Top 10 Energy Saving Measures

Simply follow the energy saving measures below, and you should see a great return on your investment, both financially and environmentally.

You can cut as much as £300* off your annual energy bill and reduce your household's carbon dioxide emissions by around two tonnes.

Here's how you do it.

Brush up on energy saving

Eliminate draughts and wasted heat by installing a cheap, easy-to-fix brush or PVC seal on your exterior doors. Letterboxes and keyholes should be covered too. You can install draught proofing yourself.

Draught dodgers

Draughts also get in through gaps in floorboards and skirting boards, which also allow heat to escape in winter. Stop this waste by filling these gaps with newspaper, beading or sealant.

Use energy saving light bulbs

Switch to energy saving light bulbs. They last up to 12 times longer than ordinary light bulbs, and each bulb you fit could save up to £100* on electricity over the bulb's lifetime. They come in a whole range of styles.

Jazz up your tank with a jacket

Insulate your hot water tank with a jacket - it only costs a few pounds and, with all the heat it traps in, it pays for itself within months. Fit one that's at least 75mm (3") thick and you could save around £20 a year. If every UK household that could fitted an adequate tank-jacket tomorrow, we'd save over £95 million of energy every year!

Lofty ambitions

Insulating your loft is one of the simplest ways to save energy - you can even install it yourself. Insulate your loft today and in a year you could save between £180 and £220*.

Insulate wall cavities

Around 33% of the heat lost in an uninsulated house is through the walls. You could save up to £160 on energy bills each year by insulating your wall cavities. It also creates an even temperature in your home. If we all filled our wall cavities, we'd save over £960 million of energy a year*

Image: Typical brick formation for cavity walls

Switch to high-efficiency boilers

If your boiler is over 15 years old it's probably time to replace it. By law, new gas boilers in England and Wales must now be of the high efficiency condensing type, which can help you save up to a third on your heating bills and even more if you upgrade to modern controls as well.

Save up to a third on your heating bills with a high efficiency condensing boiler. Boilers are rated according to their efficiency in converting fuel to heat as a percentage. This rating is called SEDBUK - Seasonal Efficiency of Domestic Boilers in the UK.

SEDBUK ratings are from A to G, A-rated boilers being more than 90% efficient. Only A rated boilers - having efficiencies of over 90% carry the Energy Saving Recommended logo.

Compare the efficiency of different boilers at www.boilers.org.uk

Look for the logo

When purchasing new appliances, always look for the Energy Saving Recommended logo. Energy Saving Recommended appliances are the most efficient in their category and could save you up to £45 a year.

Find out more about Energy Saving Recommended products

Always look for the Energy Saving Recommended logo

Keep twice as warm with double glazing

Double glazing cuts heat loss through windows by 50% and could cut your heating bill by £80 to £100 a year.

Take an online home energy check

Still not sure which are your home's weak spots? AquaCare, in association with the Dorset Energy Advice centre can provide an online home emergency check.

Visit this site or call your local Energy Saving Trust advice centre on 0800 512 012 for free, impartial advice on saving energy in your home.

* based on information provided by Energy Savings Trust. For further information please visit http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/energy_saving_assumptions