Save the pennies, save the planet
With horror stories of poor students shivering away in their non-heated homes, it may be tempting to dig out the thermal underwear and woolly hat.
There are, however, a few ways to save energy and money without going to extremes.
OK, so students have better things to spend money on than heating, but you do need to stay at a decent temperature.
- One word: jumper. If you're not turning blue, try some warm clothes before whacking the heating on, or have a hot drink.
- When lacking in double glazing, keep in the heat with stick-on draft excluders for the windows.
- Turning the heating down by 1oC can save up to 10% on your gas bill, but if you use it a lot, keeping it on longer at a lower temperature could work out cheaper.
- Study in the library in the winter- free heating there!
Being careful with the amount of energy you use can go a long way when it comes to bills, so it's worth monitoring yourself and your housemates.
With students being aware of both the planet and their purses, how can you make your household as efficient as possible whilst saving money?Aimee Steen
- Only boil as much water in the kettle as you need; use lids on saucepans to conserve energy.
- Use energy saving lightbulbs- they last up to 12 times longer than ordinary ones and use less electricity.
- Turn off anything that's not in use at the mains, e.g. lights, computers, TV/digibox.
- Charge your phone in the day instead of overnight, so you can unplug it when it's done.
- Wash clothes on a low temperature, and always do full loads. Air dry clothes instead of using the dryer.
Unless you choose green suppliers it won't do much to help the environment, but changing suppliers can save you a few pounds.
- Change your gas/electricity supplier if yours is pricey (try www.saveonyourbills.com)- dual suppliers are often cheaper. Always read the meters or request to have them read- companies tend to send an estimated bill, so you could be paying for more than you've used.
- If you use little water, ask your landlord if they'll have a meter installed to monitor your usage.
- There are some great deals out there to get TV, internet and phone in one package- paying by direct debit can be cheaper.
There's always more you can do, but these should get you started- check out Ariel's energy saving website at www.doagoodturn.co.uk for more ideas.
