Throughout winter most people will notice that they are using more energy in the home. Longer nights will mean that lights are left on for longer, whilst the colder days will see the central heating turned on. Saving energy through the winter months though will also help to save money as well as the earth’snatural resources.
There are a number of ways to save energy through winter, although in essence all of these ways come down to simply stopping energy being wasted.
Most energy used during winter goes on heating the home, and yet in many homes that heat escapes from the home, to warm up the outside air. Insulation is essential to saving energy during the winter. Rolled loft insulation when laid to an appropriate thickness could save twenty percent off of heating bills, whilst the presence of cavity wall insulation could save even more money and energy. Even simple lagging of pipes can save energy.
Insulation will reduce the amount of energy needed to keep the home at a constant temperature. More energy though can be saved through a few simple steps.
Simple turning down the thermostat by 1C will save as much as ten percent on energy use. More savings can of course be made though even greater reductions on the thermostat, although of course no-one wants to be cold in their own home, but by wearing warmer clothes the difference will normally go unnoticed.
Also where possible limit the areas of the home that are heated. If a room is rarely or never used then it is likely to require less heating than the main living room. The majority of traditional radiators will have radiator valves which allows for the radiator to be turned on and off. Additionally new thermostatic radiator valves and room thermostats are an option to ensure that individual rooms are heated to a desired temperature, rather than a room being just fully heated or not heated.
It is also a good idea to consider lining the wall behind a radiator with tin foil. This is especially important on outside walls as it will reduce the amount of heat wasted trying to heat a cold wall.
If it is time to replace an existing boiler seek out the most efficient one that is affordable. Condensing boilers are particularly efficient, and could a huge amount compared to a boiler that is just a few years old. This saving is normally between ten and thirty percent.
Away from heating, lighting is the biggest user of energy during the winter months. The longer evenings and nights, and dark mornings, of course means that the need for lights is greater than during the summer. This though doesn’t mean that it is necessary to light up the whole home continually. Lights only really need to be one in rooms that have someone in them. Turning lights off when the room is going to be left empty can save huge amounts of energy, and it doesn’t matter that someone is going to be using the room in ten or fifteen minutes time. Energy used in lighting an empty room is likely to be wasted energy.
Energy is wasted by most households all year round, although in general more is wasted during the winter months. Recognising where heat and light is being wasted is the best way for ensuring that energy can be saved during the winter.
By Tim Harry
