Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

Plaid Cymru AM urges households to take back control of bills

The average home in Wales can save up to £280 a year by being energy efficient and with the cost of energy bills on the rise there’s no better time than now for householders to take back control of their bills. This Energy Saving Week, Carmarthenshire Assembly Member, Rhodri Glyn Thomas, has teamed up with the Energy Saving Trust to promote this message to householders in Carmarthen East.

As people in Wales face ever increasing energy bills, Mr. Thomas was informed that everyday items such as TV’s and computers are responsible for a staggering 34 per cent of the UKs carbon production.

However, Rhodri was shown a number of nifty gadgets which can make day-to-day life easier but whilst helping to reduce bills. Switching everyday household items can make a real difference; the radiator booster (shown in the attached picture) can typically reduce room warm up times by 50%. The devise costs approximately £20 to buy and 30p a year to run. It can save households around £70-140 on heating bills per year.

Other household swaps like switching traditional bulbs for new, energy efficient ones can also make a huge difference. Newer style Energy Saving Trust Recommended bulbs last ten times longer than their predecessor and cost just £2 each, meaning a substantial saving of between £45 and £70 over its lifetime.

Duncan McCombie, Energy Saving Trust director of operations for Wales, said:

“It’s been a pleasure to team up with Rhodri Glyn Thomas AM for Energy Saving Week.

 “Just a few small changes to day-to-day life can have a profound impact on the amount of energy being consumed and the carbon being produced as a nation. Energy saving works best when it doesn’t mean huge lifestyle changes.

“We are all suffering from increasingly hectic lifestyles, and this Energy Saving Week we’re really pushing the concept that changes needn’t be difficult in order to take control of your bills.”

Rhodri Glyn Thomas AM, added:

“We are all responsible for contributing to reducing Wales’ carbon footprint. The cash savings that could go hand in hand with cutting energy use in households, means in these economic times, with successive UK Governments unable to take any meaningful action against large energy company profits, there’s never been a more prudent time to take up these tips.

“A few simple changes to the way we run our households will result in significant savings to our energy bills”  

ENDS

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