Cost living crisis: Single mum’s unique way to heat her home as Aussies save money on energy bills

Everyone is feeling the pressure of the cost of living, with many Australians being forced to get innovative to lower their energy bills and ease the pressure.

About one million Australians are expected to see their energy bills rise by up to 24 percent next month, according to the Australian Energy Regulator.

Rents are rising to unimaginable heights and demand continues to outpace the shortage of affordable rental properties in the market.

It has forced countless renters to cut their budgets wherever possible, just to keep up with rising rental costs.

Homeowners have not been spared either, with interest rates spiraling out of mortgage payments and forcing many families to tighten their belts.

The methods used by households to cut costs largely range from cutting back on energy-hungry appliances such as heating to switching energy suppliers.

As the cost of living crisis deepens, Australians are getting smarter and more resourceful with their money-saving hacks.

Warm up the house

Single mom, Vanessa, said she’s devised unique ways to stay warm by collecting pieces of insulation from curbside pick-ups and construction sites and placing them in the roof herself.

She said she is doing this to try to have a more comfortable home against extreme temperatures and to save on energy costs.

“It’s about the comfort and the cost, it’s about the comfort of the family who has to rent,” Vanessa said.

“None of the other houses I’ve rented had insulation, landlords will say ‘you have a house, too bad’ and then it’s done.”

Vanessa said she has now installed her own insulation from collected remnants in her previous two rental properties because her family simply can’t handle the hot summers and cold winters.

“If it was a hot day, the house would easily be over 40 degrees and the roof would be over 50 degrees (before the insulation),” she said.

“I’ve tried to do everything passive I could, even if it’s a summer day and hosing down the roof in the hopes that the house will cool faster.”

Brisbane tenants living in insulated homes save an average of $545 a year in energy costs, according to new research from Renew.

Assignment Freelance Picture Refresh policy and advocacy manager Rob McLeod. Image: Delivered

Policy and advocacy manager Rob McLeod said he was not “surprised” that the amount of savings is so significant for people with isolated homes.

Requiring insulation as a minimum standard has been found to save Brisbane tenants about $450 a year in energy bills for cooling and heating only at current energy prices.

“That amount goes up (in July), if you factor in rising energy costs, the savings would be $545.”

Mr McLeod suggested that rental housing with energy-efficient options such as insulation and dark impermeability should be a priority for landlords and the government to reduce costs and improve living conditions.

“Landlords should provide healthy homes and better energy efficient homes as it is in their best interest to have happy tenants who are likely to stay,” he said.

Susanne Dance, the Brisbane retiree, has also been working hard to improve energy efficiency to reduce rising costs

Keeping out the winter cold

Susanne Dance, the Brisbane retiree, has also been working hard to improve energy efficiency to reduce rising costs.

Ms Dance said that despite living in a small one-bedroom flat, her “utility bill always seems to be very high.”

She said she has tried many things to reduce costs, yet her bills keep rising.

“One of the things I do is I have a really big window that faces the road, partly for privacy and partly to keep the heat out in the summer. I bought these inserts that line the window sill,” said Ms. Dance.

“It helps, because in the summer it became unbearable in my room and in the winter you can freeze.”

Ms Dance said her pension card is helping to keep costs down, but she needs to talk to her energy supplier soon to see how she can make further cuts.

Mr McLeod urged governments to consider incorporating energy efficiency standards into rental properties to protect tenants in the long run.

“Many tenants choose what they pay or live in a healthy home,” he said.

He said the long-term answer is to get more renewable energy online and puts the responsibility on government to step up the process.

“Sun and wind, that will happen in the medium term, but there may still be pain ahead over the course of the next few years,” he said.

Ms Dance said her pension card is helping to keep costs down, but she needs to talk to her energy supplier soon to see how she can make further cuts

Switch to solar energy

A mother of two from Sydney plans to make a major investment to save money later on.

Ashleigh Notley plans to install solar energy on the roof after discovering it could save her a whopping $2,190 a year on her electric bill.

It could save her family nearly $30,000 over the next decade, which would allow them to send their kids to private school or take more vacations.

The family has grown in the past year and so have most of the bills. The latter came in at an eye-popping $800 for the quarter.

Ashleigh Notley and family plan to install solar on the roof after discovering it could save her a whopping $2,190 a year on her electric bill. Photo solar analysis

“We moved to a bigger house during Covid because we had another child,” Ms Notley said.

“The bills have been pretty high since then,” she said. After the cost of daycare, groceries and all the other expenses that have skyrocketed in recent months, Ms. Notley said she was forced to save where she could.

“It’s kind of hard to stay on top of it and then have something left to entertain you,” she said. “The only holiday we’ve had was because we had a credit left over from Covid.”

Energy expert and CEO of Solar Analytics Stefan Jarnason said last month that his company has seen a surge in customers desperate to reduce their energy costs.

“Most of us have recently had a shocking electric bill that was much higher than we expected, but it’s getting worse,” he said.

The Notley family has estimated they could save $29,450 over the next 10 years if they installed solar panels.

The average person pays off their solar system within six years of installation, and the Notley’s are looking at a total cost of up to $13,000.