whilst saving energy.

 

 

 

If you are interested in finding out more about our electrical courses, call our team on 0800 856 4448 – you can also leave an enquiry via the website and a member of our team will get back to you (contact us here).