Energy-saving can boost bank balance

After the county was hit by its first frost this week, home energy supplier E.ON is encouraging people to think about how they can winter-proof their homes ahead of the darker and colder days.Owning an inefficient boiler is extremely costly, so it’s important that your boiler is as efficient as it can be.

If your boiler has a ceramic or metal flue then much of the heat you’re paying for is being wasted heating the air outside your home rather than the water circulating around your radiators.By replacing your old boiler with a new, highly-efficient condensing boiler, you could get a lot more heat for your money or cut up to £210 off your annual energy bill a year, depending on your current house type and boiler.

A typical home can lose around a third of its heat through uninsulated walls and up to a quarter through the roof - insulation can prevent this by trapping heat.When insulating a home, it’s important to consult an insulation professional to check that you’re using the correct solution for your property as different walls have varying requirements.By draught-proofing your home, to stop heat escaping through gaps in windows, doors, pipework, loft hatches and ceiling-to-wall joints, an average household could reduce heating costs by up to £259 per year.

Hot water accounts for up to 15 per cent of an average energy bill for a gas-heated household.Households with a hot water tank could reduce hot water heating costs by lowering the temperature to 60 degrees centigrade, which is still being hot enough to kill harmful bacteria.Making sure that your hot water tank has an insulating jacket can help you save energy by re-heating water less, as the water holds its heat for longer.Fitting a cylinder jacket on your hot water tank could cut your gas bill by five per cent.

Lastly, you can change your lightbulbs by making the switch to energy efficient ones.You could save £3 to £6 per year by replacing traditional bulbs with light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs of equivalent brightness.Install these energy efficient light bulbs in the rooms that you use most frequently, such as the kitchen, living room and outside, and always turn them off when they’re not in use.For a limited time, E.ON is offering free cavity wall and loft insulation to all households, regardless of their energy supplier, which could save a typical family £2,857 a year.For more information about the requirements for different walls please visit eoninstall.com