Amid the current cost-of-living crisis, small savings make a big difference. As much as you can try to change your shopping habits and cancel those extra subscriptions, some of the most significant savings can be made at home.
From upgrading your lightbulbs to simply letting more sunlight inside, there are so many nifty energy-saving tips to try at home. And along with saving some pocket money, these changes could make your home much more sustainable too.
Five simple ways to make your home more sustainable
- Reuse, repurpose, and recycle
Consumerism is one of the most harmful aspects of society. If we invested as much time into looking after our belongings as we did in following the latest trends, the economy would be much more sustainable.
By reusing or repurposing the things you already own, you can make your home a more sustainable place. It’s never too late to learn how to upcycle furniture, and if you’re not already recycling every week, you should start doing that now too.
- Insulate the windows
Changing from single- to double-glazed windows could help you keep more heat inside the house. With sufficient insulation, you’ll use less heat through spaces like the roof, walls, floors, and doors – and be able to benefit more from your home heating.
You should also ensure that your windows are insulated with quality sealants to block any draughts. In turn, you’ll end up requiring less overall energy to heat your home.
Instead of the heat dissipating quickly and needing to be produced again, it should last longer and allow you to heat your home less frequently or at a lower temperature. When you reduce the demand placed on your boiler or heating system, you’ll be helping to save energy.
- Let more light in
Did you know that simply allowing sunlight into a room could help to heat it up? The opposite effect is widely known: you wouldn’t think twice about closing the blinds during a heatwave, so why not open them up to make the most of weaker sunlight?
Along with giving your home heating system a boost, you could make natural sunlight even more productive by installing solar panels to make your own energy. These smart devices convert the sun’s energy into energy we can use at home – it just needs to be used or stored immediately.
- Create a smart home
Automation is at the forefront of most industrial innovation, so why not incorporate it into your home? Smart homes include several helpful digital technologies that aim to make your daily routine more streamlined.
Some of the most popular smart home devices include security cameras, smart locking systems, and home heating controls. With smart heating, you can control the heat settings and timings room-by-room from one central control point – which could be on your phone.
- Change your lightbulbs
Lastly, through it might seem simple, replacing any halogen lightbulbs with energy-efficient LEDs could make more of an impact than you’d expect. Not only do LED bulbs last much longer and deliver more hours of light, but they use up to 80% less energy than halogen bulbs too.
If you’re not sure how to change a lightbulb, why not ask a friend or family member to help you? The sooner you start making smaller changes, the sooner you could start to make a significant difference.
