The Basics
If you've tried out our Action Plan, you'll already know that your house is where you can really make all the difference.
It's no coincidence that most of the ways to cut your carbon footprint start in the home. How much will it all cost? You might be pleasantly surprised.
Many of our actions are about increasing energy efficiency, which is good news for the planet and your pocket.
In our Home & Garden section, we'll be focusing on all aspects of green living at home. Here are our top tips to get started.
Turn down your thermostat by two degrees
Turning down the thermostat is a bit of an environmental cliché, but only because it’s such an easy and effective way to reduce energy use. Action Plan
Reducing the temperature of your home by just 1 degree can cut your heating bills by around 10 per cent – typically around £40 per year. And you probably won’t even notice any difference. Reducing by 2 degrees, or as much as possible without making yourself uncomfortable, is even better.
Upgrade to an efficient condensing boiler
If you’re on the gas network and still use a hot water tank, consider switching to a “combi” boiler. These ignite only when you turn on the hot tap – much more efficient than heating a tank of water that you might not even use.
If you already have a combi boiler but it’s more than ten years old, you could save more energy by upgrading to a high efficiency condensing model. These extract as much energy as possible from each unit of gas.
Insulate your loft
If your loft has minimal insulation, then it’s probably donating 10–20 per cent of your heat to the birds sitting on the roof. Upgrading to the recommended insulation depth of 270mm will save up to a tonne of CO2, and £110, per year.
Loft insulation acts as a blanket, trapping heat rising from the house below. Not only that, it can also keep your home cooler during the summer by blocking heat from the sun on your roof.
Insulate your cavity walls
If your home was built after 1930 then it probably has cavity walls – two walls with a gap in between. The gap helps reduce heat loss but it doesn’t do this job particularly well unless it’s filled with insulating material.
Adding insulation to cavity walls is a quick and simple job – the material is hosed into place through small holes drilled in the exterior wall. It costs around £500, but a typical family can expect to save around £90 on heating bills each year, as well as 750kg of CO2 emissions.
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