Christmas energy saving tips for businesses

How to reduce your gas and electricity bills during the holidays

Christmas is an expensive time for everyone, but energy bills over the festive period can hit the workplace too. The Carbon Trust estimates that UK businesses lose around £9 million over the festive period by failing to turn lights and equipment off.

However, there are steps that businesses can take to reduce these bills during the holidays.

  • When everyone leaves your premises for the Christmas holidays, make sure all computers, photocopiers, printers and non-essential equipment is turned off at the plug socket and nothing is just left on standby – it could still be using up to 90 per cent of its standing consumption.
  • In particular, make sure monitors are switched off when not in use, as they can account for almost half of a computer’s energy use.
  • Turn off the lights on your desk, in the office and any display lights that don’t need to be on. If you need them on at a certain time for security reasons, use a timer. According to the Carbon Trust, lighting the average office overnight wastes enough energy to heat water for 1,000 cups of coffee!
  • Turn off any Christmas decorations that light up. If you’re not there to enjoy them, there is no need to pay for them. It is also a good idea to turn these off to prevent fires which would devastate your business.
  • Cut down on the number of Christmas lights you use altogether or consider LED lights which use less energy and last longer.
  • If you’re shutting down for Christmas and no staff will be in, turn heating down to the minimum if it needs to be on for frost protection.
  • Don’t waste water. Ensure there are no dripping taps before you leave for the holidays.

Whilst these best practice tips are to help you out at Christmas, there’s no reason why you can’t start using them and saving money all year round.

Source: nibusinessinfo.co.uk