David Cameron and others had a meeting with the energy companies recently … and what have they told us? Effectively, that there is little hope of lower energy tariffs, water bills are set to rise and for many, a cold winter is forecast. DIY time folks! Best get busy… this is really serious!
So what to do? Well… we’re being encouraged to go on-line and switch energy suppliers for starters, but there’s much more! We have to wise up really fast about the amount of energy and water we are using.
Look around. How many lights are on… do they need to be? Just had a warm drink… boiled just enough water to make it or filled the kettle? How many appliances are on charge or standby… time to turn them off?
These may seem quite small things – but add to these not running the washing machine half full at more than 30 degrees; closing the curtains to keep heat in; not filling the bath up when half a tub will do or better still taking a shower… and we all begin to appreciate that little things mean a lot – especially when the energy used to do these things is costing around 15 -18% more than it did three months ago!
Making changes isn’t all up to one person either – everyone in the house needs to play their part. Involve the kids – make a chart and get them to write on it each day what energy they’ve saved – maybe with a reward at the end of the week for the one saving the most!
To really get into the right frame of mind for all of this, take a look now at this amazing energy saving Infographic online http://www.wickes.co.uk/pcat/energysavingtips. Wickes has really got to grips with what we all need to be doing – and thankfully is sharing energy saving tips with us in a really understandable way! Some of the energy-saving suggestions are SO simple that it’s hard to know why we haven’t given them attention before. Others relate to simple DIY ideas that will save us £hundreds by reducing fuel usage and Wickes have cleverly illustrated how easily enormous energy savings can be achieved.
The energy-saving tips Wickes suggest ain’t rocket science either – we really can do them ourselves! Like …replacing the leaky tap washer that’s dripping away half a bath of costly hot water every week; installing some simple draught-proofing to prevent cold air coming in around doors and windows; inserting reflective insulation behind external wall radiators to send heat back into the room rather than it escaping through brickwork; filling the hole in the skirting board to stop cold blasts coming in from the cellar; fixing foil insulation to cellar ceilings to prevent cold striking up through floor-boards.
Then there’s topping up insulation in the loft or attic. Maybe the insulation was first installed ten years when a 2 inch depth was thought to be enough! That was before the Energy Saving Trust discovered that 12 inches is really what is needed, to stop 26% of heat generated in our homes from simply going through the roof!
Whilst insulating, replace that broken loft access door to stop cold air blowing down and chilling the hall or bathroom.
Put on another layer of clothing and turn down the heating thermostat – a room temperature of 18-21 degrees is ideal. It’s slightly crazy to wander around in a T-shirt and turn UP the costly heating instead of wearing a sweater and turning the thermostats DOWN… for every 1 degree the heating is turned down… a massive 10% is saved on heating bills!
If we are already thinking these are great ideas but wondering how to get the materials we need, Wickes again have all the answers! With 190 stores throughout the UK, an online and telephone order service and home deliveries, catalogues, DIY Guides and ‘How to’ videos, we can have energy saving products delivered and installed in no time at all.
