Groundwork UK is asking Welsh families to spend one minute on a quick online survey to help with work in making homes more energy efficient.
The simple questions follow a postcode search to help them build a picture of what’s happening across the country.
Click here to go to the survey.
If you have any questions about energy efficiency in your home call the Energy Saving Advice Service 0300 123 1234 or visit the official Green Deal website.
Here a few tips from Groundwork UK to help save energy in your home straight away
If you just change a few of your habits, you can save energy in every room in the house and help cut your bills. Here are our top money-saving tips to get you started.
1. Turn it down
You could have your central heating set higher than you need it, without even realising it. Try turning your room thermostat down by one degree. Leave it for a day and if you still feel warm enough, try turning it down another degree. Carry on until it feels a bit too cool and then turn it back up one degree.
Every degree that you turn it down could save you around £60 a year on your heating bill.
2. Switch it off
Remember to turn lights, appliances and chargers off when you’re not using them. By turning a light off for even a few seconds, you will save more energy than it takes the light to start up again. Nearly all electrical and electronic appliances can safely be turned off at the plug without upsetting their systems (satellite and digital TV recorders should be left plugged in).
A family could save around £40 a year just by remembering to turn things off, if they don’t already do this.
3. Careful in the kitchen
You can save £35 a year just by being careful how you use your kitchen appliances.
- Set your washing machine to wash at 30°C.
- Only use your tumble dryer when you can’t dry your clothes outside.
- Don’t fill your kettle right up every time – just boil the amount of water you need.
4. Get a head
If you’ve got a shower that takes hot water straight from your boiler or hot water tank (rather than an electric shower) then you may be able to fit a water-efficient shower head and cut your hot water use without noticing any difference when you shower.
An eco shower head will cost around £27 and a family of four will save around £72 a year on water heating and another £78 on water bills if they have a water meter.
5. Don’t lag behind
If you have an un-insulated hot water cylinder, you could start saving now by fitting a tank jacket. And while you’re about it, insulate any exposed hot pipework around the cylinder and around the boiler.
It’s easy to fit yourself, the materials for the whole lot will only cost you around £25, and you’ll save £55 a year.
6. Be a draught excluder
Unless your home is very new, you’re likely to be losing some heat through draughts around doors and windows, gaps around the floor and even up the chimney.
So why not buy some proper draught-proofing products for doors and windows, seal your skirting boards with silicone sealant, and fit chimney balloons or sealed fire guards? Depending on your house, materials could cost up to £160 but you could save up to £90 a year.
7. Lighten your load
Have you changed all your light bulbs for low-energy ones? You can now get LED spotlights that are bright enough to replace halogens, as well as regular energy saving bulbs (‘compact fluorescent lamps’ or CFLs) for nearly everything else. They come in a variety of shapes, sizes and fittings.
If the average household replaced all their remaining old-fashioned bulbs with CFLs and all their halogens with LEDs it would cost around £125 and save around £55 a year.
Next steps
Most households could do these first three steps without having to spend even a penny. If you start now you could save up to £135 a year – that’s more than home energy bills went up at the last big price rise.
Why not re-invest some of those savings in some simple measures that will pay back quickly, and see if you can double your savings.