Reduce your bills as energy prices rise
Our daily lives are dominated by the necessary use of energy; gas and electric are a vital part of every day life. Both are expensive, and seemingly increasing with no signs of halting; we find ourselves evermore needing to look for ways of finding cheaper energy prices, or reducing our energy consumption.
Last week energy companies were threatened with possible legal action due to not passing on wholesale cuts in oil prices to consumers, which are linked to gas and electric prices.
Shop around
The first way to save money on energy is to look at alternative energy suppliers. In the case of gas and electricity this can be particularly beneficial in many ways. Firstly, use a comparison site on the internet – there are many reputable established businesses which easily allow you to quickly see if you can find a better deal with a different supplier.
Changing energy suppliers is easy – there are no new connections to be made as all gas and electricity comes from the same source, it’s the logistics and the administration that changes – and a new supply will take place without interruption.
Also, if you currently get your electricity and gas from different suppliers you can often save a good deal by linking them together – most suppliers give a discount for dual supply, and it can be well worth the time to do so. Additionally, see if your supplier offers a discount for paying online or by direct debit, methods that require less in the way of labour at the suppliers end. All of these avenues are worth exploring, and you may find some serious savings to be made with little effort.
Energy saving tips
After finding the best deal for your usage, you need to look at ways that you can reduce your energy consumption.
Many of these are simply common sense; how often do you leave an electric light on in an unoccupied room for instance; or leave the heating on when you are out of the house?
Of course, it’s nice to come home to a lovely warm house, especially after a hard day at work but it need not be necessary to leave the heating on constantly. Setting the timer to start the heating half an hour before you are due to arrive home, and to switch off half an hour before you leave in the morning, is generally adequate for any home and can result in seriously useful savings if you have not been doing so before.
Where heating is concerned temperature is an essential concern; if your currently set your thermostat to 22 degrees, turn it down to 21 – you will not notice the difference, yet you will save money. Switch off radiators in rooms that are unused and close the doors.
In terms of electricity, the light bulb example is just one; turning TV’s and audio devices off rather than leaving them on stand-by may sound like a cliché, but if it means saving money and having to press one extra button it’s worth doing. Likewise, when mobile phones or other items are charged, switch off the charger or it will continue to draw energy.
uSwitch.com is one of the comparison sites which can help you make comparisons with suppliers and often save you substantial amounts on you gas and electric bills.
The key to keeping energy expenditure to a minimum is to pay attention: pay attention to what you are spending and paying for your gas and electricity; pay attention to how much you are using and seriously look at reducing your consumption.
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