When going through your energy bills it’s very easy to just skim across until we see how much we have paid for that month. However, understanding the rest of your bill can be an important part of keeping costs low. One way you can understand your energy bills is by understanding how your energy is measured.
Your energy will be measured in Kilowatt-hours. If you understand this then it will be much easier to know how your energy bills are worked out and where you are using the most gas and electricity which could help you cut back on costs within your business.
What is a kwh?
A kilowatt-hour is a measure of how much energy you’re using. Although it would make sense from the name a kWh is not a measure of how many kilowatts you’re using per hour. It is equal to the amount of energy you would use by keeping a 1000-watt appliance running for one hour. For example, if you wear using a 1000whatt appliance it would take one hour to reach 1 kWh of energy but if you were using a 100whatt appliance It would take 10-hours to use 1kWh.
Overall, a kilowatt-hour is the amount of energy certain machines need to run for one hour.
What can you use a kwh for?
Understanding what a kWh is and how they are used can be helpful in keeping your energy costs down. If you know the watts for each appliance you can work out the kwh and then work out how much it is going to cost, you to run each appliance. This can be beneficial when reviewing budgets as you can consider the overall cost of an appliance and whether it’s going to cost too much for your business.
The kWh can be found on your energy bill you will most likely have more than one depending on your tariff. Knowing this can help bring energy costs down however it is still worth keeping on top of your energy contracts and switching when it comes to an end. This is because you still must pay a standing charge.
A standing charge is an amount you pay per day for your energy this is always added regardless of how much you use. This is why it's important to make sure you are on the right energy contract for your business or you could be paying more for your energy bills than you need.
What effects price per kWh
There are many factors that can affect your business’s energy prices. Prices usually fluctuate due to changes in wholesale prices. Prices can change for many reasons this is usually based on environmental, economic, international, and in some cases the time of day.
These factors often have an underlying effect on your business energy prices. This means depending on the energy market how much you are being charged for each kWh Is going to change.
The rates you pay for energy are always going to depend on what part of the country you are based in, some places have more expensive rates due to demand being higher. You are also going to pay different rates depending on the size of your business if you are a large company you are going to have to most likely pay for more energy than a small business would have to.
How can you make your bills cheaper?
Now you know what a kWh is and how it can affect your bills, you can see what appliances are using the most energy to help save money. There are other ways to make sure your employees are more energy efficient. Such as:
- Switching lights and appliances off at the end of the day.
- Try to insulate your offices if possible so heat is not being wasted
- Set the heating or air conditioning to only come on during working hours
- Have a smart meter to keep on top of how much energy is used each month
- Switch to automated lighting so it doesn’t stay on when no one is in the room
The best way to ensure your saving on energy is however to make sure you are switching your contracts at the right time. You need to make sure your compare energy rates to ensure you’re not overpaying for your energy deals.
