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Reduce Your Fuel Bills and Live in an Energy Efficient HomeHere are a few suggestions for becoming more energy efficient at home. An energy efficient home is a must these days. As the struggle to control climate change hots up, we all want to do our bit towards reducing our contribution to this global problem. Energy efficient home: Lets start with the kitchen - centre of the home.
A Cosy KitchenA good kitchen with a warm cosy atmosphere and lots going on can be the centre of the house.
Everyone knows the lovely warmth that pervades the kitchen, with pleasant scents of food to match, when there is cooking or baking going on. So that's another good argument for cooking a family dinner as often as practicable! But what about the other appliances? It is fashionable to have a utility room for laundry and other white goods such as the spin dryer and sometimes the freezer. All these appliances can be pretty noisy so there is a lot to be said for this. However, fridges and freezers are not very noisy and they give off heat from the heat exchanger at the back all the time. If you have some or all of these appliances in the kitchen or at least just adjacent to the kitchen you can benefit from their heat. It may be worth installing foil behind your fridge or freezer to take good advantage of this heat. If the appliance is against an outside wall this is especially worth doing, because otherwise a lot of that heat is lost. Energy efficient home
Heating rooms - the rest of the house If you have central heating you can adjust your automatic switches so that the heating comes on at the most effective time. Most people should be able to turn the thermostat down a notch or two without noticing much difference. Try setting the timers to turn the heating on a little later and/or to switch it off a little sooner at night. You probably won't notice the temperature drop once you are asleep! The same goes for in the morning. If your heating is set to come on at 5.30 a.m. and you rise at 6.30 a.m. try putting the heating forward to 6 a.m. and see if you or anyone else notices.
If all this sounds a little spartan, try becoming fitter! Fit people generally feel the cold less. We also adapt to a cooler climate, given a little practise, so persevere and soon you may feel that other peoples' homes are ridiculously hot! Generally, living in slightly cooler conditions is better for your health, too. If you are a UK citizen, you may qualify for a grant to insulate your loft or add cavity wall insulation to your home - which will certainly make your heat go further. Of course, to save money on your electricity bills and be more energy efficient you also need to check out that your electricity supplier is doing their bit. If you are in the UK, Scottish Power is one of the greenest outfits around. We've been with them for a few years now. Their service is good - you can manage your account online and they are very quick to sort out queries. Much of their energy is from hydro and wind farms - in fact they are the largest developer of wind power in the UK. Whether you opt to get your supplies from them or elsewhere, it is worth checking out the options as you could save on your bills and be a little greener too. Energy efficient home: Some ideas for holding onto the heat!
Keeping hold of the warmth
There are lots of things to consider to keep rooms warm for longer. One quick way to make your heat energy go further is to get heavy curtains for nighttime. These should ideally cover the whole window and some. They should overlap the window pane effectively so that colder air behind them is effectively trapped. This slows down the heat exchange between the window and the outside world and between the window pane and the room. Lined curtains of a heavy material such as brocade are best for this. Picture right: High hedges cut down wind and so help retain a warmer house for longer Plant hedges for insulation If your house is at all exposed it may be worth planting trees and shrubs or a high hedge to cut down the effects of wind. Just like us, houses lose warmth quickly on windy, chilly days. Vegetation can offer some degree of protection. Take professional advice if you want to plant trees close to your property as the roots can affect the foundations. Single and double glazing Single-glazed windows are responsible for upto about 25% of heat loss from houses. Even double-glazed windows still lose a lot of heat - about half the rate for single-glazed. This is one of the reasons why modern houses are often built with small windows. So even if you don't mind the neighbours gazing in, you might want to fit snug curtains for the winter at least! If you are considering getting double glazing go for the best you can afford. There should be a gap of at least 2mm between panes and it should be factory-sealed against leakage. Have plenty of soft furnishings to soak up and help retain warmth. Rugs and carpets with good underlay will help. Wallpaper is also some help. Fabric wallhangings can also contribute, if you like that kind of thing. It may also be a good idea to position sofas away from walls as drafts and cold air are commoner by walls. If you have floorboards, think about sealing the gaps with sealant to cut down draughts and heat loss. Gaps in doors and window fittings can be dealt with by buying draft excluders. These are usually quite easy to fit. In old houses with loose fitting doors and windows you might need to consider getting professional help. Energy efficient home:
The humble draft-excluderOne temporary solution which helps towards an energy efficient home is that good old student-standby of a homemade draft excluder for the bottom of doors.Energy efficient home:
Effective radiatorsIf you have central heating make sure that your radiators are not blocked by furniture. If any of your radiators are beneath a window the curtains are better short but down to the windowsill so that the heat is kept in the room rather than sneaking up behind the curtain. You can also make radiators more effective by placing aluminium heat reflecters behind them, especially ones which are on the outside walls of your house. This works just like tin-foil - which is pretty much what it is! You can even use tin foil as a cheap short term fix. Tin foil is of course one of the least environmentally friendly products as it is very energy intensive to produce. However, if it is serving a long term environmental purpose, it's use is perhaps justified - at least until a better alternative is widely available!
Energy efficient home:
Insulate that loft!Loft insulation is a must for an energy efficient home.There are many different types of insulation to choose from: buy the best you can afford. The loft space inside houses is a big source of heat loss, partly because of the large surface area of the roof itself but also because there need to be ventilation channels between the main joists and the roof. So a good level of insulation will help keep your home warmer and easier to heat. The deeper your insulation the better. 4 inches (10cms) is standard; 6 inches (15cms) is better. You can even buy wool insulation now, which is very environmentally friendly. Other common types include polystyrene foam and fibreglass which can be a health hazard. If you have an unused chimney you can restrict the air flow to cut down heat loss. You should not completely block it as adequate ventilation is always important. If you don't have double-glazing, consider installing temporary insulation which will help cut heat loss through the winter months. Energy efficient home:
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