With just a little DIY available to everyone, you can save electricity this winter.
As temperatures begin to drop and energy becomes more and more expensive, any tip that could help lower our heating and electricity bill, but also combat the extreme cold, is welcome. When we talk about saving on heating or electricity, what first comes to mind is shortening showers, covering pots when cooking, lowering the heating by one degree in winter, curling up in a blanket for watching TV, etc. Not always with the water heater, a system which equips many apartments and houses. And yet, the water heater is the second largest energy source after heating in a home! It is therefore more than wise to take care of it.
How can you reduce this expense item on your energy bill? By simply insulating your water heater. Many plumbers and heating engineers list the easy-to-see advantages. The first is that this will allow you to keep the water hot longer in the tank, and therefore ultimately consume less. How to easily insulate the good old hot water tank while leaving it easily accessible in the event of a problem? You don’t need to be an experienced DIYer to do it, it’s accessible to everyone! Simply make a cover for your device so that it retains heat.
For this operation, you will need:
- 2 survival blankets;
- Bubble wrap;
- Double-sided tape;
- Wire.
Start by hanging a survival blanket, silver side against the hot water tank with the tape. Cover this survival blanket with bubble wrap (make two layers of bubble wrap for greater effectiveness), then add the second survival blanket, always with the silver side facing the balloon. Tie everything tightly with wire. How will this system keep the heat in? The silver side of the survival blanket will reflect the heat, which will help keep warm inside the hot water tank.
Even simpler, and not much more expensive, you can also install an insulating film for hot water and cumulus tanks around your tank in the same way, which you can easily find in a DIY store. It costs around 50 euros, but it will be reimbursed very quickly because it can save you up to 5 kWh per day, or a little more than one euro per day based on the regulated electricity price including tax in October 2023 as a BASE option (price of 1 kWh EDF: 0.2276 € / kWh), or up to around 30 euros per month in the middle of winter, or between 100 and 150 euros. This is a quick and easy saving to make.