Homeowners, especially those with big families tend to waste a lot of energy around the home and with everything that is going on with climate change at the moment we really should be looking to make our homes more eco-friendly.
The good news is that small changes really can make a big difference when it comes to saving energy. In this blog post, I will go through some of my favourite ways to save money by being eco-friendly.
In this post, I will focus on the bathroom. If you’re wondering why I have chosen the bathroom it’s because it’s one of the most used rooms in the home. Being one of the most used means that there’s a lot of potential for energy saving.
Here are my favourite 5 ways of saving money with an eco-friendly bathroom.
1) Adding low flow fixtures
Bathroom companies are now starting to offer low flow fixtures in their bathroom suites and they can reduce water wastage considerably.
Low flow fixtures work in a way that leaves less water pass through them so you are only using a smaller amount of water than you usually would. Low flow technology is now being used in urinals, showerheads and taps and they can save you 20% of the water in a single-use. Over the course of a year in a small family home that could be thousands of gallons of water.
Low flow fixtures are a great energy saver which doesn’t cost the world to implement.
2) Use organic towels.
Organic towels are more expensive than your traditional towel but it’s a fraction of the price compared to buying a new bathroom suite. Organic bathroom towels save you money because you simply get more uses out of them. Organic towels absorb more water than a traditional towel and because of this, you need to dry them less.
Drying your towels less in a dryer saves energy and also prolongs the life of the towel. Not only do organic towels save you money, but they also feel great on your skin and do a better job at drying your body. A win-win for me.
3) Lower boiler thermostat.
By lowering the boiler thermostat the boiler doesn’t have to heat the water up to boiling temperatures, which costs a lot of money and energy to do so. Lowering the thermostat on your boiler is a simple yet effective way of saving energy in the home.
Lowering the thermostat on the boiler also has a secondary energy-saving effect as colder baths and showers mean that less water is used in the bath and people tend to spend less time in a colder shower than a hot one, once again saving water.
If you lower the thermostat and add a low flow fixture you will save thousands of gallons of water a year.
4) Fix existing leaks.
Not only do small leaks damage your home but they also waste thousands of gallons of water a year. A leak that drips in one-second intervals can waste 3000 gallons of water in a single year, now multiply that by a few leaks around the house and you can see how much money and energy you are literally throwing down the drain.
Leaks are hard to detect. The best way to see if your home has a leak is to get a smart meter and turn off all the equipment in your home that uses water, stop anyone from using any water in your home for a few hours and take a reading of your water usage before and after. If the numbers are different you have a leak somewhere at home.
Once you know you have a leak, check the obvious places like the kitchen and the bathroom. The toilet is usually the culprit but if you can’t find it, it may be worth calling in a local plumber to check it out.
5) Switch to energy-saving bulbs.
Although this post is about turning your bathroom eco-friendly this tip can be applied to the rest of the home.
If you switch from a standard light to an LED light you could save up to 60% more energy per bulb.
Not only do you save energy, but the LED lights in my experience last longer than traditional bulbs and therefore save you money on having to buy new bulbs every year.
Switching to energy-saving bulbs in your home can have a massive energy-saving effect and for a small investment for the bulbs initially, it is well worth it.
Conclusion
Most of the eco-friendly tips above won’t cost the world to implement but over the course of a year will save you so much money and you can feel good in knowing you’re not only saving your pocket a few pennies but you’re also saving the environment.
Do you have any energy-saving tips for the bathroom or the rest of the home? If so please leave a comment below.
