Are you making these energy-saving mistakes?

Think you know what’s using the most energy in your home? Don’t be so sure. The average energy bill is rising seven times faster than household income, so it’s worth making sure you’re using your appliances in the cheapest way.
Myth 1
It’s better to keep the water heater on all the time than heat from cold
Wrong! A hot water tank only needs to heat up water as it is used. Heating water continuously when you don’t need it is like constantly re-boiling a kettle – completely unnecessary as a quick flick of the switch a minute before you want a cuppa is all you need. If you’ve got a combi boiler you don’t need to worry, as it only heats water as you use it.
Myth 2
There’s not much point only turning the thermostat down by just one degree
Wrong! Based on normal use, this incredibly small change can reduce bills by 10{cf95327d0513d2baf7e610edae1aab062ea7617fb61eb05f952da2155946aae5}, Although, to save this much you would need to have the heating on for eight hours a day.
Myth 3
It’s better to leave the heating on low all the time than set it to come on twice a day at higher temperatures
Wrong! Unsurprisingly, leaving the heating on constantly uses more energy than turning it on and off, but this doesn’t mean that short, sharp bursts of heat at a high temperature are more efficient. Use a thermostat to regulate temperature and concentrate on heating the rooms you use most often.
Myth 4
Energy-saving lightbulbs aren’t as powerful as older ones
Wrong! LED lighting is greener and brighter than the original energy savers. The amount of light produced in energy-efficient bulbs is measured in lumens, not watts – and they consume so much less power that comparisons are meaningless. The higher the number of lumens, the brighter the light. As a rough guide to brightness, add a zero to the wattage – so for 60 watts, look for 600 lumens.
Myth 5
Once a gadget is fully charged it stops drawing electricity
Wrong! A small amount of electricity is still drawn whenever the device is plugged in. Instead of charging overnight, juice up smartphones and tablets for a couple of hours during the day.
Myth 6
Leaving appliances on standby can’t hurt much
Wrong! You could save up to £80 a year by switching items off standby. Since 2010, appliances cannot use more than one watt of energy when on standby, but older products can waste much more. ‘More recent items use a lot less power than appliances that are five or more years old,’ says the Energy Saving Trust. ‘Watch out for older audiovisual equipment, such as flatscreen TVs and digiboxes, and wireless routers and modems.’ Switch off appliances connected to your TV (DVD player, games consoles and Freeview boxes) easily with an intelligent mains controller. It’s like a remote control that allows you to point, click and turn off devices from your sofa.
Myth 7
Computer screensavers save energy
Wrong! Basic screensavers don’t use much energy, but all-singing, all-dancing ones use a fair bit of electricity to power the moving design. Better to switch off your computer when leaving it for any length of time,.
Myth 8
Electricity and gas cost the same
Wrong! Although electrical heating is more efficient (ie. we need less), a modern gas central heating system with a condensing boiler is generally the cheapest form of heating.
If you really want to take effective control of your energy bills then why not generate your own electricity? At Energy Gain UK we have been helping homeowners and businesses to reduce their electricity costs by up to 80{cf95327d0513d2baf7e610edae1aab062ea7617fb61eb05f952da2155946aae5} for the last 10 years.
If you would like to find out more about how you could take control of your energy bills give us a call on 0161 330 7739 or fill the form below.