There’s no point in trying to brush the problem of excess energy use under the carpet any longer. We need to realise that change begins at home and it is up to each one of us. If we own or rent a home and use all the creature comforts that we are used to, then we are responsible for using a certain amount of energy and have, consequently, a carbon footprint to worry about. No longer can we expect big business to shoulder the blame and it’s no longer good enough to say that we take the bus to work and don’t drive. We all need to make big changes and look for ways to save electricity wherever we can find them. A journey of one thousand miles begins with a single step.

Before you do anything else, go around all your doors and windows and look to see that they’re fitting properly. You might not be able to see any issues and should check by running your hand along the edges or by using an open flame of some kind to see whether you have any drafts. Imagine how crazy it is to heat or cool the inside of your house according to the season, during these ever changing weather patterns that we deal with, when the money that you work so hard to earn is escaping through the window. The first thing you need to do is to make sure that your house is as airtight as you can make it before worrying about your cooling and heating costs.

If you have rooms that are not in constant use, consider putting any lighting appliances within on a timer. You could also put them on a motion detector, so that they will go on and off if someone enters or leaves the room. Unplug all electrical items when they’re not actually in use, as they can still drain electricity when connected to a wall socket. Turn off computers at night. There’s no need for you to maintain them and they tend to build up heat within the casing anyway. Remember every bit helps and it will all add up over the course of a year.

Most people understand the benefits of renewable energy, but for some reason or another, we have a tendency to look to other people to take advantage of this knowledge. Solar energy panels could be a good idea? It is possible to run your entire property by using solar power, whether you mount them on the roof or set it up so that they are appropriately angled within your garden. If you don’t extract as much electricity from the grid, you would be saving and reducing the size of your carbon footprint at the same time. If our footprint is too big, we need to get more energy efficient “shoes” and not continue to be extravagant in everything that we do. When heating water, why not turn the thermostat down a degree or so and remember that heating water with electricity is highly inefficient normally. Did you know that two thirds of the energy used to produce that electricity, the product that you use to heat your water, is actually lost as it is being distributed to you? Direct oil or gas fired water heaters are far better at helping the environment and are much more efficient in the long run.


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