Big savings from small changes

between £85 and £90 a year. Don’t block the heat – Hanging washing over radiators to dry means you’ll block the heat that should be warming up your home.

Instead, hang your clothes on a clothes horse and position it near the radiator. Also, take care not to put bulky furniture like sofas and chairs too close to a radiator or they will absorb the heat and reduce efficiency.

You could also hang reflective foil behind radiators to stop heat escaping through the wall. Saving Water Each household in the UK uses on average around 360 litres of water every day.

But about 21 per cent of a typical gas heated household’s heating bill is from heating the water for showers, baths and hot water from the tap. This is on average about £140 a year. If everybody in a family of four replaces one bath a week with a five-minute shower, you can save up to £20 a year on gas bills and up to £25 on water bills (if you have a water meter).

If a family of four replace their inefficient shower head with a waterefficient one they could save around £65 off their gas bills and around £100 off their water bills (if they have a water meter) each year. That’s a total saving of around £165.

A running tap wastes more than six litres of water a minute, so turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, shaving, or washing your face. Use cold water if you don’t need hot.

A dripping tap can waste more than 5,500 litres of water a year, so make sure your taps are properly turned off and change washers promptly when taps start to drip.

Make sure that dishwashers and washing machines are full before you use them, and always use the most efficient water and energy settings.

Using a sink of water to wash up twice a day rather than having the hot tap running could save money on your gas bill and about £30 on your water bill (if you have a water meter).

If you need to rinse utensils or wash vegetables, use cold water if possible and don’t leave the tap running.

Insulate your hot water cylinder – a well fitted tank jacket could save you around £25 to £35 a year, more if you heat your water electrically. Insulating the hot water pipes will save you and can help taps to run hot more quickly.

Spending one minute less in the shower each day will save around £10 off your energy bills each year, per person. With a water meter this could save a further £10 off annual water and sewerage bills. If everyone in a four person family did this it would lead to a total saving of £80 a year. How much can people save by switching? Ofgem (the regulator) has published new information which shows how much customers could save by switching. Savings are based on using average amounts of electricity and gas and are given for both changing tariff with the same supplier, or switching to the best tariff in the market, where savings quoted range from £134 to £252 (https://www. ofgem.gov.uk/consumers/householdgas-and-electricity-guide/understandyour-gas-and-electricity-bills/ energy-plans-what-standard-variablerate-tariff-and-how-does-it-compare). I don’t want to switch supplier – can I still save money? A large number of homes are on standard variable tariffs, which are typically more expensive than fixed deals. Speak to your supplier to see if there is a cheaper tariff. Who will put my lights back on in a power cut? There is a common misunderstanding about this. In Scotland there are two electricity distribution companies – Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks in the north and SP Energy Networks in the south. If you have a power cut it is the distribution company who will fix it. This is not affected by who you choose to supply your energy. I have solar PV, can I switch? Yes. I have electric heating, can I switch? It depends on your tariff. If it is economy 7, it is easy - other tariffs are more complex. The recent Competition and Markets Authority Investigation is making changes which are due to come into force later in the year.

Making a series of small, simple changes in your every day routine can really help tackle climate change