A guide released by the EU-funded FIESTA project provides European families with helpful advice on lowering their energy bill and their carbon footprint. Aimed at the general public, the document looks at general areas of household energy consumption, from heating and cooling to cooking, outlining simple ways to save money.

The guide starts from the basics, showing how energy bills are calculated and the various sources from which energy is drawn. Installation costs for items such as solar panels and biomass heating systems are weighed against long-term savings, allowing readers to easily contrast the various options.

Short explanations are provided on steps to reduce household energy consumption, such as using blinds and shutters to save energy, maintaining radiators properly, and installing high performance windows.

Each piece of advice is accompanied by a graphic displaying the amount of money that can be saved by following it.

Lighting is explored in-depth, with the energy consumption - and cost - of various lightbulbs looked at: LED bulbs emerge as the most eco-friendly choice. Recommended lighting in each room of the house is also included.

The costs involved in running household appliances is explored, with the authors noting that if every home appliance is A-class, power consumption is reduced by 55 percent on average.

Funded by the Intelligent Energy Europe programme and coordinated by AREA Science Park, the FIESTA project encourages energy efficiency by providing information to citizens.

To download the guide, click here.