With the Coronavirus lockdown measures in place across the UK, many households are looking at ways in which they can keep a limit on household bills while spending larger amounts of time at home than they normally would. We’ve put together these five top tips to help.

Set the right temperature 

The weather during April has been relatively warm, with parts of the UK basking in an Easter week heatwave. But spending longer amounts of time indoors, especially if you’re not moving around as much as usual, can make you feel colder than you really are, which makes cranking up the heating by a few degrees seem all the more tempting. Resist the urge, and you could be on your way to lower household bills – having your heating set just one degree lower can save you a whopping £80 over the course of a year!

Get with the programme 

Many of us already have our heating set to a timed programme based around our daily routines, which is more efficient and cheaper than just leaving it on all of the time. But have you reviewed and reset your heating programme to fit in with your new lockdown timetable? If you’re not getting up as early as usual because there’s no commute to work, you could move the start time back by a couple of hours. Little changes like these will ensure you’re not wasting heat – or money – during lockdown.

Insulate yourself

If you’ve noticed draughts in your home during the past few weeks, now might be the time to order the kit you need to block them and start bringing down your bills. Draught-proofing windows and doors and blocking cracks in floors and skirting boards can slash £20 a year off energy bills.

Shorter showers 

Most people know that jumping in the shower instead of the bath is an easy way to cut down on water usage and household bills, but did you know that spending even just a little bit less time in the shower can have the same effect? A family of four who hop out of the shower one minute earlier than usual can save £75 on their yearly bills. And the savings shoot up even further if you remember to turn off the tap when brushing your teeth.

Get set for the future 

The long-term answer to bringing down your bills while also doing your bit for the environment is to explore renewable energy and smart home technology. Heating and powering your home with electricity generated by solar panels or other renewable sources is the greenest way to go – indeed, gas-powered heating systems are to be outlawed in all new homes within five years. And with innovations like social energy, you could end up saving even more.