UK households can slash energy bills by over £100 with simple upgrade

As keep rising, with UK seeing an increase of over £100 since April, many are struggling to keep up with the costs. However, there are a few simple, low-cost upgrades you can make that will save hundreds on your energy bills. One of the simple upgrades recommended by experts at is changing your shower head to a model.

Yvonne Keal, senior product manager at Hillarys, said: "Many people are surprised to learn just how much heat enters or escapes the home through windows, especially if they're left bare or fitted with the wrong coverings. In fact, fewer than half of Brits (42%) believe their home is energy efficient, and a striking 74% admit they struggle to tell how much energy they're wasting.

"Whether you rent or own, there are always affordable ways to take control of your space, reduce your bills, and stay comfortable every season.

"Something as simple as switching up your window dressings doesn't just make your home more efficient - it makes it a better place to live all year round."

According to the experts, standard shower heads typically use 12-15 litres of water per minute, which adds up to around 30,000 litres a year for a family of four, which comes to about the same size as a small swimming pool.

By switching to a high-efficiency, low-flow shower head, households can save between £60 and £100 annually on water, plus an extra £50-£80 on heating costs.

To see if you need an upgrade, remove your current shower head, run the water into a measuring jug for one minute and if more than 9 litres is collected, this shows that a water-saving model could cut your bills.

Other tips include using blackout lining on curtains or Roman blinds to regulate indoor temperature and trap the air coming from windows and sealing gaps around letterboxes and pet flaps.

Installing a motion sensor or timed outdoor lighting using motion-sensor LEDs or solar-powered lights will also avoid wasting energy and lights being left on all night.

Finally, light-coloured or reflective coatings can also reduce indoor temperatures by up to 15C, lowering your reliance on cooling systems.