UK households are responsible for around 28% of the nation’s total carbon emissions, making it a prime target for anyone looking to do their bit to save the planet.
But while there are a host of green schemes out there that benefit both the environment and your pocket, there are an equal number that achieve little yet cost a lot.
Unfortunately there is a lot of misinformation out there that can make it difficult to tell one from the other until it’s too late. We take a look at the best and worst eco-friendly products and initiatives.
Find a green energy supplier in your area here
1: Insulating your home
Price comparison site SimplySwitch predicts that energy prices will increase by 15% early next year, adding up to £130 to your utility bill (depending on your usage).
One of the most effective ways to keep those energy bills down is by minimising the amount of energy required to keep your house cosy in the winter – and cool in the summer - and of course lower energy usage also means a smaller carbon footprint.
The Energy Saving Trust reckons as many as 17 million inadequately protected homes will be blighted by ice draughts this winter, yet less than one in 20 people have considered improving their home’s insulation.
Four simple ways to cut your energy bills
Loft insulation: Cheap and simple yet effective, this is a great way to cut your bills/carbon footprint. A gas heated semi-detached house with three bedrooms can cut annual heating costs by as much as £170 or 25%.
Most homes already have some insulation present though, so savings are more likely to be in the region of £30 – which isn’t too bad considering you can do it yourself for around £140. Loft insulation should pay for itself in seven years maximum.
Wall insulation: Whether or not this proves worthwhile depends on the type of walls you have. Cavity wall insulation costs £250 to £400, but will save you between £75 and £150 a year, making it good value.
If you have solid walls, insulation can cost anywhere up to £1,500 and should be avoided. To work out what type of walls you have, get out your tape measure - Cavity walls are at least 30cm (12") thick, whereas solid walls are normally only 22.5cm (9") thick.
Water cylinder insulation: This will probably only save you around £5 a year, but it is cheap and easy to do. Keep water hot for longer by insulating your hot water cylinder with a British Standard jacket, which is available at most DIY stores. Be sure to get one that is more than 7.5cm (3") thick.
Double Glazing: This can save you £80-£100 a year on heating bills, cutting your CO2 emissions by 680kg a year in the process.
Make sure you’re on the cheapest energy tariff
2: Generating your own energy
Of course insulation is only about reducing your carbon footprint and the size of your energy bills. Micro-generation on the other hand allows you to produce all your own energy from a renewable source – like the sun or wind – thus eliminating one of your main sources of pollution. Sounds great, doesn’t it?
But since the government has slashed grants for renewable electricity from £15,000 down to £2,500 (or 30% of the installation cost, whichever is lower), it’s far too expensive to be a realistic option. Both you and the environment will be far better served making sure that you have the cheapest energy provider around and - if you wish - donating money to a carbon offsetting programme every year.
Solar Panels: A 3kWp solar panel will provide around 2,400 kWh per annum and will set you back £16,000, or £13,500 once you subtract the grant. Considering a medium user requires 3,300 kWh annually, you can safely assume you’re going to use your entire quota of renewable energy every year.
With electricity prices at their current rate, that’s a saving of around £269 a year. So it will be 50 years before you break even on your investment. Sadly, solar panels have a lifespan of just 30 years, meaning you’ll still be down £5,158 by the time it packs in for good.
Solar water heater: This can provide all of your annual water usage, and will save you around £50 a year, cutting your C02 emissions by around 350-400kg in the process (depending on the fuel replaced).
But the typical installation cost for a domestic system is £3,000-£4,500. Factor in the grant and you are left facing a minimum bill of £2,600. So again, it would take 52 years for your investment to pay for itself - quite a long time considering they only come with a five to ten year warranty.
Make sure you’re on the cheapest energy tariff
3: Saving energy around the house
Simple changes to our electricity habits could make a substantial difference to the environment. And because they save you money in the process, they are essentials for any home’s green credentials.
Energy saving light bulbs: No doubt you’ve heard the wisdom behind them by now, but in case you haven’t done so yet, here it is again: Energy saving light bulbs last up to 12 times longer and use up to 75% less energy, saving you £78 over their lifetime.
Switch off appliances: The average household also wastes £37 each year by leaving appliances like phone chargers, TVs and DVD players on standby. According to the Energy savings trust if we avoided standby we could save enough electricity to power 2.7 million homes a year. A word of warning though: certain electronic equipment can get damaged by continually switching it on and off at the wall.
New White goods: If you’re shopping for a new dishwasher, boiler or even just light bulbs, always look for the Energy Saving Recommended logo. It means the product is the most energy efficient in its category.
Replace your boiler: If it is more than 15 years old, replacing your boiler with a condensing one can save you up to a third on your heating bills.
Turn down your thermostat: You won’t notice the difference but, turn the temperature down by one degree and you can save about 800Kg of C02 a year, and shave £30 off your bills too.
Green Feng shui: Keep furniture away from radiators as the foam in upholstered chairs and sofas absorb a lot of the heat.
Make sure you’re on the cheapest energy tariff
4: Eco-friendly financial products
There has been a proliferation of financial product providers aiming to capture business from an increasingly climate-conscious society. Some of these offer genuine value to both the consumer and environment, while others are just capitalising on the hysteria in order to make a quick buck.
Green mortgages: These generally work like a normal mortgage, but the lender promises to plant a specified number of trees for every mortgage taken out. A novel idea, but they are too expensive and should be avoided.
As an illustration, we compared two green mortgage products against normal ones, and found that the annual cost difference during the fixed rate period was £239. Once it rolled over onto the lender’s variable rate that jumped to £665 every year.
Compare low cost mortgages with our best buy tables
Other ways to go green
Carbon credits: PURE’s scheme is immediate and simple, and certainly worth a look. It buys up regulated carbon credits that have been allocated to industry under the EU and other official ‘carbon quota’ schemes.
By removing these permits, PURE reduces the amount of CO2 that industry is allowed to emit into the atmosphere. It will cost you £70 a year to ‘buy up’ 9 tonnes of carbon (the average amount emitted by a UK household), and since PURE is a registered charity, donations to it qualify for Gift Aid, meaning you can give PURE just £54.60 and it picks up the other £15.40 from the Treasury.
Eco travel cover: With flights cheaper than ever before, there are probably a fair number of people happy to pay a higher premium for travel insurance that to offset carbon emissions from their flight. And Climatesure does just that, using the extra cost to fund sustainable energy projects.
But it doesn’t come cheap - a multi-trip policy for two under 65s travelling in Europe costs £68.91, double the £34.50 it will cost you at Insure&Go. That said, it’s a minor increase when you factor in the overall cost of your holiday, so it’s really down to how strongly you feel about carbon emissions.
Save money on travel insurance with our comparison service
Green credit cards: There are an increasing number of credit cards looking to lure people in by promising to donate part of its profits to an eco cause. The problem is those and of course profit comes from the interest customers pay on their debt, so you have to go into the red in order to benefit the environment. Worse, they offer uncompetitive rates. Opt instead for a market-leading card, and donate part of the money you save to an eco-cause of your choice.
Make sure you’re on the cheapest energy tariff
