How To Save Money On Energy Bills (2024)

Saving money on our energy bills has never seemed tougher.

Gas and electricity charges have sky rocketed and too many energy saving tips involve forking out for everything from new boilers and double glazing to wall insulation!!!

For many of us worried we won’t be able to put the heating on this winter, these are non-starters.

But there are creative ways we can keep warm and save energy at home that don’t cost a thing.

And I have for you here over 75 free energy saving tips that will help.

PLUS low cost tips with huge impact.

It’s a big list of tips, so do bookmark or save it for quick reference later.

Or if you’re super short on time head to the quick checklist.

Key Energy Saving Tips

We use most energy at home for:

Heating (cooling in summer)
Heating water
Washing & drying clothes

These can use 75% of home energy so we need to focus on them and my first energy saving tips cover how to:

Heat yourself
Heat yourself in bed
Easily insulate for free
Heat a few rooms well
Do less laundry
AND benefit from washing less!!

But this year energy is so expensive, cutting right down is essential. So I also have tips for saving energy on:

Cooking
Lighting
Electronics

Heat Yourself

The very first thing we need to do to save on heating is heat ourselves.

We’ve all got used to wandering around in t-shirts & bare feet in winter with the heating on full blast.

But wrapping up well indoors costs nothing and saves us loads.

We lose heat through bare heads, hands & feet so this winter wear:

Slippers
Fingerless gloves
Wrist warmers
Wooly hats
Vests
Scarfs
PLUS loads of thin layers.

Wearing lots of thin layers keeps us warmer than one thick sweater.

So this winter get the family to layer:

Cardigans or hoodies on top of a vest, t-shirt, shirt AND sweater
Tights AND leggings under trousers
Summer socks under winter or sports socks AND slippers
Fingerless gloves under wrist warmers to keep hands warm working at home.

Don’t be fooled by adverts for fancy thermals. You don’t need them.

Just layer all the old clothes you have cluttering drawers. You can make wrist warmers from old socks.

And ask Santa for slippers if you don’t have any. We have these UK made sheepskin slippers. Not cheap but super cosy & they last ages.

Heat Yourself In Bed

Staying warm in bed is obviously essential for a good night’s sleep.

And there are lots of easy ways to heat ourselves in bed without having radiators on full blast or forking out for electric blankets and the like.

As before, head, feet & layers are key. So to keep yourself warm :

Wear thick socks in bed
Go to bed in slippers (they can easily be kicked off)
Wear a “night cap” aka wooly hat
Layer vests & leggings with pyjamas

Layering thin-thick covers also warms us up so put a sheet between 2 duvets or a duvet and a blanket.

These 4 quick FREE tips will also warm you up in bed :

Have hot bedtime drinks
Get kids to share a bed
Make use of sleeping bags
Put a blanket under base sheet

Hot water bottles cost the price of a boiled kettle but popped in beds 15 minutes before bedtime they help.

If you can snag old curtains they can be hung round the bed – four poster style – to boost insulation.

Easy Insulation For Free

Good home insulation saves loads of energy and slashes heating bills.

And these 6 easy home insulation hacks won’t cost you a thing :

Shut ALL curtains at dusk – this alone cuts heat loss by 15%!!
Religiously shut all inside doors
Cover keyholes with fabric scraps
Tighten loose window latches
Seal unused chimneys with outgrown woolies
Make draft stoppers from scrap fabric with these quick ideas

The next hack is more effort but huge and FREE or super cheap.

It is simply more & better curtains as >30% of heat escapes via windows!!

Insulating Curtains

Scour local Freecycle groups for old lined curtains & blinds and :

Hang on any bare windows
Replace thin unlined curtains
Cover front doors
Cover glass doors

You can also add add thermal lining to curtains to slash heat loss.

I bought made up lining to hook on existing drapes from John Lewis. They cost £12+ per window.

Or buy fabric for <£6 a metre for DIY lining. To make a night blind simply:

Cut fabric 1 inch bigger than frame
Tack a hem all round fabric
Make a tiny nick in each corner
Put panel pins in frame corners
Hang fabric to pins at dusk

For a tiny outlay it slashes heat loss.

If you do want to make curtains & haven’t before check out these tips :

Cheap Insulation Projects

If you do have some cash free now these insulation projects should save more than they cost this year.

Less Than £10

Draft proof window & door tape
Fit door brush to doors with gaps
Draft proof letterbox
External keyhole covers

Less Than £25

Chimney balloon or sheep
Insulate hot water tank
Insulate water pipes

For more help check out this video on cost effective insulation.

Loft Insulation

It costs about £300 to insulate a loft but we can save that in a year as we lose 25% of heating via our lofts.

Self heating and quick insulation can slash energy costs. But this winter we need to go further and there are more easy FREE changes that help.

Heat A Few Rooms Well

Many of us have got used to open plan living AND personal space.

But these both push up bills.

Simple reorganisation lets us :

Heat fewer rooms
Heat smaller areas
Spend more time in warm rooms.

Turning radiators off or down in less used rooms lets our boiler heat a few rooms quicker, so saves money.

Relocate Upstairs

As heat rises it’s typically warmer upstairs so relocate upstairs for :

Working at home
Watching TV
Reading
Crafts
Admin

And wrap up in blankets sitting still.

Get Kids To Share

Getting kids to share a room can cut how many rooms we need to heat.

It might not be a long term solution!!

But it can save money until the novelty wears off in the spring.

It might also let you create a warmer upstairs sitting room cum study.

Curtain Off Large Areas

Open plan areas are harder to heat.

If you can pick up free or cheap drapes, curtain off a smaller area.

Spend Time Together

Spending time together as a family in the evening rather than scattering throughout the house again helps focus heating on fewer areas.

Create A Snug

To make our key rooms as snug as possible we can :

Hang curtains over doors
Borrow rugs from other rooms, especially with bare floorboards
Move – or even declutter!! – furniture blocking radiators.

Stop Heat Escaping

Heat from snug rooms can escape into those with the radiators off. So :

Keep doors of unused rooms shut
Put draft stoppers at doors

Watch Out For Condensation

Everything in life is a balancing act.

The downside of good insulation can be condensation, damp and mould.

High use rooms – e.g. bedrooms – need airing. So in the morning :

Open internal doors for 15 minutes
Open one window for 15 minutes in any rooms with condensation.

Do Less Laundry

Our washing machine can account for 10% of home energy use. Tumble drying increases that and each load could cost £2 this winter.

Luckily we can slash laundry energy use. But it means ignoring constant expert advice to wash at 30c.

I struggle to believe anyone giving this advice does any actual laundry.

Hot Washes Are Important

Family life is a breeding ground for bugs, bacteria & fungus including:

Nits
Worms
Athlete’s foot
and Dandruff

Towels, tea towels, bedlinen, underpants & pyjamas need a hot wash to break cycles of infection kids constantly bring into our homes.

We can slash laundry energy use in other ways. First up is do less!

How To Do Less Laundry

Many of us do more than 5 laundry loads a week. I often did 7.

That’s 250-350 loads a year!!

Bunging it in is easy but drying, ironing & putting away – oh my!

One load less a week is 50 less a year and a 20% cut in laundry energy use.

I cut mine to 3 or 4 a week. That’s 150 less loads a year & a 50% saving.

To cut our laundry loads we :

Wear loose tops more than once
Hang clothes to wear again
Do NO drop on floors or chairs!!
Brush trousers, skirts & sweaters.

And there are more easy ways to cut laundry costs :

Run on shortest cycle you have
Cold soak clothes to pre-wash
Run full loads
And of course air drying.

Air Drying Clothes

Air drying can save £2 per laundry load. If we’re tumble drying 4 loads a week, that’s £3-400 a year!!

We can save more money – and time – by air drying on hangers so very little needs ironing and it’s super quick to put laundry away.

Benefits Of Washing Less

Many families these days struggle with eczema, psoriasis and itchy scalps plus thinning and frizzy hair.

Showering and bathing less can actually relieve all these AND save us loads on heating bills.

So this winter :

Shower or bath every other day
Wash well in the basin
Retrain hair for weekly washes.

I know no 3 sounds scary but it transformed my frizzy hair and there’s tips here on switching :

To save even more money on your bills for heating water :

Turn the water temperature down a notch on your boiler
Get a water saving shower head
Time showers
Run full dishwasher loads
Fill the sink with hot water rather than letting tap run.

How To Save Energy Cooking

Lots of simple hacks can save energy cooking but the big savers are :

DIY microwave meals
One pot recipes
Cooking with an air fryer
AND maxing out your oven.

Quick Energy Saving Microwave Meals

Microwaves use 50% less energy than ovens so can really slash bills.

And surprisingly we can make everything from macaroni cheese to potato top pies and loads of quick desserts in the microwave.

Check out these recipes for ideas :

Energy Saving One Pot Meals

Cooking one pot meals in a pressure or slow cooker can save energy.

But simply switching to recipes cooked in one pot will save money.

For inspiration check out this big guide to 30 different one pot meals:

Energy Saving Cooking With An Air Fryer

Air fryers can also use 50% less energy than an oven.

And you can cook a surprisingly wide range of recipes really well in them including all your favourite roasts.

To make the most of your air fryer – if you have one – check out this guide to over 100 air fryer recipes :

How To Max Out Your Oven To Save Energy

Ovens do use lots of energy to heat but maxed out can be very efficient.

So once a week have a baking day and cram the oven with :

Muffins, cookies & cakes
Food good cold : quiche, pies, roast vegetables, ratatouille
Food good warmed in microwave : lasagna, moussaka
Breads for freezing

With a bit of planning you can even cook things like meringues in a switched off oven as it cools down.

On baking days the oven will warm downstairs so you need less heating.

For more advice on efficient oven use check out these tips :

More Quick Energy Saving Tips For The Kitchen

Microwave, one pot and air fryer meals plus maxed out ovens save most energy in the kitchen but these quick hacks also help :

Always put lids on pans
Only boil water you need
Put small pans on small rings
Use steamer with sections to cook different veg in same pan.

Saving Energy On Lighting

Many of us know LED bulbs save energy and have made the switch.

But there are other totally free ways to cut energy used on lighting. To save £20+ a year we just need to:

Switch lights off when leaving a room – just like the Queen did
Only use light we need i.e. not overhead and task lights
Dust bulbs regularly for efficiency
Regularly clean light shades
Spend more time together in the evening so lighting fewer rooms.

If you’re changing your lighting you can make it more efficient with:

Dimmer switches
Light & transparent shades
External lights on sensors & timers

How To Save Energy On Electronics

Electronics aren’t our biggest energy users. It only costs for example about £35 a year to run a TV.

BUT that cost can sky rocket when the whole family are watching separate screens in separate rooms.

So the big secret to saving energy on electronics is enjoying more time together as a family, especially on cold evenings as it saves on:

Heating
Lighting
AND electronics.

Popular hacks like not charging phones overnight will actually barely save us £1 a year whilst spending more time together in our homes as a family will make a real difference to our bills and our wellbeing.

So there you go over 75 energy saving tips to cut utility bills this winter that are FREE or very cheap indeed.

Use the energy saving check list below to spot any you’re not doing yet and tick them off.

And for more simple ways to beat inflation read these tips:

Extremely Frugal Food Tips
101 Things To Stop Buying
Simple Frugal Life Skills
Debt Free Living Ideas

Energy Saving Check List

Work through this energy saving checklist to spot all the easy ways to cut bills you are missing.

Some of these tips look crazily simple.

But don’t be fooled, something as straightforward as closing curtains at dusk – before it gets dark – can can heating loss by 15%. Together these changes really do add up.

Heat Yourself At Home

Vests
Lots of thin layers
Tights & leggings under trousers
Wrist warmers (from old socks)
Layered socks
Slippers
Fingerless gloves
Woolly hat
Scarf or neck warmer

Heat Yourself In Bed

Thick socks
Slippers
Pyjama layers
Woolly hat
Alternate thin-thick covers
Blanket under base sheet
Sleeping bags
Share beds
Hot bedtime drinks
Hot water bottles

Home Insulation

Always close curtains at dusk
Shut doors
Cover keyholes
Seal chimneys
Put draft stoppers by doors
Hunt down free cycled curtains for :
- Bare windows
- External doors
- Draughty internal doors
- Large rooms
Hook on thermal curtain lining
Draft proof tape for windows & doors
Door brush
Draft proof letterbox
Draft proof floorboard gaps
Loft insulation

Heat A Few Rooms Well

Only heat a few rooms
Turn heating off in unused rooms
Spend more time upstairs
Get kids to share rooms
Curtain off open plan areas
Spend more time together
Hang curtains over doors
Concentrate rugs in snug rooms
Move furniture blocking radiators
Keep unused rooms shut

Do Less Laundry

Wear clothes more than once
Do each laundry load less often
Only run full loads
Do less laundry loads a week
Choose shortest cycle
Cold soak laundry for pre-wash
Air dry laundry
Air dry clothes on hangers to cut ironing

Save Energy Heating Water

Shower every other day
One big bath for kids weekly
Only wash hair once a week
Turn water temperature down
Water saving shower heads
Water saving tap fittings
Time showers
Run full dishwasher
Don’t let hot water tap run, fill sink

Save Energy Cooking

Use microwave
Use air fryer
One pot recipes
Max out oven when on
Put lids on pans
Put pans on small rings
Use sectioned steamers

Save Energy On Lighting

Switch to LED light bulbs
Dust light bulbs
Clean light shades
Only use the light you need
Always switch off leaving rooms
Add dimmer switches
Swap to lighter shades
Timed sensors for external lights
Spend more time together as a family so you are lighting fewer rooms.

I really hope these energy saving tips help cut bills this winter. Do book mark or save for quick reference later.

Original image source: light switches, Radiator, kettle by rawpixel, Cooking Bowl on the modern cooking stove at the home, radiator on blue wall