Countryside Living: Slashing Energy Bills & Your Carbon Footprint

Leaving behind the hectic city life in favor of a more peaceful, intimate experience in the countryside has long been the dream of many eco-friendly homeowners. With the various mental and physical benefits that come with a close link to the natural world, many wishing for a more eco-friendly lifestyle can be fulfilled by living in the countryside. Not only does this way of living bring benefits to your health, it also is a major key to saving money in your everyday life. A selection of landscapes across Britain’s many countryside’s offer a calm sense of seclusion with living costs that are just as easy on the eyes as the environment around them.

For those living in the countryside, balancing living in comfort and minimizing utility costs may seem difficult. Rural living can often minimize the choice of facilities on offer for your home, whether this be on your weekly food shop, broadband providers or transport links. Finding cheaper alternatives to everyday necessities can be a burden, but there are a selection of options for you to choose from to lower the cost of your countryside lifestyle.

Lowering the countryside cost: Cutting down on your bills

There are a variety of simple methods and ways of reducing your utility output that don’t require changing providers. With many tips to save you a fortune, these all add up in creating a far more energy-efficient home. Whether you want to save on your bills or contribute to a better environment, there are plenty of tips on saving energy that homeowners can utilize. One being lowering the heat of your washing machine – washing clothes in a ten-degree cooler wash can easily save you some money on those heating bills.

Which.co.uk also highlights how energy-efficient appliances, replacing light bulbs, and cutting out draughts are useful ways to save on energy bills and help cut down on energy costs. Turning down your radiators or heating your hot water to a lower temperature can also prove to save money on your bills without too much of a sacrifice. Simply turning down your heating by one-degree can save up to £80 a year! These heating tips not only cut down your heating bills, but also forfeit none of your own comfort, what could possibly stop you from saving?

Another way saving energy can make a positive change to your bills is through water. While many people often overuse the hot water in their homes, they seem to overlook the impact this can have on your water bill. One way of avoiding this is by using a washing-up bowl or basin, rather than leaving the tap running for a long period of time, washing dishes in a bowl will save the amount of water you use for an everyday task. Another culprit of those extensive water bills are showers – particularly in homes with multiple bathrooms. Cutting even just a few minutes off your daily shower can make significant changes in your annual water bills without causing a negative impact on your day-to-day life.

How bigger changes can have bigger impacts

For those even more dedicated to making a positive change in their countryside lifestyle and cut their carbon footprint, there are bigger changes that can be made with just a little extra effort in making greater savings throughout your home. Just one way you can reduce your energy costs is by investing in double or triple glazing. This will ensure heat doesn’t escape your house as easily, and you will require far less energy to maintain a temperature throughout your household. By simply doing this you will be potentially saving hundreds of pounds a year, what an impact that will be on your energy bill!

Whether you live in the countryside or in the city, the importance of saving energy is vital in reducing your carbon footprint. Not only does it produce a higher quality of life, but also helps contribute to a healthier planet. There are various ways in which you can contribute to saving energy, such as switching from gas to oil. Oil is a far more efficient fuel than gas particularly in rural areas, as it produces more heat per BTU than its counterpart, meaning you need less oil to power your home.

While storing oil for your household may seem intimidating, there are a range of heating oil tanks on the market for people to find one that is suitable for their home and preferences. Modern heating oil tanks are not only relatively easy to install but are also lightweight, durable, and made from materials like UV stabilized polyethylene. Switching to using oil for fuel can have huge effects on your energy bills and the way you save energy in your home.

The importance on saving energy in your household

In a time of such a severe climate crisis, reducing your carbon footprint is so important for households to introduce into their homes. Countryside living makes it even easier to adhere to reducing your energy use. With the frequent use of things like solar panels and home-grown food, these are just two essentials that contribute to making your home more environmentally friendly.

Similarly, the benefits of saving water not only make an impact on you, but the world as a whole. As it minimizes a household’s environmental impact, the reduction in hot water usage directly reduces further heat and energy spending. Overall, making these simple changes will not only save water and benefit the environment, but also the economy with the reduction in water bills across the UK.