Easy tips to lower your gas bills

The price of utilities has risen sharply over the last year so it is now more important than ever to save money where you can.

In another article we'll look at how to price-compare for gas providers, but this article looks at small life changes that can help to lower your gas bill.

There is a notable difference between gas use and gas waste. These tips will concentrate on the latter so that you can cut the costs without massively overhauling your lifestyle.
If you need to recap anything you've read, or would like a quick summary of tips, you can scroll down to the Recap section at the bottom of this article.


Feeling warm inside
Turning your thermostat down by just one degree can have the impact of knocking almost 10% from your gas bill: approximately £46. How low can you go?

Instead of trying to tackle the slightest chill by whacking the heating on full, consider wearing more layers or wrapping yourself in a throw or blanket.

If you are leaving the house for an hour or more, turn the thermostat down or off.


Keeping heat in
If you are using a gas fire, keep all doors shut, and fit the bottoms with draft excluders. This way you can better isolate the heat to where it's needed instead of it being wasted.
Thick curtains can also be useful to minimize heat loss when they are drawn. Consider drawing the curtains in the early evening.

Fitting silver-foil or other heat reflective material behind radiators can also increase their efficiency: this is because is prevents the heat from being uselessly absorbed into the wall and, instead, reflects it back into the room. According to Scottish gas, doing this can save you over £14 a year.

Having your home properly insulated can also go a long way in improving your home's heat efficiency and keeping the heat in. The best bit is that it might not cost you a thing: there are a number of insulation grants available (covering things such as loft and cavity wall insulation) for people in all kinds of circumstances, so it is worth contacting your local council to see if you are eligible for any of them.


Be efficient, buy what's efficient
Appliances are becoming increasingly efficient with the amount of fuel they use, so by keeping up to date with the latest in energy efficient technology, you can save a lot of money in the long-run. This is only worth considering, however, if you have sufficient capital to make such purchases.

Efficiency isn't just about technology. If you put a little thought into how you use appliances, you can cut pounds from your gas bill by being efficient yourself. For example, instead of using the oven for individual meals (assuming you have a gas oven), why not cook in bulk and freeze portions to eat later? It is more cost effective to cook a lot in the oven and microwave portions later than it is to cook everything in the oven individually. The same applies to using the hobs: instead of making enough spaghetti bolognese or soup to last just one night, why not cook in bulk? Not only will you cut money from your gas bill, but you'll have a convenient supply of home-made microwavable meals that can be ready in minutes.


Miscellaneous
Here are a few tips that didn't seem to fit anywhere else:

• If you currently receive a paper bill, ask your provider if you are being charged extra for that, or whether you could save money by receiving your bill online instead (if you have suitable access to the internet).  Some companies charge upwards of  £3 each time they send out a paper-bill!
• Changing your payment method can also reduce your gas-bill. Providers tend to be most amenable to customers who are willing to set up regular payments by direct debits. Ask your supplier how much they are prepared to discount you for this.
  
  
  

Recap

If you're serious about saving money on your gas bill:

1. Turn your thermostat down: even one degree can make a big difference.
2. Wear a sweater or snuggle up in a throw if things get a little chilly.
3. If you are leaving the house for more than an hour, turn the thermostat down.
4. Keep all doors shut and use draft excluders to isolate heat.
5. Hang thick curtains and draw them on the evening to reduce heat loss.
6. Fit silver foil or other reflective materials behind radiators.
7. Ensure your house is properly insulated. Check if you are eligible for grants to do so.
8. Invest in fuel efficient appliances. 
9. Minimize your oven use by cooking in bulk.
10. Switch to a paperless billing system.
11. Change your method of payment to a regular direct debit.

Dealing with priority debts: utilities arrears

YOUR SERVICES CAN BE CUT IF YOU FAIL TO PAY YOUR UTILITY BILLS.

If you're in arrears with utility bills, you should contact the affected service providers as soon as possible. Failure to do so may result in your service being cut off.


Making contact
Explain the circumstances of your financial difficulty. If these difficulties are only temporary, you can try to arrange for arrears to be paid off over a number of months. Alternatively, you could try to arrange for monthly payments to include a small element of your arrears.

With regard to certain utilities such as as gas or electricity, consider requesting a pre-payment meter. This will require you to pay for utilities, including arrears, before it is consumed. The use of a pre-payment meter will help you to better appreciate your fuel usage and will all but eliminate the risk of going into further debt on your utilities.


Additional considerations
If you are having difficulties budgeting, and are in receipt of the benefits bullet-pointed below, consider asking the DWP to make payments directly from your benefits (Third Party Deductions).

• Job Seekers' Allowance (Income Based)
• Income Support.
• Pension Credits.
  
  

If you feel that the utilities supplier you are with is too expensive and you are able to find a better deal elsewhere, you should consider price comparing and changing providers. Note, however, that changing providers does not release you from debts owed to your existing provider.

Easy tips to lower your electric bills

With an ever growing range of electrical appliances and gadgets, we are using more electricity than ever before. If you're not careful, you're likely to get a nasty shock at the end of the month when the bill arrives.

In another article we'll look at how to price-compare for electricity providers, but this article looks at small life changes that can help to lower your electric bill.

There is a notable difference between electricity use and electricity waste. These tips will concentrate on the latter so that you can cut the costs without changing your lifestyle. You can leave the candles in the cupboard for now!

If you need to recap anything you've read, or would like a quick summary of tips, you can scroll down to the Recap section at the bottom of this article. 

Shut it off!

This one should go without saying. Entertainment devices like TVs, DVD players and games consoles can eat through power. For some of us, watching less TV is an unthinkable sacrifice, but it helps to turn these devices off when they're not in use. 

Vampire power

Take down the wreathes of garlic, they aren't going to help! 'Vampire power' is when devices and appliances leach power from the mains supply while they are on standby. Some devices can use up to 90% of the power they use when they're switched on! This is increasingly common for modern devices such as TVs, DVD players and games consoles. 

You can usually tell when a device is on standby because lights or displays (usually in red) will remain illuminated. The advantages to standby mode are that it can allow a device to start-up more quickly, or can be activated by a remote control. The disadvantages are that the device is costing you money even when it's not in use, and it can also pose a fire risk.

If you wish to save energy by eliminating vampire power, you can either unplug the device or check the user guide for instructions on how to switch it off completely. 

Lights out, all out

One of the most obvious ways of cutting down your electricity bills is to switch of electric lights when you're not in the room. While it may sound like common sense, the vast majority of people will think nothing of leaving a light on for hours at a time. A little mindfulness in this area can go a long way. 

There are also ways of saving money while the light is in use by using lower watt or energy-saving bulbs where appropriate. For further information on energy saving light bulbs, click here. 

By following these two steps, you can reduce your electricity bill without affecting how you use electricity in your home. 

Staying out of hot water

It can be incredibly expensive to heat water with electricity. Whether it's the boiler, shower, a washing machine, dishwasher, or even just an electric kettle, this is likely to form about 1/3 of your electricity bill: for this reason, it's important to consider what you can do to cut costs in this area.

If you have an electric powered boiler, consider setting it to boil only once or twice a day and remain on for a limited time. If you time things right, this should be enough to provide you with hot water when you need it most such as for washing dishes or taking baths. 

When you're in the shower, water isn't the only thing going down the drain. Although it can be tempting to lounge under the running water, you should try to keep showers to around five minutes and, if appropriate to your lifestyle, take one only every other day. 

Running a washing-machine can be expensive too, so it's worth putting a little thought into how you can run the fewest possible cycles, and what the lowest reasonable temperature is to run them at (30 degrees should be more than adequate for most washes). Depending on your lifestyle, you could try wearing things more than once to delay their return to the laundry basket. Alternatively, you could delay your wash until you have enough lights or darks to justify running a cycle. If you typically use a drier after a wash-cycle, consider hanging the clothes up to dry instead.

If you're heavily reliant on a dishwasher, consider saving all the day's washing for just one cycle on the evening. After all, running just one cycle on your dishwasher costs around 15p. This might not sound much, but if you run two cycles a day you'd be looking at a bill of £109 per year for the dishwasher alone! If you only have a few bits and pieces to wash, there is always the sink.

When you're using an electric kettle, you should only boil the amount of water you need. Not only will this help you save electricity, but the kettle will boil faster. After all, why spend extra on boiling water that's only going to go cold again in the kettle?

Keeping cool

Fridges and freezers work most efficiently when they are full (but not so full as to completely block the air circulation). If you have empty space in your fridge or freezer, consider filling them with balls of newspaper or other such items. 

Allow hot foods to cool before placing them in the fridge. If you put hot food in the fridge then it will be forced to work at full power to keep the temperature stable. 

Defrost things in the fridge. Not only will the food be defrosted safely, but it will help keep your fridge cold so that it doesn't have to work as hard.

Any liquids you have in the fridge should be covered as liquid vapors can add to the compressor's workload.

Vacuum your freezer's condenser coils (behind or beneath the unit) about every three months. Dust build-up in this area can lead to a 25% drop in efficiency.

Staying warm

If your home uses an electric heating system or an electric fire, keeping use to a minimum is essential if you're going to keep your bills down. A reduction of just a few degrees on your thermostat can equate to savings of 5% and upwards!

If you're still cold, consider wearing an extra layer of clothing or sitting with a blanket (though not an electric one!). 

Buy what's efficient

If you're considering replacing any of your appliances, be mindful of energy efficiency. Such energy efficient items may cost more in beginning, but the overall savings will reimburse you for the extra outlay several times over. 

Misc

Last but certainly not least are the miscellaneous tips that didn't really seem to fit anywhere else.

• Be quick when you're opening the oven door, or the door of the fridge or freezer. The longer the doors are open, the greater the change in temperature, and the harder the appliance will have to work to get things back to how they were.
• Use LCD as opposed to CRT monitors. LCD monitors are almost twice as efficient.
• Use a laptop instead of a desktop computer. Laptops use significantly less power. 
  
  
  

Recap

If you're serious about saving on your electricity bill:

1. Switch off any electrical items when they're not in use.
2. Don't allow your items to lounge in standby mode.
3. Switch off lights when you're not in the room.
4. Replace inefficient or high-wattage light bulbs with lower watt and energy efficient alternatives.
5. Set your boiler to come on only at key times of the day and to remain on for a minimal period.
6. Take fewer showers and don't dawdle! 
7. Run fewer and cooler cycles on your washing machine.
8. Hang up your clothes to dry instead of using a tumble drier. 
9. Run fewer dishwasher cycles.
10. When using a kettle, only boil the water you need.
11. Fill empty space in fridges and freezers with balls of newspaper.
12. Let food cool before placing it in the fridge.
13. Defrost frozen food-stuffs in the fridge.
14. Keep refrigerated liquids covered.
15. Vacuum your freezer's condenser coils. 
16. Turn the thermostat down. 
17. If you're cold, wear a sweater!
18. Buy energy-efficient appliances where you can. 
19. Don't keep oven and freezer doors open for too long.
20. Use LCD monitors instead of CRTs.
21. Use a laptop instead of a desktop computer where possible.

Brighten your finances with energy saving light bulbs

Energy bills are some of the biggest recurring household expenses, so knowing how to save money in this area is crucial to a brighter financial future.

This article looks at energy efficient light bulbs: now there's a bright idea! 


Advantages
Energy saving light-bulbs can help you cut your electricity bills and they're incredibly cheap to buy. Some electricity companies even offer the bulbs for free as part of an environmental policy. 

On average, it's estimated that you will save over £3/$4.50 per year for every energy efficient light-bulb you fit (in a high-use area of your home). This may not seem like much, but given the cheap availability of the bulbs and the overall ease of use there are few reasons not to make the switch.

On top of the savings, you'd also be doing your bit to support the environment in a way that would have virtually no impact on your lifestyle.


Disadvantages
Energy-saving light-bulbs start out quite dim when they are first lit and gradually brighten once they are left on for a while. For most rooms in this house this won't be a problem, but such bulbs may be unsuitable where high visibility is important such as a study, workshop or kitchen. 

Energy efficient light-bulbs are only suitable for typical light-fixtures. They are incompatible with dimmer switches and may be too large for dainty bedside lamps and the like. 


Conclusion
Energy saving light-bulbs are one of many ways to skim the fat from your electricity bill without spending your life in the dark. Plus, you'd be doing your bit for the planet!