Six steps to creating an energy efficient home
If your utility bills have been going up and up and up lately, you’re not alone. Water, energy and heating bills account for a serious chunk of the average monthly bill. But the good news is that there’s a few things you can do to make a dent in those costs. We’ve listed some quick energy-efficient ways to save money on bills below.
1. Light bulbs
Energy saving light bulbs have been around for a few years now, and they’ve become a lot more efficient than they used to be. Replacing your home’s light bulbs with energy efficient bulbs could potentially save you hundreds of pounds – and they also have the added benefit of lasting a hell of a lot longer than regular bulbs, often up to twelve times longer.
2. Doors and windows
Two of the biggest culprits when it comes to letting the heat out of your home: Doors and Windows! But the great thing is that they’re probably the easiest of all to do something about.
You can insulate your door frame yourself with simple, self-adhesive strips that run the length of the frame, and provide an extra little bit of padding. And if your letterbox is letting in a bit of a breeze, a simple draught excluder can do the trick.
If your doors are more than a few years old, however, there may be no saving them! You can take a look at our collection of new doors online here: https://lochlevenwindows.co.uk/doors/
3. Double glazing
If you really want to make sure your windows are doing their job, though, there’s no better way to do it than by installing double glazing windows. There’s a few different places through which your windows could be letting draughts in, such as small gaps around the frame or near the latch, and a double-glazing install can fix them all.
Opening a double glazing window
If you replace your single-glazed windows with a set of double-glazed, you could end up saving between £150 and £200 a year, and you’ll keep your home a lot warmer too! At Loch Leven, we have an amazing collection of double-glazed windows:
4. General appliances
All over your house you’ve got electricity being used up when you’re not around, and there’s lots of tiny ways that you can save on the usage. Only fill your kettle with the amount you need to boil, fill your washing machine and dishwasher completely before turning them on, and try turning your thermostat down by a degree or two. You’ll be surprised by the difference.
Oh, and when you’re turning in for the evening, remember to turn everything off. No sense keeping your TV on standby when you’re in bed fast asleep, is there?
5. Save water where you can.
It goes without saying that dripping taps are a continuous waste of water, and of money. But it’s not just through the taps that you could be seeing your money dripping away. If you’ve got a non-electric shower, fitting a water-efficient head can easily save wasted water, and save you money into the bargain.
6. Install an energy monitor.
Energy monitors don’t do anything to save you money in and of themselves, but what they can do is pinpoint those areas where you might be wasting energy, and you can decide from there where you could make the small changes that could lead to big savings.
All in all, there are hundreds of little ways you can cut down on your energy bills, but following these easy, quick fixes, you can immediately start saving money. With Loch Leven, you wont be in better hands when it comes to replacing your doors and windows, so take a look through our newest collections, and get in touch with a member of our friendly team today.
