There’s lots of coverage in the news about rising energy bills and times are tough especially for businesses all over the UK. Price hikes hit small businesses very hard and it can be difficult to control costs in the workplace. Employees don’t tend to be as careful about energy as they are when they are perhaps at home.

Here are some simple easy to follow tips for small businesses to reduce bills and be more energy efficient.

Business Energy Efficiency Tips

Offices are often guilty of leaving lighting on after everyone has gone home. You can see it late at night if you drive through any major city. Although, from a distance it can look mesmerizing it wastes lots of electricity.

To ensure staff turn lights off before they leave put up notices and remind them regularly that it is not appreciated if electricity is wasted. Alternatively, you could just install sensor lighting so they automatically turn off when the office is empty. You often find this in toilets and hallways of large office blocks, but they can be installed just about anywhere.

Heating large spaces costs a heap, especially if you don’t have double glazing. A well-known fact is that if you turn down the heat by just 1% you can save up to 8% on your annual bill. For commercial premises this could account for a substantial amount of money.

When you have a workforce to take care of, heating and lighting are essential and costly. You can install sensors and timers for these, but you can’t install sensors to fully shut down computers. Many office workers are guilty of leaving monitors and computers on overnight. If this is done constantly it can really waste a significant amount of electricity. It’s important to regularly remind staff that this behaviour is not appreciated by the company and wastes money. Also ask staff to set their computers to automatically shut down if left idle for more than 15-20 minutes.

Businesses naturally need to look after their bottom lines, so make sure you keep an eye on your fixed-term energy deals. Once they end they general become much more expensive. And if you are billed on a quarterly basis the costs could seriously mount up. So don’t’ get a nasty surprise be ready to compare the market once you know your tariff is up for renewal.

Being overcharged for your electricity and then having to wait for your next reading until you get a rebate can be crippling for some heavy user small businesses. Smart meters are a great to avoid estimated bills. They automatically send readings to your energy supplier which results in far more accurate measurements.

If you are a business owner and you want to install new energy saving equipment to cut costs and carbon emissions there is help at hand. The Energy saving Trust offer loans from £3,000 to £500,000. Contact the energy saving trust for more information.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

For many years companies have been trying to invent and create windows that double as solar panels.

What this means is that a window will become able to generate electricity from the suns light that it captures during the day. The window will look the same such as normal windows, however it will be able to harness the power of the suns energy.

Currently, solar panels are made up for solar cells that turn the suns light into energy and these solar panels are not appropriate for use as windows due to their dense and non-transparent nature. Therefore, to create the solar panel windows the whole concept and design of the solar panel has to be changed. This means that the new solar panel windows have to concentrate and retain the light and then this energy would then need to be collected on the edges of the window by solar cells.

It is felt that the solar technology deployed in the windows should not be noticeable and obvious which could affect the aesthetics of your home. The windows should also be able to withstand current weather or window washing conditions without the performance of the window being affected. The only requirement needed for home installation would be some wiring from the window to a voltage controller to ensure the smooth running of the system.

In the past such attempts at creating a solar panel window has resulted in low efficiency and this is a major factor that needs to be overcome if they are to become a viable renewable energy solution for countries like the UK which have low-light conditions. However, new research is looking into chemical formulations that can be used in the solar cells that allows for high visible-light transparency, making them more efficient.

The only other concern over the solar panels windows is the cost of installing these solar cells and windows on houses and buildings. The high costs could mean that it takes years to pay off the outlay made on such an investment.

However, in our pursuit of becoming greener and investing in renewable energy sources there is no denying that solar power is one of the best sources of renewable energy available. So, we should try and utilise it and put investment into inventions such as the solar panel window.

This technology concept has been around for many years with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) being at the forefront of its development. The windows are still in their early stages of development but if the initial teething problems can be overcome and they can be created in a cost-effective manner, they could provide a practicable and renewable energy source for heating our homes in the future.

Guest Article by Sarah Wain

The Energy Saving Trust is largely funded by the government and was set up to help people in the UK save energy and reduce carbon emissions.

They currently advise 3.5 million people every year and have various advice centres across the UK, which have become increasingly popular during the recession. The Energy Saving Trust was also responsible for setting up the £50 million gas boiler scrappage scheme in 2010, which was a huge success.

One of their most successful initiatives which has helped the UK public is the Energy Saving Trust Recommended Scheme (ESTR) this is offered in collaboration with many of the country’s leading retailers and manufacturers. The accreditation covers over 3,000 products which pass stringent design criteria so customers can be assured they are buying the most energy efficient products.

You can visit The Energy Saving Trust’s (EST) website to see a list of accredited products. Alternatively, you can look out for the EST sticker at any major retailer.

The EST also works with most of the local authorities in the UK and thousands of community groups. In 2009-10 The Energy Saving Trust contributed towards massive CO2 savings, some of which are highlighted below.

• Consumer – 404 tons of CO2
• Housing Associations – 155 tons of CO2
• Small Companies – 7 tons of CO2

Member organisations of the Energy Trust include British Gas (Centrica) and Baxi boilers. These organisations work with EST to improve energy efficiency and promote advice.

The Energy Saving Trust’s website has lots of information on how to save money and the various schemes it runs and supports. I even found some useful tools such as, TrACE (tracking action on carbon emissions). This is mainly used by Local Authorities that want to track and monitor carbon emission reduction in their area.

Visit the  Energy Saving Trust’s website for more information about how it can help you save money and reduce your carbon emissions.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

Are you worried about your energy bills? With the news of further energy price hikes it could be a very cold winter indeed for those already struggling to make ends meet. However, even if you are on a low fixed income there are measures you can take to make things easier and keep your bills low.

Let’s put this into perspective; according to recent government figures 5.5 million homes in the UK are now in what is known as fuel poverty, this is almost one in five households. This essentially means they have to spend more than 10% of their total income on keeping their homes warm. But that is not even the whole picture because Consumer Focus, a government watchdog, expects the figure to rise by another 1.3 million over the next 12 months due to the energy price hikes.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has also reported that, between 2004 and 2009, energy prices increased by 75% and gas over 120%. Other reports from other organisations predict the recent announcements will mean the average annual dual fuel bill would have increased by 50% since 2007 to about £1,450.

Top 5 Energy Saving Tips

• Standard light bulbs are not very friendly when it comes to energy efficiency. But if you replace them with energy savers you can save around £40 per light bulb over its lifetime. If you have 12 light bulbs in your house the savings can significantly add up
• Turn electrical appliances off at the socket before you go to bed or if you are not using them. Leaving them on can add 10% to your electric bill
• Most of us have heard this tip before but it is a good one and worth mentioning again. By decreasing your thermostat by just 1.5C you could save as much as 10% on your heating bills
• Now is the time to have a look around and switch from a variable to fixed rate tariff. EDF is currently offering the cheapest rate. It has a one-year online fixed rate and estimated average bills will be about £1,009 a year
• New A-rated high energy efficient condensing gas boilers, such as the ones by British Gas, can reduce your bills by about £225 a year

Small changes turn into big savings over an entire lifetime.

Need some advice?
If you are more than a little worried about your bills there is help. There are literally thousands of people in the same boat. The Money advice Trust a debt charity has reported a 180% increase in reports of fuel debt concerns.

For independent advice you can call the National Debtline (0808 808 4000) they can actually prepare an income and expenditure plan and can help you to come up with a repayment plan so you can resolve any energy debt problems.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

British Gas has recently bought a stake in AlertMe, which makes smart meters. These meters are used in homes and commercial premises to measure gas and electric usage. They take multiple readings everyday and report back directly to the energy supplier resulting in far more accurate billing.

This new acquisition is a well-timed move because the government has announced it is aiming to have a smart meter installed in every home by 2020. The energy saving market is still relatively new in domestic terms but the potential is huge and the market continues to grow with new and exciting developments.

How Can Smart Meters Help Me?
Well, for one thing no more gas man visits! For most of us receiving a visit for a meter reading is an annoying inconvenience. Smart meters send automatic readings back so there is no need for manual readings. Most people have received a shock bill at one time or another and there has been no shortage of negative press. These bills can be really bad news for people on low fixed incomes such as OAPs and single parent families. With smart meters the bills are much more accurate as you are only billed for what you actually use.

If you are environmentally conscious, and take an active interest in reducing your carbon footprint, you can even purchase a smart meter that measures CO2 emissions.

How Do Smart Meters Work?
Most of the current smart meters use a SIM card that uses the GPRS GSM network to send and receive information, similar to a text message. The meters work by collecting and storing information about your energy consumption and therefore you can see in almost real-time how you are using energy. It is hoped this type of meter will make us more aware of our energy usage and allow us to see how savings can be made by using energy at different times of the day; and because the meter readings will also be more accurate it is felt that our energy bills will also be more accurate.

How much do Smart Meters Cost?
Although at this point it seems smart meters are going to be provided for free to homeowners. The utility companies and the government are expected to cough up about £7 billion to install them, this expenditure will no doubt be passed on to the rest of us somewhere down the line. However, the long-term environmental and financial benefits are worthwhile.

Will Smart Meters Save Money?

But this type of technology, even with all its benefits, is being questioned as to whether it will actually save energy. The consumer group Which? recently announced concern regarding the installation of these meters. They felt that the top six energy companies would use the installation of smart energy meters as a way to sell more household energy gadgets and tariffs to consumers and were calling upon these companies to “don’t sell, just install”. So, this is something to bear in mind when installation of your smart energy meter occurs. You need to be extra vigilant over the sales persons ‘upsell’ tactics.

There is also concern over the data that is collected and stored in these meters as energy companies will be able to analyse this data and possibly use it to their advantage. This could make it questionable as to how much control people will have over their energy usage and efficiency.

However, it is felt the smart energy meters will help individuals monitor their household energy usage in the future as the smart meters will ensure we have a better understanding of our utility and appliance usage. Also, the benefits that are trying to be introduced to the environment is only a positive step forward to a lower-carbon economy and ensuring that we become energy-efficient and savvy towards the long-term needs of the environment.

Other Energy Efficient Gadgets
The energy efficiency market is becoming a huge global market. LG has recently launched its new ThinQ range which includes washing machines controlled via Smartphones which can be set to run when electricity is cheapest. The range also displays current energy consumption readings which are relayed to PCs to help homeowners analyse energy efficiency.

GE is about to offer its own version of smart home appliances that will actually be able to reduce demand for power in response to changing energy prices which is particularly interesting in terms of energy efficiency.

Germany is currently testing Smart Grid technology on a model city. It is a two way technology which will relay detailed information about power. The benefits are huge as the grid can tell home appliances and commercial machinery to run at the most energy efficient times. This is ideal for washing machines and factory machinery that do not need to run at specific times of the day.

Home energy efficiency is moving into a new exciting era and who knows hopefully we will soon see gas boilers that can actually use and store grid power and home generated renewable energy for later use.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein