Cut Your Heating Bills This Winter

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:23:23 GMT

It looks like the weather is starting to turn and no doubt many people will be thinking of switching their central heating on. If we get a cold winter like the last one it looks like many of us will be giving our gas boilers a good workout. Many people will not be looking forward to the long cold winter nights as many individuals and families will be worried as to whether or not they can actually afford to heat their homes.

There is however one group of people who are rubbing their hands together, not so they can keep warm; their offices are nice and cosy but because they will be making larger profits than ever due to the large gas and electricity price rises they made only a few weeks or so ago. The idea is that they increase prices now so that by the time winter comes along you have forgotten how much more it is going to cost to heat your home. I am of course taking about the big 6 energy companies that control the energy market in the UK at the expense of the average householder.

Beating the winter blues

There is one certainty you can rely on and that is every year in time for winter the cost of heating your home is going to rise. You are going to be paying out more of your household income on energy and this is going to continue ad infinitum. So what can you do? The first thing to do is make sure that you are not wasting all that heat your boiler is generating to keep you warm in winter. Poorly insulated and draughty homes are going to cost a lot more to heat than those that are well insulated keeping them warm and cosy.

I have already had my cavity walls insulated and loft insulation topped up. You can get a grant for this that will either mean that you get your home insulated for free or get it done at a greatly reduced price. You can find out more about getting a free home insulation grant and how it can save you money yearly on your heating bills. Apply as early as possible as the closer it gets to winter the more people start claiming their free grants and you won't get your insulation done in time for winter.

The grants you get for loft insulation only cover the cost for lagging up to the current UK minimum standards. This year I am going to top up the loft insulation myself, unfortunately you only get one grant per household but they often have offers on loft insulation in your local DIY stores if you fancy adding some extra cheap insulation yourself.

Cut your bills with solar panels

Another way to cut your bills is by installing solar panels, you can still get free solar if you have a suitable roof. It is also now possible to use the electricity that solar panels generate to heat your water in your immersion tank with a relatively low cost gadget. This is a great way to make the most of the free solar power your panels generate and if you have invested or thinking of investing in solar it makes your returns on your investment even better by reducing the amount of work your gas boiler has to do.

What about draughts

In the winter cold draughts mean that it will lower the temperature inside your home. Draught excluders are a low cost way to prevent draughts and you may even get free draught excluders fitted by the loft insulation company if you apply for a home insulation grant. They are also pretty easy to fit if you are thinking of buying and fitting them yourself.

Why pay for gas heating that you do not need?

By getting your home insulated now you are going to reduce the amount of gas you are going to need to heat your home for years to come. This means a saving on your heating bill every year. It surprises me that not many people know that they are entitled to a grant to keep their homes warm. It doesn't seem to be well publicised, you then realise the reason they are not promoting these grants is that it is the energy companies that are having to fund the cost. It's a great way of getting your energy supplier to give a little back to you rather than constantly taking more and more.