Cut lockdown utility bills
at Uswitch.com, said lowering the temperature by one degree can reduce your bills by £80 a year: “Close the curtains after dark to retain heat and bleed your radiators regularly.”
If working from home, do not forget to claim working-from-home tax relief. Employees who have not received the payment direct from their employer can apply to receive the tax relief from HM Revenue & Customs worth £6 a week.
Draught-proofing is quick and cost-effective and can save you around £20 a year on utility bills.
Large pieces of furniture soak up heat, so placing sofas or armchairs in front of your radiator makes it harder for the warmth to circulate around your room, adding to your bill, said WeBuyAnyHouse.com head of content Holly Herbert.
She said replacing regular light bulbs with energy efficient LEDs, that use 75 per cent less energy, can also cut bills and recoup the cost over time: “If you have rooms in the house that you don’t use, turn the radiators off and close the doors.”
There is still time to claim a share of the £2 billion Green Homes Grant, as the deadline for applying for a voucher and getting work done has been extended until March 31, 2022.
The Government-backed scheme covers two thirds of the cost of making your home more energy efficient, with vouchers worth up to £5,000 per household.
This rises to £10,000 for low income households, where the vouchers will cover 100 per cent of the work.
You can apply for “primary vouchers” to pay for wall and roof insulation, or low carbon heat sources such as heat pumps, biomass boilers and solar thermal panels.
If you qualify for that, you can also get funding for secondary measures such as draught proofing, double, triple or secondary glazing, energyefficient replacement doors, hot water tank insulation and smart thermostats.
The voucher covers labour, materials and VAT, and work has to be undertaken by a TrustMark-registered installer. Find out more at gov.uk.
Unfortunately, getting a new energy-efficient boiler is not covered under the Green Homes Grant but the work could quickly pay for itself by saving up to £305 a year.
Despite that, demand has dropped by a third as households rein in spending due to Covid, according to research from find-a-tradesperson service RatedPeople.com.
Chief executive Adrienne Minster said with more than half of energy bills going on heating it is worth upgrading and maintaining your boiler: “The investment can pay dividends in the long run.”