Bessie Hassan
It’s tempting to blast the heater when the mercury drops. But with thousands of Aussie households already stretched financially, avoiding winter bill shock should be a top priority – and it’s easier than you think.
Follow these four tips below to cut down the cost of your energy bill.
Make friends with your electric blanket
If there’s nowhere else you’d rather be than snuggled up in bed during winter, then you’re onto a good thing. Using an electric blanket to keep warm is almost 16 times cheaper than using a heater.
On average, a 2,400-watt heater will cost you $3 per day (based on a time frame of five hours). This will add an extra $280 to your energy bill over the three-month winter period. However, an electric blanket will cost around 19c per day, saving you $260 over the season. Any excuse to jump back in bed is a good one!
Rug up
Popping on an extra layer or two might be all you need to cut through the winter chill. Try wearing an extra jumper and huddle under a blanket if you’re watching TV, make use of socks and beanies and invest in some thermal underwear. Unless you live in a fairly cold climate, this should be enough to help keep you toasty most of the time.
Be strategic about how you heat the house
You don’t have to break up with your heater entirely to keep warm on a budget, you just need to be smart about the way you use it.
Make sure you have the heat setting at an economical temperature. While it might be tempting to blast it at the highest setting in the midst of a cold snap, it’s unnecessary and will cost you. Aim for a room temperature of around 17–19 degrees. This is enough to remain comfortably warm without blowing up your energy bill.
It’s also important to only have the heater running in a room you’re actually occupying. There’s no point wasting heat in an empty or unused space. Ensure all doors and blinds are closed to prevent any heat from escaping. This is a useful way to save money on your energy usage.
If you’re tech-savvy
Around 1.3 million Aussies leave the heater running when they aren’t at home. That’s a lot of wasted energy!
If you can’t bear the thought of coming home to a cold house, apps such as IFTTT (if this, then that) allow you to automatically trigger your heater through a universal remove device that kicks in when you’re a certain distance from home. Not only will you come home to a toasty house, you’ll be using your heat economically.
Switch up your energy provider
If the cost of your energy bills is through the roof, it might be time to look elsewhere for another provider. July is a busy month for the energy industry, with plenty of changes to plans and prices. This makes now a good time to reevaluate your current plan and see what better deals are out there – every dollar saved counts.
It is possible to keep warm throughout the winter without leaving the heater on all day. Wearing multiple layers, only heating the room you’re using, keeping curtains drawn and using IFTTT technology can all help keep you cosy without causing you to sweat over the cost of your energy bill. And at the end of the day, paying your bills on time is important if you want to maintain or build your credit score.