You probably noticed that prices of almost everything are rising this year. Especially energy prices are increasing a lot. The price of gas in The Netherlands is now 239% higher than in August 2021. The price of electricity is 204% higher since then!
Nobody likes a screaming wallet, so luckily there are some ways to reduce your energy bill. There’s the obvious solution of installing solar panels and other energy-saving technology, but in this blog, we’ll help you to save money without spending money first.
Heating the house
Most people in the Netherlands spend about 50% of their energy usage on heating their house. It shouldn’t be a surprise that you can easily save the most money there!
Tip 1: Don’t heat your entire house. In most Dutch houses, heaters can be controlled in each room. Turn off the heaters in spaces that no one is in, such as bedrooms – for example by turning off the knob on the heater itself.
Tip 2: Keep the doors closed. Closing doors and windows to the outside is the most obvious way to save energy. But closing all doors inside the house can make a big difference too! The heaters in each room will be more efficient and cold air won’t be able to blow through your house.
Tip 3: Lower the thermostat by 1 degree. It may seem surprising, but this can lower the bill quite a lot! If you’re properly dressed and active inside the house, even 19 degrees should be comfortable already.
Tip 4: Set the thermostat to 15 degrees at night. Try to do this one hour before going to bed, then get cozy and dive under the covers! Research has shown that the quality of sleep improves in a cold, dark environment. Win-win!
Tip 5: Leave the thermostat at 15 degrees when no one is home during the day. Why spend money on heating a home that has no one in it? If you have a smart thermostat, you could program it to heat up just before the first person comes home.
Electronics
In The Netherlands, households spend about 37% of their total energy usage on electricity. Start saving money by implementing these quick tips:
Tip 1: Use LED lights. LED lamps use 85-90% less energy than other types of light bulbs! Even energy-saving lamps use much more energy than LED lamps. On average, LED lamps also last much longer: 15.000 to 50.000 hours, which is about 25 years!
Tip 2: Turn off the lights. Why spend money to light up rooms with no one in them? Save energy and money by turning on lights when you enter the room, then turn them off when you’re the last person out. During the day, keep your curtains open to make use of natural light instead of lamps.
Tip 3: Completely turn off devices and charging blocks. Some devices continue to use energy, even when on stand-by or “off”. As a general rule of thumb, unplug devices and chargers that are not in use. You can easily turn off multiple devices by plugging them into a power strip and turning off the big red button.
We hope these simple tips can help you save energy and money. Have some tips of your own? We’d love to hear them in the comments!