Stay Warm This Winter – Top Tips To Help Landlords and Tenants Beat Rising Energy Prices
With gas and electricity prices at record highs, many people are wondering how they’ll manage to pay the bills this winter.
With a new energy price guarantee for the next two years for the whole of the UK coming into effect on October 1, most of us will pay no more than £2,500 a year for our gas and electricity. But that’s still double what we were paying a year ago…
Scottish Government Energy Crisis Support Package
The Scottish Government has also offered a support package including additional family benefits, free school meals, concessionary travel, and council tax and water charge reductions.
But the extra support will go only a small way to cover the rising costs this winter, so how can you use less energy and still keep warm indoors? Here are a handful of tips to help you beat the cost-of-living crisis:
Eliminate Draughts In Your Rental Property
Draughty windows and doors let the cold in, so check if any need attention, then use a draught excluder to create a better seal. This can be bought cheaply at DIY stores and is easy to fit.
It’s also worth investing in a floor excluder that you can move from room to room. Once the door is closed, push the excluder along the bottom to prevent any draughts from getting in. Old pillows or a heavy blanket do an equally good job.
Only Heat The Rooms You Use
Heating a whole house when you spend most of your time in only a couple of rooms is a surefire way to spend more on your energy bills than you need. Turn off radiators in little-used rooms, and consider buying a small portable heater to move around with you as needed. Some are cheap to buy and very energy efficient – check out the Which? survey of the best heaters on the market.
Make sure there’s a blanket handy when you’re relaxing on the sofa, and pull the curtains to reduce any draughts further.
The Oldest Solutions Are Sometimes The Best!
The most obvious way to stay warm at home without increasing your heating costs is to wear appropriate clothes. Try to choose natural fabrics such as wool and cotton and use thin layers that trap warm air between them. Most of the heat from your body is lost through your head so make sure you wear a hat, even when in bed!
The same applies to the covers on your bed too. Choose a high-tog duvet and use lots of layers so you can remove them if you get too warm or add more if you feel cold. Wear thick bed socks and sleep in your dressing gown or bathrobe to add an extra warm layer.
Snuggle up to a hot water bottle, too – sometimes the oldest solutions are the best!
Stay Active While Indoors
Keeping active is another way to stay warm indoors, especially if you work from home. Walk up and down the stairs or do simple exercises to raise your heart rate and get your blood flowing. Drink plenty of warm fluids, have hot lunches and move your office to the smallest room in the house, so it’s cheaper to heat.
Go Back To Work
Many home workers are now considering returning to the office to save on energy bills. And if the commute isn’t a problem, it might be worth splitting your week to spend a few days away from home and benefit from your employer’s heating.
Getting together with nearby colleagues and friends, so you only need to heat one house at a time, is an option too, or pop out to a warm café to work for a few hours and enjoy a hot drink.
More measures are promised to help struggling households, but in the meantime, it’s worth putting plans in place to save as much energy as possible before your bills become unmanageable.
If you are letting a property through Clan Gordon and have ideas about how things could be improved in your home please don't hesitate to discuss it with your Property Manager.
As Edinburgh’s leading letting agent managing more than 500 properties across the capital, our team are always happy to guide anyone thinking about letting in the city. Please feel free to schedule a call with our professional property managers now.