Top Tips: Saving money and the environment
Wherever we live, we all want to look after our environment and the need to do so has never seemed so urgent. The worsening energy crisis and the increases in extreme weather only serve to underline how important it is that we play our part. But where to start?
At Countryside, we’re proud of our greener by design homes, but there are small changes we can all make in our daily lives to ensure we’re going green and keeping energy use – and spending – to a minimum.
- It’s the little things that matter. Adopting better habits is the key to saving money and the environment. According to the Energy Saving Trust, simply turning appliances off standby can save households around £55 a year. If fiddling around down the back of your TV unit seems like too much of a faff, consider buying a standby saver or smart plugs to turn appliances off in one go. Developing smarter habits when out and about can also help: the main supermarkets alone sold 226 million single-use plastic carrier bags in England in 2019 to 2020, as shoppers forgot to take their own bags with them.
- A fresh approach to the laundry can benefit the environment and save you money. Washing clothes at 30 degrees instead of higher temperatures and choosing a dry day when you can hang clothes outside rather than using the tumble dryer could save you over £80 a year.
- Think about your water use. Swapping baths for showers, turning off the tap when cleaning your teeth, only putting the water you need in the kettle and running the dishwasher only once it’s full can all save you money.
- Channel your creativity. Get creative by getting stuck into some DIY projects by revamping old jars into plant pots and repurposing old items to facilitate children’s crafts projects and get them involved in the recycling journey. It’s best to get them into the habit young!
