It is estimated that more than 600,000 families are currently struggling to pay their gas and electricity bills due to the recession compounded by last year's multiple utility price rises. With a European energy crisis which could well spill over and affect UK supplies, keeping one's home as energy efficient as possible will be a major concern as well as a key requirement in balancing family finances this year.
If 2008 was the year of unprecedented fuel price rises, this winter is surely the season when the effects are being felt most in every household across the country. Indeed, such has been the inexorable rise in gas and electricity prices that for every 1% increase, campaigners National Energy Action estimate that a staggering 40,000 more households join those in what is known as 'fuel poverty.'
Zoe Mcleod, Campaigns and Policy Manager at National Energy Action believes that the number of people facing fuel poverty has reached epidemic levels. She says: "An estimated 22,500 people died of cold-related causes last year and millions of people this winter will be living in cold, damp homes often suffering from the misery of social exclusion and ill health, and the worry of not knowing how they will pay their bills." But while conventional wisdom leads one to automatically assume that fuel poverty blights only lower income households, it is estimated that 20% of the estimated five million in fuel poverty now come from higher socio-economic groups.
Although we can do nothing about utility prices, householders have the power to achieve savings on two fronts: 1) by choosing their utility supplier carefully and 2) by ensuring that their homes are as energy efficient or 'wrapped up' as possible.
Wrapping up your wallet by switching utility provider
According to research conducted by price comparison website uSwitch.com, 13 million homes have already switched utility supplier collectively making savings of £1.7 billion - with 51% of UK households confirming having changed their utility supplier at least once. Based on the average annual utility bill of £1386,* if these very same consumers were to switch supplier again, UK households could save a further £1 billion.
*source: Energyhelpline.com
Getting 'switched' on
We've been able to choose our own utility provider for the last ten years since deregulation of the power industry. In the early days, the switching process was complex and beset with tales of mis-selling but today changing provider is no more difficult than a little online research via any one of the reputable online price comparison websites.
Confused.com
uSwitch.com
SimplySwitch.com
EnergyHelpline.com
Cheapest-Utility-Suppliers.co.uk
Step-by-step switching guide
1. Enter your postcode details and complete the online questionnaire about your existing supplier/s
2. Tell the search engine how you want the alternative suppliers listed. Many list results based on customer service, price only or those wanting ethical/green companies. Dual-fuel online accounts are usually cheapest
3. Compare all the results, choose your new supplier and apply on-line with no complicated forms to complete
4. The new company will sort everything out and notify your existing supplier. All you need to do is take a meter reading on the switchover day and make sure both companies write back to confirm everything is in order
Capping
Last year, a number of utility companies were offering customers the chance to fix or 'cap' their payments for periods up to two years. Although it is uncertain which way utility prices may go in 2009 due to the effects of recession and falling oil prices, it is still worth investigating whether your chosen supplier offers a capping facility which would provide a safe harbour against future short-term increases.
Pay by the cheapest method
If you currently pay your bill by cheque each quarter you can save around £150 a year* and even more if you switch to direct debit payments with an online only account. For people on pre-payment meters, savings are greatest at around £170 a year.
Watch your meters
Once you have switched supplier, further savings can be made by monitoring your meters. The amount you pay for fuel is usually per kilowatt hour (kWh) or "unit" and is itemised on your utility bill. Today, very few meters are regularly read and so bills are mostly estimated. By monitoring usage and regularly advising your utility provider of the correct meter reading, you will avoid 'shock' reconciliation bills for underpayment as well as unnecessary overpayments if your Direct Debit is too high compared to your consumption.
Wrapping up your cavities
According to EnergyCare.org.uk, approximately a third of all heat is lost through standard house walls. If your property was built between 1930 and 1990, it is likely to have a cavity between the inner and outer walls ideal for cavity wall insulation (CWI). The process involves injecting a special liquid into the internal void which solidifies and forms a heat retentive blanket keeping warm internal air inside the home for longer. For more information on wall insulation, take a look at our guide to adding environmental value to your home.
The Energy Saving Trust says that the average home could save 15% on fuel bills in a year by installing CWI. The cost of installation is around £500 for the typical family home and grants are available up to £2,700 depending on circumstances. To find out about grants, contact the Energy Saving Trust on 0800 512 012 or take a look at their website. To find a registered specialist cavity wall installer, contact The Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency whose members offer a 25-year guarantee: www.ciga.co.uk.
Wrapping up your loft
Up to 25% of the warm air you're paying for escapes through the roof - so it makes sense to keep it locked in. Insulating a cold, draughty loft makes a huge difference to the comfort of any home and significantly reduces heating costs. The Energy Saving Trust recommends installing glass-fibre or mineral-wool insulation, the thicker the better, with an optimum depth of 270mm. The cost of lagging an average three-bedroom family home is around £200 and the cost of loft insulation is recouped in less than two years with savings of up to £150 off the average annual heating bill. Knauf Insulation is one of the UK's leading companies manufacturing insulation product, and their website contains useful information on the various solutions available.
Wrapping up your floor
The amount of heat loss through floors is a much-neglected area. Many homes, particularly those built before 1935, have deep voids below the floorboards where cold air races in through external air bricks. Although adequate ventilation is vital to avoid rot build up, many people forget about the effects of heat loss underfoot; for example, while a typical lounge may have an ambient room temperature of 21°C, an un-insulated floor in that room will be significantly lower losing 15% of all heat. Under-floor insulation such as extruded polystyrene boards (see Flexel.org.uk) is an efficient way of minimising heat loss through the floor.
Wrapping up your open fireplace
Open fires may evoke a sense of romance in a living area but when not in use, they are a direct source of cold air being funneled right into the heart of the home. A specially engineered chimney balloon which can be easily deflated when not in use will stop warm living room air escaping and keep out icy draughts. See c20fires.co.uk.
Wrapping up the gaps
By plugging those niggling gaps around skirting boards, floors, windows and doors with either mastic sealant, brush stripping or beading, you will save between £25-40 per year on wasted energy. More extensive measures such as double-glazing are much more efficient cutting overall heat loss through windows by 50% and saving around £100 a year - but the high cost of installation is a disproportionate expense unless you intend living at the property for several years.
Wrapping up your pipes
If you have a properly insulated under floor, cold air will be trapped in the void below. Unfortunately, most household hot water piping servicing the central heating radiators is routed through this cold zone. By ensuring that you sleeve each pipe in proprietary products such as closed cell polyethylene pipe insulation, you will retain heat saving money as well as mitigating the risk of frozen and burst pipes. See PipeLagging.com.
Wrapping up the home with efficient heat
The central heating boiler is the powerhouse of the home but can be extremely expensive to run if it is old or inefficient. If your boiler is over 10 years old, think about replacing it with a new, energy-efficient model. Savings are immediate and replacing an old antique with a brand new, high-efficiency condensing boiler could save the average family home up to £200 on annual fuel bills. A new boiler is not cheap, around £1,000, so if buying new is not feasible, the next best thing to do is to ensure your boiler is fully serviced each year to provide optimum performance, using a CORGI registered gas engineer - see TrustCorgi.com.
More ways to save money
Aside from the more conventional ways of ensuring energy efficiency as above, you can also make long-term changes to your home by adopting various eco measures such as wind turbines and solar panels. See our guide to installing renewable technology in the home.
For more practical, affordable everyday measures, the following will also add to your overall energy savings.
Lighting
According to the Energy Saving Trust, lighting the home accounts for approximately 10 to 15% of the average domestic electricity bill. Replacing standard light bulbs with energy-efficient ones which use less than a quarter of the electricity not only reduces your carbon footprint and last ten times longer, but each bulb could save the average homeowner £7 a year. Given the average number of bulbs in a family home, that's an immediate £100 saving!
Appliances
Kitchen appliances such as washing machines and tumble driers devour energy with a voracious appetite. If you are considering changing any white goods, always opt for the most energy-efficient A* models. All electrical appliances for the kitchen now have to display an EU energy label giving an efficiency rating from A* to G, A* being the most efficient. For example, an A*-rated fridge-freezer will use nearly a third less electricity than a 10-year-old model, saving up to £45 a year.
Power-saving gadgets
One useful way of monitoring and measuring actual consumption on a day to day basis is by using any of a number of energy-saving gadgets available on the market today. The 'efergy' meter (£44.99) is a wireless smart electricity meter that shows how much energy you are consuming. For households with multiple TVs and PCs, Bye Bye Standby® (£29.95) allows you to remotely cut power to electrical devices when in standby mode. Available from EcoProductsUK.co.uk.
More energy-saving tips
- Turning your thermostat down by 1°C can cut heating bills by up to 10%, saving £50 per year
- Leaving a TV on standby wastes £35 of electricity a year. Always turn off from the power point
- Try to shower instead of bathing, which is two to three times more expensive
- Set hot water cylinder thermostats to 60°C/140°F. Any higher wastes energy
- Wrapping up your hot water tank with a proper lagging jacket will save £30-40 a year
- During winter, keeping heating on the during the day costs £10 per day so turn down to minimum when going out
- Washing laundry at 30°C can save around £20 per annum
- By fitting individual thermostatic controls on all radiators, the average annual household gas bill can be reduced by up to £50 per annum
related information
- how to add environmental value to your home
- how to install renewable technology in your home
- nine anti-credit crunch resolutions for 2009
- 12 money-saving, carbon emission-reducing resolutions for 2009
related links
- How much can you save? Log onto the Energy Saving Trust website for a free online home energy check
- Find grants or free services for the elderly or disabled at ConsumerFocus.org.uk
- Switch utility providers:
Confused.com uSwitch.com SimplySwitch.com EnergyHelpline.com Cheapest-Utility-Suppliers.co.uk
...it is estimated that 20% of the estimated five million in fuel poverty now come from higher socio-economic groups.
