Avoid using Gas and Electricity

mrsr

pollypenny wrote: »

In the evening I light tea-lights and candles which live on the hearth. They are reflected in the marble backing of fireplace and give out loads of cheap heat.

Good way to avoid putting fire on.

This is what i do,the amount of heat from them is amasing ,i put the heating on for about 30mins shut the doors and lite the candles saved a fortune.Stocking up now ready for the winter.

mardatha

We should be a bit less draughty as the HA are putting in double glazing. Won't make any diff to the costs as the stove stays on 24/7 anyway, but will make the kitchen & bathroom cosier I hope. I have a husband who thinks lighting candles is "weird" and thinks the neighbours will assume you havent paid the bill. (he's from Edinburgh - they're aw like that doon there) !

CH27

We had two 6 hour power cuts last year.
I lit loads of tea lights & put them on every available surface around the room.
We were amazed how warm it made the room.

DebtFree2012

Thanks for bumping this thread - definitely going to be a requirement for the coming winter. I already keep prices down to a minimum and with a baby and 4 year old it's trying to find a balance. I hate having a more than cool house anyway to be honest as I get hot and flustered, luckily my family are the same! It's when we do bath time on a night during the winter though and they are cold when they get out that I feel bad, no warm towels and so on.

Ideas greatly received. I suppose I could use the bath water (hot when running) in hot water bottle to warm the towels whislt they are bathing.....hmm

suzybloo

Remember folks there are all these schemes and grants available for insulation, upgrading heating systems etc, possibly worth looking into now.Getting washing dry is a major problem but I have decided my greenhouse will become a drying area in this coming winter. Lakeland sell a minature rotary airer which will fit in there well.

angelaloveschocolate

This thread has been bumped up at a very good time for me as I'm in really motivated to reduce electricity this year. I've read the whole thread and I've decided to take on board these tips that you've all been good enough to share,

'Make some pelmets for the windows it'd save an awful lot of heat. You can make them from firm cardboard [v strong delivery boxes are good for this, the big ones from electrical shops ... just a though], and then cover them with matching wallpaper or curtain material.'

'I do ALL our things on the coldest (and conveniently also the shortest!) wash of 30degrees. i only use about 1/3rd of the powder suggested, 1/2 if it's really dirty but that's rare and our things come out just fine'.

When existing supply of laundry powder runs out I'm going to buy the tesco value shampoo at 22p a litre, as its been recommended as a good and cheap alternative to washing powder.

'Starting with blocking the draughts, making curtains, draughtexcluders, and getting socks.!'

'just an easy quickie: defrost everything in the fridge as it saves the fridge compressor going on so saves energy as well as wear and tear.'

Use tealights on the hearth as heat and light.

I have a timer so I am going to use it for the washing machine / dishwasher overnight at cheaper rates.

On my shopping list I've included a Dehumidifier to reduce condensation when drying clothes indoors, a hot water bottle and a slow cooker.

Thank you to all of you who originally posted these tips, I just wanted to collate them for my own benefit and for any others coming behind who may find them compiled together useful. Great thread and thank you




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freudianslip

mardatha wrote: »

HAS ANYBODY SEEN the front page of, I think, the Daily Express ? Its got a shocking headline on gas/elect prices set to rise by 47% in the next ten years...

You wrote that 2 years ago mardatha. I wonder if we have hit 47% already

mardatha

I bet we have

oldtractor

:mad:HECK!

Lily-Lu

The news from SP today has certainly got me worried. We aleady resist from putting the heating on till November.and use those inadequate energy-saving bulbs, so where else can one compromise?
It's frightening to think that things are going to get even harder than they are already, as far as making the housekeeping go round:(