Buildings and their environment
Practical Tips
We spend a lot of time in our homes, and use energy in the form of electricity and gas. Lighting and white goods in our home consume energy, and upgrading to more efficient devices can save money, and reduce emissions. The UK electricity grid has been getting much greener over recent years due to increasing levels of renewables, but there has been little progress on displacing gas to heat our homes.
What small steps can we take immediately? A few Practical Tips:
When your light bulbs next need changing, switch to LEDs, which offer a lot of benefits (choices of hue, not hot to touch, and using much less energy)
When you next need to change a fridge or other device, choose the most efficient you can afford.
Think about ways to not waste water, especially hot water. Shorter showers, for example.
Check your thermostat and timer to understand how much energy you are using and what you are paying for it - this will provide a reference point when you come to make improvements.
Try turning the thermostat down by 1 degree (Centigrade), and see if anyone notices? (but don’t go cold in winter - stay comfortable)
Try altering room/ radiator controls so that you heat rooms differently. Typically, a living room and kitchen is kept warmer than bedrooms.
Keep doors closed throughout the house to reduce the turnover of air being heated.
Don’t waste energy trying to heat a room with windows ajar!
That small 0.5kW electric heater in the damp corner left on for long periods can consume a lot of electricity.
Are there some draughts that are easy to fix with draught excluders or other solutions for doors and windows.
We have been gathering ideas on more significant changes that can be made in this area, so please visit the corresponding Projects/Buildings page to understand more about what people are proposing.