Smart Ways to Save Money on Your Energy Bills (Updated for 2025)

20 Ways to Save Money on Energy Bills

Here at Scott Findlay, we are keenly aware that our customers’ gas bills will rise, and so the team has thought of some ideas of ways to save a little bit of money on energy, which might help in the next few months. You might have some other tips, too, that you can use.

1. Install a new, efficient boiler which will use less gas. Bring down your bills by up to £490* a year with an A-rated energy-efficient new boiler from Worcester Bosch.
   
   
2. Turn down your thermostat a notch. Doesn’t sound like a big deal? It isn’t, but it can save you money. Turning down your thermostat by 1 degree can save up to £80 a year. That’s an easy saving to make. What temperature should I set my thermostat to? Set your thermostat to the lowest temperature that still keeps you comfortable. For most households, this falls between 18°C and 21°C.
   
   
3. Don’t turn all your heating off and only rely on portable heaters. It is much more energy efficient to keep your central heating on at a low level than turn it off completely and then on again to heat the home from cold.
   
   
4. Limit the use of the tumble dryer. If you can, use a clothes horse at home in a well-ventilated room during the winter. But if you can’t ventilate the room where the wet clothes are, you run the risk of damp. In that case, a dehumidifier is a good alternative. There are many models specifically with a laundry setting which will dry clothes quickly and cheaper than a tumble dryer. Dehumidifiers need the room NOT to be ventilated, as by doing so, you make the dehumidifier work harder.
   
   
5. Wash clothes at a lower temperature. Modern detergents work well at 30°C, and most washes don’t need high heat.
   
   
6. Use smart controls for your heating system. As discussed in a previous post, most homeowners can save around 10-20% on heating bills when they switch from old, traditional heating systems to a Smart system.
   
   
7. Fit thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs). These let you control the temperature of individual rooms, so you only heat the spaces you use most.
   
   
8. Review the on/off times set on your heating timer to make sure you’re not heating the house unnecessarily, such as when no one is home or while you’re asleep. A timer or programmer allows you to control exactly when your heating and hot water turn on and off, helping you use energy only when it’s needed. As a general guide, set the heating to come on around 30 minutes before you wake up and to switch off about 30 minutes before bedtime. Always check that the programmer’s clock is accurate—many models adjust automatically when the clocks change in spring and autumn, but if yours doesn’t, you’ll need to update it manually. The exact times will depend on your household routine, but as a rule of thumb, turn the heating on when you start to feel cold.
   
   
9. Take shorter showers. Reducing your shower time by 2 minutes from the average of 8 minutes can save you 25% - and you will gain an extra 15 minutes a week to do something else!
   
   
10. Turn off unused appliances. Lots of appliances like TVs and mobile chargers are kept on standby, or we keep them plugged in to charge even when the battery is full. Switching off appliances that we don’t need will save us a few pennies.
    
    
11. Defrost your freezer regularly. Ice build-up reduces efficiency, so keeping it clear helps save energy.
    
    
12. Love a mug of tea? Only fill the kettle with the water that you need. It will take less time to boil and use less energy.
    
    
13. Use lids on pots and pans. Food cooks quicker and uses less energy when heat is trapped inside.
    
    
14. LED lighting is another great way to save energy and if you haven’t swapped over all your lights, then it is a must.
    
    
15. Switch off lights in rooms that you aren’t in.
    
    
16. Get your central heating serviced. An inefficient boiler will have to work harder and that will cost you more money than an annual service will cost.
    
    
17. Block draughts in your home - is cold air coming in under the door? Draughts are not only annoying, but they can make your heating system work harder to keep your home warm.
    
    
18. Insulate your home properly. Good loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, and draught-proofing doors and windows can make a huge difference to heat loss, meaning your boiler doesn’t have to work as hard.
    
    
19. Install double-glazing if you can afford to. This can make a big difference in how warm your home is.
    
    
20. Are your radiators heating up correctly? Are they making a gurgling noise or have cold and hot spots? These are signs that they may be full of sludge and that your heating system isn’t working efficiently. We’d recommend a power flush that cleans out the sludge and gets your heating system back to good health. This puts less strain on your boiler and saves money.
    
    

Do you have any other tips? As your local plumbing and heating company in Edinburgh, we are here to help with any boiler or heating problems. But we can also offer advice or point you to the right places where you can get support.

*Fuel bill savings based on a gas-heated home in Great Britain, when replacing an old gas boiler with a new A-rated condensing boiler with a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator controls (TRVs). Savings for Great Britain are based on an electricity price of 24.5 p/kWh and a gas price of 6.29 p/kWh, calculated from a weighted average of projected, current and recent energy price caps