Saving Energy - You Can Do It

Written by Lorely Burt MP and published in Solihull News - 26th January 2007 on Fri 26th Jan 2007

Did you know you can get a home efficiency report from the Central Midlands Energy Efficiency Advice Centre (CMEEAC), funded by the Energy Saving Trust, on how to make your home more fuel efficient - and it's completely free? You complete the questions, send your answers off and a detailed report comes back with advice on the most important, and cost effective things you can do to reduce your fuel bill and help reduce carbon emissions.

What's interesting is that the things you can do which have the most effect are often relatively cheap. There are many simple things you do around your home to save energy and therefore money. By turning your thermostat down 1ºC you could cut your heating bills by 10% and save about £40 a year. Similarly, make sure your cylinder thermostat is no higher than 60ºC/140ºF and wash your clothes at 30ºC. Turn lights off when leaving a room and don't leave appliances on standby. Always close your curtains at dusk to prevent heat escaping through the windows and replace your light bulbs with energy saving ones. They last up to 12 times longer and can reduce your lighting costs by up to £100 over the lifetime of the bulb.

The CMEEAC can also put you in touch with registered energy efficiency installers that are able to carry out further energy efficiency measures to your home including cavity wall and loft insulation. There may be a grant or loan scheme operating in your area to help cover the cost of installing these measures - the CMEEAC can help with your application.

Once your home is energy efficient, you might consider installing renewable energy measures. More than 800,000 householders in the UK have installed solar water heating systems in their homes, saving consumers an average of 50% off their annual water heating bills. Government grants can contribute to the installation costs of renewable energy systems and Solihull residents can apply for an interest free loan to help them spread the costs of installing solar water heating. There are many other options open to consumers including small scale wind turbines and solar electricity panels. Visit www.growyourownenergy.co.uk for more information on the type of renewable energy system that would be best suited to your home and to find out how financially viable renewable energy measures could be for you.

You can contact the CMEEAC on freephone 0800 512 012 between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday or visit www.savenergy.org. For more advice on renewable energy, talk to the Grow Your Own Energy team on 0845 257 9 257. Get saving!

Lorely Burt MP

Solihull