Shutterstock / Nataliia Dvukhimenna©The leaves are turning, the evenings are drawing in and there’s just a touch of cold in the early morning.
Autumn is here and with the team still working from home in sunny-but-chilly Scotland, our thoughts are turning to heating.
When is the right time to turn it on, and how many jumpers can you wear before you can’t type any more?
We used to have the odd grumble about the tropical temperatures in PF Towers — but it had its advantages!
The cost of heating our homes is something that affects all of us.
With cooler weather on the horizon, the government, working with the Simple Energy Advice website, have offered these tips to help keep you comfortable while saving money on energy.
Top 10 tips to improve your home’s energy efficiency
- Take advantage of natural light. Open curtains and blinds throughout your house.
- Switch to energy saving lightbulbs such as LEDs or CFLs, and remember to turn off lights in rooms you are not using.
- Don’t leave appliances on standby. Turn them off at the wall or use power strips that detect when an appliance is on standby and automatically cut off the power.
- Buy a smart thermostat. This will make sure you only have the heating on when someone is home.
- Make small changes to how you heat your home: turn down your thermostat a few degrees, reduce the number of rooms you heat in your home, or heat your home for fewer hours each day.
- Switch to a smart meter to help understand your energy use and how you can reduce it.
- Wash your clothes on a lower temperature setting. Switching to 30 degrees can help increase energy efficiency and help your clothes last longer.
- Make the most of warm weather by drying your clothes outside, or use an air dryer for the winter months. If you need to use the tumble dryer, make sure it is full before starting.
- Make sure your dishwater is completely full before running it. If possible, run it in the middle of the night, during off-peak hours
- Check if you could be eligible for any financial help to make home energy improvements. Readers who live in England may be able to take advantage of the new Green Home Grants scheme. There are different arrangements around the country, all with their own rules.
Making energy efficiency improvements means your home will be warmer and cost less to heat. Improving home energy efficiency also helps the UK towards its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Find out more information about energy efficiency and check to see if you might be eligible for financial help where you live:
For more lifestyle advice from “The People’s Friend”, click here.
Marion McGivern As editor of the cookery, money, pets and eco pages, Marion covers a wide range of regular Features content. Along with the rest of the Team, she enjoys finding interesting features for both the weekly and Special issues that readers will love. Having so much variety every day means that over ten years with the “Friend” has just flown by!
