Home-based start-ups: How to reduce your energy bill

Nowadays, everyone is looking at ways to save money, from cutting back on luxuries to seeking out the best possible deals for products and services.

In terms of household expenditure, energy bills are amongst the biggest drain on our finances – and when you choose to start a business from home, these bills only get bigger. However, savings can be made on energy, to ease the pressure on budgets.

In this modern, technological world, electricity has become one of the biggest expenses. We use electricity throughout the home, and it is a key component of running a home business. However, cutting back on your domestic electricity use can genuinely reduce the overall cost of energy bills. So, how exactly can you save money on your electricity bills?

Electrical appliances

From the kitchen to the bedroom, households use more electrical appliances than ever these days. The energy they use accounts for a large chunk of an energy bill, so it’s vital to look for ways to cut down on usage and become more efficient.

In the kitchen, electrical appliances are vital. It can be hard to cut down on the amount we use a washing machine or dishwasher, but you can make your use more efficient.

Getting into the habit of only using full loads in a washing machine or dishwasher will cut out pointless energy waste. In other areas of the home, try to turn off electrical items if you’re not using them, and avoid putting things on standby.

When buying new electrical appliances, look out for products that are Energy Saving Trust recommended – these will be more energy efficient, and use less power when in standby mode.

Lighting

Light bulbs may not seem like they use a lot of energy, but over time their electricity consumption really builds up. According to Eartheasy, lighting accounts for a whopping 25% of our entire energy bill.

The government, retailers and energy providers are all in the process of phasing out energy inefficient light bulbs, to help save consumers money and reduce the country’s carbon footprint.

Turning lights off when you leave a room will do something to help, but to make real savings you need to invest in energy saving light bulbs.

Fitting just one energy saving bulb will save you £3 a year, so by switching to them throughout your house you can save more than £50 over the year. Both LED and compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs last between five and 10 times as long as incandescent bulbs, and use just a fraction of the energy.