From energy to interest rates and petrol to groceries, all we are seeing are increases. For many people this is causing huge problems financially and putting many households on the brink of crisis.
As we enter the winter period and the temperatures are beginning to drop, it is inevitable that our household bills are going to increase. But did you know, even the smallest of changes to your current lifestyle and way of living could have some surprisingly big changes to your household bills. Below we look at our top 10 tips for saving money this winter.
Our top ten tips for saving money this winter:
1) Wearing and Utilising Extra Layers
There are many ways you can add an extra layer whilst at home.
- Thermals - Wearing an underlayer beneath your normal clothes will help you to be able to keep warmer during the colder months. Many thermal underlayers are designed to trap and store your body heat.
- Blankets - Invest in a thick blanket, this can be used as an additional blanket on your bed, or for when you are sat on the sofa watching TV. You can even buy wearable blankets, that means your arms can stay covered and warm when you want to pick something up.
- Jumpers/Hoodies - Wearing a jumper or hoodie is best if you are active in the house and cannot use a blanket.
2) Smart Thermostats
Many homes are fitted with time and temperature-controlled thermostats, also known as smart home panels. You can set these to come on at a specified time and at a set temperature. You can reduce the amount of energy wasted heating your home whilst nobody is at home.
3) Optimise Your Washing Habits
From washing yourself, to washing your clothes there are a number of cost saving ways that you can reduce your energy consumption.
- Wash your clothes at 30 Degrees - Washing your clothes at a reduced temperature will still produce the best results with the right detergent and can save you money on your electricity bill.
- Use a clothes rack instead of tumble dryer - A tumble dryer is one of the biggest energy consumers of all appliances inside the home. Switching to a clothes rack positioned near a radiator will reduce your energy usage. Quick note: placing your clothes directly onto a radiator will trap in the warm air and your room will take longer to warm up.
- Switch from a bath to a shower - Switching from having a bath to a shower will reduce the amount of water that is used and the amount of energy that is consumed to heat that water. To save even further, you could also limit yourself to the time spent in the shower.
4) Home Lighting
You can reduce your energy consumption by replacing your existing light bulbs to more energy efficient light bulbs. Make sure that when you are no longer in the room, that you have no lights left on, particularly if you are on your way out of the house for a long period of time.
We know that it is dark on mornings and evenings, but making sure that blinds and curtains are opened to let in as much light as possible, will reduce the amount of time the lights need to be on during the daylight hours.
5) Cooking and Making Hot Drinks
You can save money whilst cooking in a number of ways. Investing in an air fryer is the latest trend that people are fascinating about, it could save you up to 65% of your cooking energy consumption. Using the correct size pan and hob is also a handy way of not wasting money whilst cooking.
Making sure that your kettle is filled up with the right amount of water for the drinks you are preparing is also a great way of minimising wasted energy consumption. Some people have been known to only boil the kettle once during the day and using a flask to keep the water warm.
6) Work From the Office
Lockdown and the pandemic have changed and had a lasting impact on the working world. Many jobs are now fully remote or are hybrid roles, where working from the office is seen as a choice. We recommend that you spend as much time in the office as you can. (Hear us out) You can charge your mobile phone at work, and work laptop for the following day. You can turn off the heating at home and stay warm in the comfortable offices your company is obliged to provide. You can even make use of the kettles and microwaves provided instead of using your own at home.
7) Make Your Home Energy Efficient
Draughts can cause an unbearable chill and can leave your house feeling cold during the winter, you try to combat this by turning on the heating, but the most effective way is fixing the source of the problem. Checking your windows and doors for any sealant cracks, investing in a draught excluder and closing internal doors are all great ways of optimising room temperature. If your heat is escaping, you need to find the source and fix it, otherwise you will be continually wasting your money on heating.
8) Turn Off Your Appliances
Many household appliances are fitted with a standby function, in that they are ready to be used without needing to turn on the plug, however you are spending unnecessary money on powering the device when it is not in full use, simply turn off the plug until the next time the device is needed. The most common standby culprits are phone chargers and televisions, and typical houses have at least 2 or 3 of each appliance.
9) Make Sure You Claim What You Are Entitled To
There are many government schemes and work policies that could mean you are entitled to money that you are not getting or claiming for. These include but are not limited to cold weather payments, warm home discount scheme, winter fuel payment schemes and even claiming money back for working from home. There are also grants available for home insulation and new boilers that you may be eligible for. Speaking to your local authority or the citizens advice bureau would be able to help you work out if you are eligible for any additional payments.
10) Checking Your Vehicle
Preventing additional costs, can be a great way to save on unexpected bills, repairs and call out charges. Vehicle checks are particularly important during cold weather as there are already increased costs during this time of year and any additional costs are likely going to be detrimental to your quality of living. The RAC use a clever mnemonic FORCES to help you remember what needs to be checked.
- Fuel - Check you have plenty of fuel for your journey making sure that you anticipate traffic, or bad weather diversions. Running out of fuel could be catastrophic and costly.
- Oil - Make sure your vehicle's oil level is between the minimum and maximum, don't be reliant on the oil warning light, as this could be faulty.
- Rubber - Checking tyres have sufficient tread and making sure that they have no cracks or splits will help your vehicle grip to the road better. Also check your wiper blades, in cold temperatures, they can stick to the windscreen.
- Coolant - As with oil make sure that your vehicle is topped up sufficiently with coolant. Many coolants contain Antifreeze, which helps prevents your engine from becoming unresponsive during cold temperatures.
- Electrics - Make sure all your lights are working and make sure that your vehicle battery is sufficiently charged and is healthy. Check if your battery needs to be replaced.
- Screen Wash - Make sure you regularly top up your screen wash. Throughout winter there will be more dirt on the roads along with additional salt.
Whilst some of our suggests might seem a little excessive, if you make lots of subtle changes to your lifestyle, you will see a huge difference in your monthly bills. Which as the prices and costs of everything continue to increase, any ways to save money will be greatly received by your purse or wallet.
Check out our related blogs: