Save Money By Saving The Planet!

With the price of gas, electricity and fuels going through the roof, saving energy can net you hundreds of pounds a year.

It's Energy Saving Week from 23 to 29 October, which gives me an opportunity to talk about two of my favourite topics: slashing your bills and protecting the environment.

I have to confess that I'm something of a green Fool (in the environmentally friendly sense). For example, I don't own a car and make most of my journeys on foot or by public transport. Also, I keep my contribution to Britain's landfills to a minimum by recycling as much rubbish as I can, including cans, cardboard, food waste, glass, paper, plastic, etc. Indeed, because of my views on protecting the natural world, I've been described as a 'tree hugger' by some residents of Fool Towers!

However, to me, looking after the environment also makes good financial sense, especially as the price of domestic energy and motor fuels has soared in the past three years. Nevertheless, according to a report from the Energy Saving Trust, we Brits are the worst energy wasters in Europe, behind Germany, Spain, France and Italy.

One reason why we Brits consume so much energy is that we have dozens of electrical and electronic devices around our homes -- in fact, there are more televisions in the UK than there are people. What's more, we leave many of these appliances on standby, but this consumes up to two-thirds of the electricity used when these devices are actually switched on!

CONDUCT A PERSONAL ENERGY REVIEW

By becoming more environmentally aware, you can cut your energy consumption by a fifth (20%), which adds up to a typical annual saving of £200+. If you want to pay less to your gas and electricity suppliers, here are a few ideas to help you out:

(By the way, the Fool's utilities search engine checks over seven thousand different tariffs to find you the cheapest gas and electricity. With a few clicks, you could slash your energy bills by a few hundred pounds a year -- without any re-wiring or re-plumbing!)

Insulate your home

Around three-fifths (61%) of the energy consumed in a typical home is used for heating, almost a quarter (23%) for hot water, with the remaining 16% being used for lighting, electrical appliances and cooking. Hence, your first goal should be to reduce the amount of heat lost from your home. The biggest gains come from installing loft and cavity-wall insulation. Also, double-glazing, thick curtains and other insulation will help to prevent draughts.

Government grants and other funding are available to help pay for these improvements, which will also push up the value of your home. In addition, turning down your thermostat by one degree can reduce your heating bill by a tenth (10%). You can make up the difference by wearing slightly warmer clothing. Luckily, as a hardy Northerner, I rarely feel the cold at all, so my heating has yet to go on this winter. In fact, I'm writing this from my loft with the window wide open!

Standby is silly

The average home has as many as a dozen gadgets charging or left on standby at any one time, which wastes £740 million a year, or about £30 per household. What's more, consoles, DVD players, mobile-phone chargers, set-top boxes, stereos, televisions and videos left on standby lead to the production of millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, a greenhouse gas which contributes to global warming.

If an appliance is humming or has a little red light glowing away, it's wasting energy, so hit the OFF switch or, even better, switch it off at the socket or unplug it. Above all, don't leave devices on standby when you're away from home or on holiday, which is sheer madness!

Look for common-sense savings

Switch off lights in empty rooms, and don't leave a television or other appliance playing to no audience. Switch to energy-efficient lightbulbs, which use far less electricity and last much longer. I've had one bulb for fourteen years and it's still going strong! Boil only as much water as you need; I was amazed to watch a relative boil an entire kettle of water just to make two cups of tea! When you need to replace large appliances, such as boilers and fridge-freezers, check the energy-efficiency ratings before choosing a replacement. Cheaper models are usually less energy-efficient, so they'll cost you more in the long run.

Finally, households account for only a third of the UK's energy consumption, with businesses and factories consuming the lion's share. Thus, it makes sense to adopt the same energy-saving measures at work as we do at home. How many offices do you pass each day with strip-lighting blazing away and dozens of PCs which never get switched off? Get your boss on board and your employer could save a packet, as well, which could mean a bonus or higher pay rise for you and your colleagues!

More: Use the Fool to find better energy suppliers!