Bank holiday tips for a cosy winter

If you plan to use the August bank holiday as an opportunity to carry out a bit of DIY around your home, it might be worthwhile considering your insulation. Now is the perfect time to install new loft or wall insulation or even top up your old insulation, making sure that your home is cosy and cost-efficient for winter. Thinkinsulation.com offers these handy tips:

• Homes which don’t have any loft insulation can save on average £150 per year on their fuel bills when they have insulation installed to the recommended depth of 270mm. Not only is installing loft insulation a pretty straightforward job, but it will boost your home’s energy efficiency rating too. Even if you’ve already installed loft insulation, by topping it up to 270mm you could save on average an additional £45 year on year. For more information on how much money and energy you could save on loft insulation visit www.thinkinsulation.com.
• According to the Energy Saving Trust, there are still 6.3 million homes, which need cavity wall insulation. Cavity wall insulation pays for itself in around two years, and it will typically save 15% – or £115 – a year on your home’s fuel bills. Although not a job for the novice DIYer (cavity wall insulation needs to be installed by a professional), it can be installed in just a single day. And the cost of having cavity wall insulation installed has never been lower, as it’s subsidised by the Government which has pledged to slash the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050. Find out more about applying for a grant at www.direct.gov.uk.
• A further seven million homes have un-insulated solid walls. External wall insulation can save a whopping £400 a year on energy bills. This means that although it requires a significant investment to install, it begins to pay for itself immediately with huge money savings... and these will continue year on year. Alternatively, internal wall insulation can save around £380 a year on energy bills, and an impressive two tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. For more information and advice, including how to find out if a property has cavity or solid walls, visit www.thinkinsulation.com.
• Replace all your light bulbs with energy saving bulbs. Lasting up to 10 times longer than ordinary bulbs, they will save you around £40 over the lifetime of the bulb.
• Turning your thermostat down to reduce your room temperature by 1°C, could cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent and typically saves around £55 per year.