Keep it warm efficiently.  Heating the home is the 2nd largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in UK.

Start here 10 minute Checklist: Choose a windy day and…

• Check for draughts and increase air tightness. Use draught excluders, letter box excluder, insulation material where pipes enter the kitchen and bathroom – a major source of drafts; seal where cables enter the house. Even one of those old-fashioned cloth ‘sausages’ under an external door.   £
• Check windows and door frames are sealed properly.
• Check ventilation louvres close properly.

Insulate and address draughts:   ££  draught proofing can save on average £125 per year

• Install/improve double glazing. It’s advanced dramatically in the last 15 years. Grants are available.  10yr old double glazing is likely to no longer provide the insulation you need, as their seals often start to fail between 10-15 years old.
• Consider adding to your existing insulation via cavity wall, thick loft insulation, A+ windows, underfloor insulation, external cladding insulation.
• Sheep’s wool insulation is a natural and bio-friendly option.
• Thick curtains that overlap the wall can help.  If radiators are below windows, tuck curtains behind radiator.
• Bay windows are often poorly insulation, or have thin wall thickness
• Conservatories:  there can he huge heat losses from conservatories.  Close of doors from main house to conservatory.  If part of house, consider changing so it is an extension to the house and properly insulated. Avoid who glass roof arrangement.  £££
• You can do a lot of these things yourself (think DIY).

Improve heating:

• Electric heating (where possible) powered by 100% renewable electricity supplier
• Air source heat pump or in some cases ground source heat pump (where viable). The investment cost is quite high.
• Avoid gas combi-boilers where possible.  Use of natural gas is now one of the major sources of carbon emissions and air pollution in the UK.
• Install a smart meter (if you can’t measure it; you can’t control it).  It won’t cost you to have one installed.  And ignore lots of nonsense on the internet about conspiracies around smart meters.  Also, as new smart energy tariffs are introduced you will only be able to access them if you have a smart meter.
• Use an electronic thermostat with timer (set as low as you find comfortable).  Not an old style electro-mechanical thermostat.
• Simple solution:  wear an extra layer! Layered clothing works best.  £

• Avoid log fire or biomass boilers (as this is combustion of wood and emits CO₂); if using biomass then buy from a local forestry residual waste provider.
• UK Building Standards and Regulations are weak on sustainability, some of the poorest standards in Europe. Don’t accept their basic minimal requirements if you have refurbishment work done.

Electricity use  £ :  

• Turn off devices on standby.  In particular: video players, DVD players, printers,  especially inkjet printers.  These can use a surprising amount of on-standby power.   Newer devices are much better.    £    Saves on average £40 per year 
• Turn off lights when no one is in a room. Or fit movement sensors (you can get a direct replacement for a light switch)    £    Saves on average £25 per year 
• Move to LED lighting (pays for itself in less <1yr)

YOUR GARDEN:

• Try ‘rewilding’ a small section of your garden: It’ll become a wildlife sanctuary. Read:
  https://www.rewildingbritain.org.uk/explore-rewilding/where-can-you-rewild/rewilding-on-a-smaller-scale
• Dig a pond. No matter how small, wildlife will love it.
• Leave small ground-level gaps in fencing etc to allow hedgehogs, etc to pass through.
• Have a go at growing fruit / vegetables, but use ‘natural’ pesticides, weedkillers, etc.
• Mow your lawn less often – 2 or 3 times a year max. That’ll allow insects to flourish.
• Get a bird feeding station and your garden will come alive.
• Plant a tree
• Get together a tree planting committee for your road or community.

YOUR ENERGY SUPPLIER:

• Switch to a 100% renewable electricity supplier (one that owns or has long term contracts with renewable generators). Don’t be duped by suppliers who buy their renewable energy guarantee of origin (REGO) certificates on the wholesale market and then claim their energy is 100% renewable. Regular automatic supplier switching services purely based on price are a false economy. Doesn’t have to cost more.
• Buy consumer devices and lighting which are high efficiency A++ or better.  £
• Use an energy monitoring system to better control the energy use.  Einstein said “If you can’t measure it, you can’t control it”
• Get some solar PV panels on your roof, if you can afford it. They pay for themselves in 5-7 years and then it free electricity.  They typically last more than 20 years.

YOUR WATER:

A precious resource that we take for granted too much.

• Spend less time in the shower (5 minutes of hot water) and use a shower aerator head on the shower (we use so much heated water unnecessarily). ££  Save on average £95 per year
• Use low flow devices in toilet cisterns & taps.
• Flush the toilet periodically (no need after every pee).  “If it’s yellow let it mellow- if it’s brown flush it down”
• Fix leaks and dripping taps.
• Only use the kettle to boiler the water you need now  £  Save on average £45 per year
• Avoid using the tumble dryer, they use a lot of energy  ££  Save on average £70 per year
• Wash your clothes at 30 degrees and wash less often  £  Save on average £45 per year
• Avoid use of garden sprinklers.
• Use a rainwater butt for watering the garden.
• Buy A++ appliances that minimise use of water (and hence electricity use for heating the water).
• Check your water bills to see if you have a leak.  Are you using more than 150 litres per person per day? Aim for 100.
• Insulate your hot water tank, if you have one, with an insulation jacket  ££  Save on average £70 per year
• Consider a Solar thermal panel for hot water (where viable); especially if you have a South/West/East facing roof and existing hot water tank.