Christmas is a time for warmth, comfort and celebration, but it also happens to be one of the most energy-intensive periods of the year. With colder weather, more household ‘traffic’ and extra appliances running, many homes in the UK are unknowingly wasting significant amounts of energy – bah humbug!
From overheating your home, powering Christmas decorations all day to running less than efficient radiators during cold snaps, the real energy drains aren’t always the ones we expect. So to prevent Christmas from becoming the biggest cause of your winter bill increase, here’s ways to keep your energy consumption down, allowing you to focus on enjoying the festive season.
Here are some simple Christmas energy saving tips to help reduce waste, lower your winter bills and keep your home warm this festive season.
Hidden Christmas energy drains most households don’t realise
Here are some simple Christmas energy saving tips to help reduce waste, lower your winter bills and keep your home warm this festive season.
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Overheating rooms when you’re hosting
When friends and family get together, as hosts we naturally turn up the heating to make sure that no-one is cold – that would be bad etiquette. But with multiple guests in one space, body heat warms a room quite quickly than most people realise.
If guests become uncomfortably warm, the natural next step is to start opening the windows (while it’s still freezing outside) to cool down, wasting all the warm energy that’s been generated organically.
In advance of your guests arriving, a smart option is to turn down the temperature on your thermostat by 1–2°C or make the most of the Fischer Wi-FI enabled wireless thermostat. Without needing to keep an eye on windows being open and closed, it can detect when a door or window is left open and automatically turn off the system to save energy.
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Relying on outdated or inefficient radiators
Heating provided by traditional radiators is where most energy loss happens during the festive period, as many homes keep their heating on in poorly insulated spaces (at least 33% is lost through the walls alone). Homes heated with older radiators tend to:
- Struggle to maintain consistent temperatures
- Overheat rooms not being used while underheating others
- Use more energy by reheating a cold, drafty room repeatedly
- Waste energy as their heaters aren’t designed to retain heat well, unless they have a HeatCore system
This Christmas, the cold can’t dampen your Christmas spirit. Modern heating alternatives like electric radiators can prevent inconsistent heating worries. They provide a quicker heat response and give you room-by-room control with the use of a wireless thermostat, so you can have peace of mind that unnecessary energy won’t be wasted.
Another option is winter proofing your home, making the most of draft excluders, adding reflective foil insulation behind existing heaters and draft proofing windows with insulation film.
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Running the heating all day “because it’s Christmas”
A common myth is that keeping the heating on continuously is cheaper, especially when people are home all day during the Christmas break. But in reality, this can be one of the biggest contributors to higher winter energy bills.
Reduce your consumption setting schedules for your heating to come on during certain periods of the day. Customise your heating to come on when you know your home will be at its coldest and when the household is spending quality time together to create a cosy environment.
It’s not a case of keeping the heating off to save energy, it’s about making the most of smart temperature settings so you can enjoy a warm, comfortable home without it being detrimental to your bank balance. For example, it’s the difference of turning the temperature down by just 1℃ which can save you £130 less energy!
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Hot water overload from guests, showers and kitchen prep
Christmas is all about spending quality time together. Whether that’s with family or friends, during the festive period many homes in the UK will be hosting so everyone can celebrate under one roof.
As a result, demand for hot water increases massively with guests needing more showers, there are more pots and pans to clean, and potentially more laundry. If they’re not well maintained, old heating systems could struggle with the sudden load, reheating water inefficiently and drawing excess energy to keep up.
However, a modern electric water heater can provide busy homes hot water on demand efficiently and consistently without causing cold spots, as it can store four times more heat than a domestic water cylinder.
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Christmas lights are left on overnight
Christmas lights are often energy-efficient LED bulbs, but the real wastage is caused by the timing of using the lights, not by bulb type. During the festive period, outdoor and indoor decorations are usually left on for long periods during the day, overnight and even when people have left their homes to visit family.
As with using timers to schedule heating your home, the same principle stands for lighting/Christmas decorations. You’ll save more energy by remembering to turn them off when they aren’t needed. Make the most of plug-in timers too, so you can adjust when your lights come on and off throughout the day.
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Standby mode overload from new Christmas tech
Christmas gifts tend to involve using new gadgets like games consoles, smart speakers, tablets, streaming devices and the rest! But many tech items default to using high-power standby modes, even when they appear “off”, meaning your home could be paying the price of electronic devices being left in essentially ‘vampire mode’. In fact, nearly £488 (30%) is wasted on phantom loads!
When they’re not in use, remember to switch devices off at the mains, and remove the plug. Or, a simple option is using smart plugs to schedule switching the power off – just remember to save your game!
Here’s to enjoying a warm, cosy and energy-efficient Christmas
Christmas doesn’t have to be about wasting energy. With a few energy-conscious habits and smarter control of heating and hot water, your household can stay warm, festive and comfortable without increasing your utility bills.
If you’re considering making your home more energy-efficient for winter, take a look at Fischer’s full range of electric heating products and request a free catalogue to see how you can switch your traditional heating system to a carbon-free solution.
Tom is passionate about showing people how modern electric heating, like Fischer Future Heat systems, can bring comfort, control, and long-term savings to their homes — without the jargon.
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