We have spoken a lot about some of the best ways to cut energy use, but what are some of the bad things you do that maybe you hadn’t noticed? Here we run through some of the top home energy wasting sins.
- Not closing the curtains at night – Curtains and drapes work just like conventional insulation, so it makes sense to close them at night and block the heat from leaving your home. So many people leave them open, which is such a waste!
- Storing things on top of your loft insulation. This is one of the most costly mistakes you can make. Insulation doesn’t work nearly as well if you compact it. The more things you shove on top of your loft insulation, the poorer the insulating qualities. Try boarding the loft using joist extensions rather than squishing your insulation.
- Fitting radiator cupboards – These units may look nice and cover those unsightly iron giants, but they prevent heat from convecting around the room, and actually slow the heating of the house by around 50%.
- Leaving your heating on when it isn’t needed – There are so many great heating control systems out there now that let you have more control over your heating. It really is so easy to make sure you are only heating the home when you absolutely need it.
- Standby – need we say more? Well just a bit. Even though most modern appliances have much lower energy stand-by settings, it still adds up. So just switch your appliances off!
- Maintenance – It is amazing what keeping your home clean and running smoothly will do. A dusty house makes home appliances less efficient and regular servicing of things like your boiler and draught-proofing will make sure everything is running as well as it can be.
- Being lazy with your tariff – So many people don’t check to see if they are paying too much for their gas and electric bill. Look at Uswitch and see if you could save.
- Too much water – Over filling your kettle or saucepan is so easy to avoid, but it isn’t just here people waste water. Under filling your dryer dish washer or washing machine will also waste energy and hot water – water costs a fair bit to heat!
- Drying clothes inside – Sometimes it is hard to avoid, but drying your clothes inside causes condensation
- Placing your thermostat by the front door – So many thermostats are poorly placed. If you have them in a draughty spot like by the front door, it means the heating will turn on more often, even when the living area is a comfortable temperature. Get yours installed in a living area.
There are plenty more simple things that people forget to do – so make sure you know better! If you have any more to add, feel free to chime in – in our comments section below.
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