Gas , Electric and Water Bills

nickpe

Hello All -

We moved house a few years ago from a 2 Bed Terraced to a 3 Bed detached, we knew our utility bills would be higher due to the property type - but im looking for any advice as to how we can look to reduce our useage/monthly costs.

Currently we pay £85 a month for gas, £35 a month for Electric and £52 a month for Water.

We pay monthly direct debit and we are on meters so the costs are accurate and based on our usage.

Im trying my best to reduce all our bills such as Sky, House Insurance ect - but id love to know the areas in which we can save utility wise, for example trying to understand which areas cost alot such as washing machine, watering the garden, having thermostats turned down or off in rooms not used... etc.

HappyMJ

Heating costs the most.

Turn it off as much as possible and down when on.

If you're all young and healthy put an extra jumper on and set it to 18.

Try wearing clothes more than once before washing. Trousers and jumpers can be worn many times before requiring washing. You only need to change your socks and underwear daily.

Stop watering the garden with tap water. Get a water butt, collect water and use that water on the garden.

JJ_Egan

Both gas and water look to be high usage to me .
You should start monitoring what you use .

nickpe

That was my thoughts - the £35 elec bill each month seems ok, but the water and gas are costing us quite abit each month.
Is there anyway i could monitor specifically what areas within the gas and water are costing us..... ie excessive use of water for bath,showers, washing machine?
We had cavity wall insulation installed this summer and we are already noticing the house does feel warmer and feels faster in heating up - so basically we now have the heating on for an hour and half from around 6pm and this is sufficient to keep the house warm all evening - so were hopeful the gas bill might drop if we are using it less.

JJ_Egan wrote: »

Both gas and water look to be high usage to me .
You should start monitoring what you use .

macman

Since water costs vary by up to 250% by region, no one can say if the water is high without knowing the supplier.

nickpe

Hi Im in Rotherham - South Yorkshire, water provider is Yorkshire Water.

macman wrote: »

Since water costs vary by up to 250% by region, no one can say if the water is high without knowing the supplier.

savemoney

Well I pay £31 a month for water with YW (3 adults) and that about even with them for usage. Your gas paying seems on high side although we dont know your actual usage kWh. I Pay £83 a month for gas/electric with coop and we well in credit £445. I take regularly readings weekly in put them in Excel

I do supplement heating with a wood burner though which costs around £250 for fuel plus £35 for sweep.

I dont use Sky and never will, and always shop around for insurance and use cashback sites

ManofLeisure_2

Is your home well insulated ? - this will effect your usage.

Do you have individual thermostats are all radiators? - this will make a difference. Additionally, room thermostats need a free flow of air to sense the temperature accurately – they must not be covered by curtains or blocked by furniture.

matelodave

You need to read your meters regularly - that's the only way you can monitor your consumption and to see if it's increasing or reducing.

There are lots of things you can do to reduce both your water and energy consumption.

Turn stuff off when it's not in use, fit energy saving light bulbs especially in rooms that are heavily used like the lounge and kitchen. Close doors do some draught proofing and reduce your thermostat temperatures and reduce the amount of time that you heat the house or hot water.

Ensure that your loft is well insulated - the recommendation is around 300mm which is about a foot. If you lower your heat loss then you'll require less energy to replace it

Plan your water heating to coincide with your use of hot water - we shower in the mornings, so the tank gets heated for just an hour before we get up and then there's sufficient hot water in the tank to last us the rest of the day & night - keeping the tank hot all day when you are out or all night when you are asleep is a waste of energy. Make sure your water tank is properly lagged - an extra jacket for Wickes or B&Q will help even on foam lagged tanks..

Reduce water consumption by taking shorter showers and fewer of them, a 5 minute shower uses half the water and energy of a 10 minute one. Fit flow restrictors on your shower & taps to reduce the flow volumes - lots of water companies will give them away for free.

Don't let water run down the sink when washing, rinsing stuff or your hands or when cleaning your teeth. Use cold water for rinsing (including washing your hands) Every time you turn on the hot tap you waste water by running it through to get hot water and then the pipes remain full of hot water which gets cold wasting even more energy.

Only use the washing machine, dryer and dishwasher with full loads - they use just as much energy & water when half loaded as when full.

Fill the kettle with as much as you need and get one with a flat base which saves both water and energy. Put lids on saucepans and again only use as much water as required.

nickpe

Some great tips here mate. Thank You

matelodave wrote: »

You need to read your meters regularly - that's the only way you can monitor your consumption and to see if it's increasing or reducing.

There are lots of things you can do to reduce both your water and energy consumption.

Turn stuff off when it's not in use, fit energy saving light bulbs especially in rooms that are heavily used like the lounge and kitchen. Close doors do some draught proofing and reduce your thermostat temperatures and reduce the amount of time that you heat the house or hot water.

Ensure that your loft is well insulated - the recommendation is around 300mm which is about a foot. If you lower your heat loss then you'll require less energy to replace it

Plan your water heating to coincide with your use of hot water - we shower in the mornings, so the tank gets heated for just an hour before we get up and then there's sufficient hot water in the tank to last us the rest of the day & night - keeping the tank hot all day when you are out or all night when you are asleep is a waste of energy. Make sure your water tank is properly lagged - an extra jacket for Wickes or B&Q will help even on foam lagged tanks..

Reduce water consumption by taking shorter showers and fewer of them, a 5 minute shower uses half the water and energy of a 10 minute one. Fit flow restrictors on your shower & taps to reduce the flow volumes - lots of water companies will give them away for free.

Don't let water run down the sink when washing, rinsing stuff or your hands or when cleaning your teeth. Use cold water for rinsing (including washing your hands) Every time you turn on the hot tap you waste water by running it through to get hot water and then the pipes remain full of hot water which gets cold wasting even more energy.

Only use the washing machine, dryer and dishwasher with full loads - they use just as much energy & water when half loaded as when full.

Fill the kettle with as much as you need and get one with a flat base which saves both water and energy. Put lids on saucepans and again only use as much water as required.