Energy Saving Tips

So we thought we would put together a few handy energy saving tips for you to consider, which can help you reduce your energy costs and also be a little kinder to the environment (which is no bad thing, right?).

We want to make your home more energy efficient so why not try implementing some of these ideas, they could make a real difference.

• TURN DOWN YOUR THERMOSTAT. We're not talking 10°C here, but if you reduce the temperature on your thermostat by as little as 1ºC, which lets face it, you're not going to notice, you can save as much as 10% on your heating bill.
• GET ENERGY SAVING BULBS. If some of the lights in your house are on for a number of hours every day, it really is worth switching to energy saving bulbs. Traditional light bulbs are incredibly inefficient, they use about 90% of their energy through heat rather than light. The technology in energy saving bulbs has greatly improved in recent years, gone are the days when it took half an hour for the bulb to brighten up. Not only are energy saving bulbs pretty much on a par with traditional bulbs in terms of lighting, their life span is about 12 times longer and they use only around ¼ of the energy.
• THERMOSTATIC RADIATOR VALVES (TRV's). If your radiators do not have these, get them installed, they will assist with the tip below.
• TURN DOWN RADIATORS IN UNUSED ROOMS. Turn down or turn off the radiators in unused rooms in your house, and also remember to close the doors into these rooms. This reduces the area your heating system has to heat, allowing it to use less energy in the process.
• CLOSE YOUR CURTAINS AT NIGHT. An extremely large proportion of the heat lost from your home, is lost trough the windows. Your curtains can act as a great insulator. Make sure to tuck the curtains up onto the windowsill if there is a radiator under the window, this will prevent the heat going straight up behind the curtain and out the window.
• BUY ENERGY EFFICIENT APPLIANCES. Especially if you a purchasing something like a new washing machine, pay attention to EU Energy Label, the appliance will be rated from A - G, "A" being the most energy efficient and "G" being the least.
• USE YOUR APPLIANCES WISELY. There is no point in buying an extremely energy efficient fridge and then leaving it open while you are pouring milk in your tea! Also opening your oven when you don't need to, while you are cooking dinner can be quite wasteful in terms of energy usage. A good tip for this is to keep your oven door clean so you can look in without opening the door, to make sure that chicken is cooking nicely!
• DON"T STANDBY, TURN OFF. If you leave an appliance ie. your TV on standby it will use 20% more energy than if your switch it off completely. This is also the same for things like washing machines.
• BOIL LESS WATER. Need a cup of tea? There's no need to boil a full kettle of water, if you just boil the amount you need, you will greatly reduce the amount of energy used. It is also not recommended to reboil Irish tap water as fluoride may become more concentrated when the water is boiled for too long or reboiled.
• SHOP AROUND. For anyone who is still weary about changing energy supplier, you really shouldn't be. It is worth going to competitors of your energy supplier and seeing what kind of deal they can offer. Quite often you could save 10 - 15% on your bill. If you do not want to change provider, most of them will offer you the same discount if you tell them you have been offered it by another company.

All of our standard range of attic stairs have fully insulated and draft sealed trapdoors, this is extremely beneficial for reducing heat loss via your attic opening.

We do hope these tips will be of benefit for you in your home.

All the best.

The Original Attic Stairs Team.