Home Heating: Money Saving Guide

Winter is an expensive time of year. Christmas alone is enough to break the bank for most of us, so when you factor in higher home heating costs over the winter period it’s no wonder we all end up in a bit of a panic.

We’ve seen massive energy price rises over the last three years alongside a recession – we have less money, and yet higher bills to pay.

Nobody wants to feel the cold over the winter. In this article we will talk about some ways we can save money on our home heating bills without sacrificing comfort.

Turn down your thermostat

The great thing about central heating in the winter is being able to turn that dial and be toasty

warm in minutes. However, this can cause some of us to get a little lazy and crank up the heat

when really, putting a jumper on would do the same job.

Turning down your thermostat by just 1 degree could save you around €60 a year on your home

heating bills. 21 degrees is a perfectly comfortable temperature, generally speaking. If you’re used

to having your heating set much higher than this, turn it down by one degree every week or so to

allow yourself to adjust to the change.

You can also adjust the settings for heating water. You may find you can turn the thermostat down

a little here as well, without much impact on your hot water.

Insulate

To get the most out of your home heating, you need to make sure that the heat isn’t escaping. If

you haven’t insulated your loft yet, now is the time to do it – it will save a fortune. Similarly, if

your hot water tank hasn’t got a jacket, buy it one for Christmas. It won’t cost much, and could

save you €60 a year.

It’s the little things that count

There are all sorts of little things you can do around the house to ensure that the money you’re

spending on home heating isn’t going to waste.

• Invest in draught excluders. You’d be surprised at the difference they make to the warmth

of a room.

• If you’ve got long curtains in your rooms, make sure they’re not covering a radiator when

they’re drawn.

• Keep curtains drawn at night in every room to stop heat escaping from the windows

• Check the radiator settings – there’s no need to have a radiator cranked up to full blast in a

room you rarely use. Even turning the radiators down just one notch will make a difference

to your energy bill, and won’t make too much difference to the warmth of your home.

Consider switching providers

Home heating prices have risen significantly in recent years, and this trend is showing no sign of

stopping. However, there are some good fixed price deals out there, so you may well find that you

will be better off with a different provider if you switch before winter.