Whether you’re bracing yourself this winter with money saving tips for keeping warm or have gaping holes to plug when it comes to energy efficiency, now’s the time to focus on the big picture. Householders need a combination of tactics to lower energy costs long term, ranging from insulating their bricks and mortar to investigating in better value alternative energy sources. A commitment to adopting simple energy saving habits around the home can also go a long way towards saving you significant amounts of money each year. Here are five sure-fire ways to lower energy costs, thanks to Britain’s Energy Saving Trust, or EST .

 1) Use a programmable thermostat.

Programmable thermostats automatically adjust your heating, turning it down when you’re at work or in bed, turning it up right before you get home. The Google-owned Nest , pictured right, is particularly clever when it comes to helping people shrink their power bills for good.

2) Stop heat escaping.

Is inadequate insulation undermining your energy saving efforts? Homes built with solid brick walls or aluminum siding, or just older construction, are usually less snug than those built with more modern, insulating construction, says EST. Applying a high performance, thermally insulated cladding could help you feel warmer and reduce your heating bill significantly. Similarly, loft insulation stops warmth escaping through your roof, where around 20 per cent of heat can be lost through drafty attics and crawl spaces. It takes around two hours for experts to wrap joists, boards and fill loft spaces with thick mineral wool materials, offering savings on your annual energy bills. In addition to addition to adding insulation, weatherize by sealing the leaks around doors and windows, and cover windows with curtains or shades that will seal in the heat during cold winter months.

3) Switch companies.

Should you switch to a utility company that better meets your household energy needs? Compare utility providers in your area to see what kind of power they offer and how much it costs. In the U.S., consumers already purchase gas and electricity from different providers. this is now becoming an option in the UK as well. Take advantage of competition in the marketplace to find a provider that delivers good service and the cleanest energy possible at the best price. Scott Byrom, energy expert at Make It Cheaper, told the Guardian: “Most people like the convenience of having both gas and electricity on the one bill, but there’s a growing number who take a contrary view. Not only are they saving even more money by going for single-fuel deals but they’re managing their consumption better by having a clearer picture of exactly how much they’re spending on each.”

 4) Choose alternative energy.

Have you considered switching to an alternative energy source like solar panels or cleaner fuel, like a biomass heating system. You can amortize the cost of installing a new system over time, and ultimately save hundreds per year.  Biomass boilers use wood pellets, wood chip, logs and other organic fuels and come in all sizes. Water and central heating systems can be powered efficiently by biomass.

 5) Don’t forget lights, electronics, and appliances.

Replacing old light bulbs? Try highly efficient LEDs. Wash clothes in cold water, and spin dry to reduce the heating required in the dryer. Turn off electronics when you’re not using them; even leaving them on standby or in sleep mode uses energy unnecessarily.  Gadgets such as television sets, microwave ovens, speaker systems and the personal computer can be unplugged overnight. When buying new appliances and electronics, choose the most energy-efficient models available to meet your needs and remember, even if you pay a little more upfront, you’ll save all that and more in reduced energy bills.

All of the small energy saving changes you make around your home can add up to significant annual savings on your utility bills. Plus, using less energy reduces climate change and the air pollution that are associated with burning fossil fuels. It’s a win/win/win – for you, your pocketbook, and the planet.

NOTE: Sponsors like Britain’s Energy Saving Trust enable us to provide expert content at no cost to you. Our editorial opinion remains our own. Thanks!

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The nuclear meltdown in Japan and the recent oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico may seem unrelated, but they’re not. Both catastrophes occurred because we’ve made three fundamental mistakes in the way we generate energy.

1) We have relied on centralized power plants that use dangerous fuels to meet energy demand. Most countries that can afford it build large power plants so they can centralize energy production. Big centralized power plants are easier to regulate than a bunch of smaller, dispersed facilities. And because they generate a lot of energy at once, big plants appear to streamline power production. But in addition to being outrageously expensive, centralized generating facilities require massive amounts of dangerous fuels to operate consistently. If that fuel is oil or coal, recovering it usually wrecks the physical environment (we saw that in spades during last year’s Gulf Oil disaster); burning it causes global warming and sickening air pollution. If the fuel is uranium, using it generates radioactive nuclear waste that must be stored for thousands of years.

Ironically, a significant percent of the energy these kinds of plants generate is lost because it’s distributed over old, inefficient powerlines that transport the energy far from the original generator, which means that the plants actually need to consume more fuel to meet demand. Centralized power stations are also highly susceptible to terrorism, human error, and natural disasters, like the Japanese tsunami that overwhelmed that country’s nuclear reactors. As long as we continue to rely on large centralized power generation stoked by fossil fuels or uranium, we should expect disasters like the current meltdown in Japan.

2) We depend on fuels whose devastating environmental and health impacts are overlooked because they generate so much money for the industries that control them.

Right now, oil costs almost $100 a barrel. Solar energy is free. And there’s the rub. Industries based on selling coal, oil, and uranium, the fuel that powers nuclear power plants, earn billions of dollars every year just selling the fuel, let alone the power it generates. They use the profits from those sales to lobby legislators and make huge campaign contributions that keep law makers beholden to the status quo rather than emboldened to support safer alternatives.

I’m not suggesting we figure out a way to charge for the sun’s rays. I’m suggesting we realize that, every time we use oil or coal or energy from a nuclear power plant, some portion of our dollars is being used to insure that we KEEP using oil and coal and nuclear energy, instead of cleaner, healthier options.

3) We have refused to embrace energy efficiency and renewable energy sources like solar and wind. Many people give “alternative energy” positive lip service. Most people think sun power sounds like a good idea. Just as many will acknowledge that they want to do more to save energy. Yet the majority who talk the talk don’t walk the walk. Municipal codes still allow homes and buildings to be built that leak energy like a sieve. Consumers are still buying far more gas-guzzling vehicles and appliances than their energy-efficient counterparts. As a nation, we subsidize the fossil fuel and nuclear industries by giving them substantial tax breaks, yet scrimp on providing essential research and development money to renewable alternatives. Each of us could probably reduce the amount of energy we consume by half while taking advantage of any programs our utilties offer to let us buy power that’s safely generated. Until we do, and governments and businesses follow suit, the situation won’t change.

There aren’t enough words to describe what’s happened in Japan. Horrible. Catastrophic. Terrible. Unimaginable.

But there are also words we shouldn’t use to describe what’s transpired: Unique. Isolated. Rare. Freak accident.

Let’s not kid ourselves. Disasters like the Japanese nuclear meltdown and the Gulf oil spill are going to become increasingly common unless we make a concerted global effort to change the way we all get and use energy.

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