In the current financial climate, were all looking for ways to make our money go further, and when it comes to our homes one of our main concerns is our energy bills.
We’re also living in an age in which many are trying to be as green as possible. These two things should go hand-in-hand, and there are some really easy and smart ways of improving your home, the environment and your bank balance!
With energy companies continually increasing their prices, recent weather trends and the government’s new ‘green deal’ that comes into force in the UK in 2012, now is the perfect time to invest in making your home a smarter home! But what do we mean by a smarter home? Well, you may have taken some steps already; installing energy efficient bulbs, draft excluders and washing all of your laundry at 30˚c instead of 40˚c are all great examples of small changes that can make a massive difference.
‘Smart’ Moves
We all know there’s so much more we could do; for some of us it could seem overwhelming, expensive or even ‘a drop in the ocean’. For example, adding insulation to your loft may seem like a small money-saving feature, but it could save you up to £175 (~$275 US) year after year!
Making these changes to our homes and the way we live in them doesn’t have to be a challenge, in fact with a few simple changes you could reduce your home’s wastage, increase its efficiency and cut those monthly utility bills and carbon emissions significantly.
There are plenty of great solutions on the market to help you on your journey to a smarter home, from small improvements to your fixtures and fittings. Items such as the programmable timer plug prevent your appliances and gadgets from wasting electricity when you’re not using them are fantastic for saving energy every day. Other features such as aerated taps and shower heads reduce water usage by combining the water with air before releasing it from the fixture, and ultimately using up to 75% less water. Grander-scale projects can increase the energy efficiency of your home significantly; fitting solar panels to your roof can often reduce or even eliminate some utility bills, and help towards the heating of your water and lighting of your home.
So there we are; a simple look at some fantastic changes you can make to your home to cut down on energy usage and slash utility bills effectively!
