Can I save energy at home myself?

When I walk around commercial buildings, I often wonder, would people actually do these things at home, and as a homeowner, I know what the answer is. Now, however, gas and electricity costs are increasing, it really is the time to focus on your energy and water, as these costs will soon follow and why? Because water has to be pumped and treated by electrical sources.

In 2011 my son proudly became an ‘Eco Warrior’ at his school and I was invited to help them through some ECO School Statuses. One of the proudest moments of my career was to support a school and more importantly my son's school. My son really embraced this time and received an award for ‘Eco Warrior’ of the year. He found technologies which I have installed in my house and subsequently businesses around the world. He personally, was shocked when we stayed in a hotel in Andorra and he recognised the ‘Heatkeepers’ which he had found and I had actually implemented.

Since 2011, my son’s ambitions moved to computers, then cars and now he is the head mechanic at a Go-karting company. They are really lucky to have such talent working for them as I think one day, he will make an amazing CTO.

Over the weekend I was planning to write a short article to help homeowners make an impact when I received an amazing WhatsApp message from my son ‘Stefan’.

It started with the story that his energy supplier had gone bust and through Ofgem a new contract has been presented at 27p, which for a homeowner will be a struggle with an annual budget increase of £500, in fact, someone recently said to me that their energy bill has increased to £2,500.00 for the year. It will not end here, and we will likely see many household bills increase as energy is a resource used by everyone.

To continue my story and the message, my son then remembered all the ECO Warrior work he had done at school. The calculations and the measurement. He did what all young people do and trawled EBay purchasing an energy meter as per below.

I’m sure he would have heard me say this many a time, “You cannot manage what you don’t measure”. He subsequently went around the house measuring different things and this was what he found and more importantly, this is what he did.

The real problem here is that energy prices have increased significantly and if we don’t change our behaviour or our ways, we will fall back into ‘business as usual’. Now is the time to start reviewing things differently and begin to measure. These were my son’s tips and to summarise them, these are my tips.

1.      Review your energy contract today. Don’t settle for the Ofgem solution, find your own.

a.      Go to a switch site or even go direct to people such as Octopus or Utility Warehouse.

2.      Reduce costs of energy and reduce consumption.

3.      Purchase a low-cost power monitor (they are plug in and very safe).

4.      I did notice on Ebay there were smart meters you could purchase.

5.      Regularly turn your lights off (don’t be scared to sit in the dark). Where possible implement timers.

6.      Purchase LEDs where possible and look at timer control.

7.      Wear appropriate clothing, even go to bed early.

8.      Avoid opening too many windows in the winter.

9.      Check all insulation on your pipes and in the loft.

10.  Don’t fill your kettle right up.

11.  Make sure your heating is set on a timer and strictly manage its usage.

12.  Look for drafts and exclude them.

13.  Pull your curtains early in the winter.

14.  Set your timers and your set-points to sensible levels.

These are just some of the adjustments you can make to your lifestyle. These high prices are said to be with us for another 5 years and we are likely to see further price increases. We therefore need to stay focused and we need to become vigilant during these times. The clear answer to my original question, therefore, is yes you can.

Call to action today, review your billing and purchase your own power meter to become an ‘Eco Warrior’ in your own home. Lastly, to all those still living under their parents' roof.... when your parents ask “why are all the lights on in every room?”, you can simply explain, ‘I am testing the energy consumption!’.

If you enjoyed reading this article or want to provide feedback, please contact Paul Webb at www.b2benergy.co.uk and www.aumlink.com or send him a direct message. He will respond within 24 Hours

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