We’ve all spent the best part of a year at home. With nowhere to go and advice telling us to work from home, most of us have seen a huge spike in our bills. Of course, this an expected outcome, but the rise doesn’t need to be so steep.
Making savvy decisions around the home can save you cash and curb that sudden spike in expenses.
The most natural increase you’re likely to have seen will be in gas and electricity. All your meals will be cooked at home, you’ll also be using your lights and your heating. If you’re used to be out all day at the office, you might have had a shock when you got you first energy bill after working from home.
These tips will help keep those extra working-form-home costs down.
Top Tips for Saving Money on Bills When You Work from Home
Reducing what you spend on bills is a bonus at any time. Even once you no longer work from home, it will still be beneficial to keep your energy bills as low as possible.
The obvious solution is to shop around for the best tariff for you, but if you’re already on a good deal, there’s more that could be done to save money.
Follow the advice below to reduce your energy bill.
Related: The Writing Greyhound shares her tips on saving money on Broadband.
Turn the thermostat down
It’s nice to be warm and toast while you work, but do you really need the heating cranked up? If you’re holed up on the sofa all day, perhaps consider throwing on a cardigan or working under a blanket. Turning the heating down a couple of degrees will save more money than you think.
Turn down the radiators in rooms you’re not using
There’s no need to keep the heat pumping into your bedroom if you’re not likely to be in there for another 12 or so hours. Use the settings on the radiator valve to turn the heat down in the rooms you won’t be spending time in. If your radiator doesn’t have settings or the valve is stuck, it’s worth getting it replaced with a thermostatic valve.
Turn off the lights
It’s tempting to leave lights on in the areas you’re frequently passing through (such as the hallway or the kitchen), but by doing this, you’re using unnecessary energy. Try and get into the habit of turning off lights as you leave each room.
Try working without artificial lights on a dull day. I often hole up in the back corner of the lounge and turn the lights on when I’m working. It feels cosy when it’s dull and wet outside, and I also need that extra bit of light to see my keyboard. I realised that if I sit in the seat by the window, I have no need for artificial lighting until it starts to get dark. This is such a simple solution but it works when it comes to saving money!
Make a pot of tea
I need a steady flow tea to keep me hydrated while I work. I’m guilty of boiling the kettle numerous times and making tea with the tea bag directly in the mug. I recently found out that boiling the kettle uses a shocking amount of electricity. After my discovery, I switched to making a pot of tea. My teapot holds six cups or 4 mugs, so I’m boiling the kettle once for every four cups and still getting the same amount of tea. It doesn’t sound like much, but it really does add up over the month!
Meal prep
If you were at work outside of the home, it’s likely you’d be either buying your lunch, or using your workplace’s electricity to prepare the food. When you’re at home, you’ll probably need to cook every day. Instead, consider meal prepping. Look into food options you can prepare at the beginning of the week and either eat cold, or reheat quickly. It’ll save the energy you would have used to cook from scratch, and it might even reduce your food bill if you put more thought into meal planning.
It’s a good idea to follow all of these tips even after everything goes back to normal. Saving money on your bills frees up some cash to do the fun thing you’ve been missing out on all this time!