Working from home has a lot of positives, and the fact that you can design your home office to be a perfect sanctuary of peace and quiet just for you is one of them. When you can make your office exactly how you want it, you can be much more comfortable, leading to greater efficiency and a better work-life balance. 

Yet there is one thing that a lot of people don’t consider when it comes to their home office; you need to make sure it’s as energy efficient as possible. You’ll be spending many hours a day there and using a lot of energy while you work. This is going to be costly, not to mention bad for the planet, whereas if you went out to work in an office, this would not be an issue. With that in mind, here are some useful tips to help you make your home office more energy efficient. 

Look For Leaks 

When we talk about leaks, we’re not talking about water – although if you do have any water leaks in your home office, you’ll need to do something about them right away. We’re actually talking about air leaks around your windows and, to a lesser extent, your doors. Even if you are heating your room, if there are leaks, you’ll lose a lot of that heat, meaning it costs more to keep you comfortable, and your boiler has to work harder (increasing the risk of it breaking down, which can be very expensive). 

Make sure you feel for leaks around your windows by placing your hand around the frame. If you can feel the air, you have a leak. There are a variety of options at this point. You can replace the windows with more energy-efficient ones, use special window tape to reduce the issue, or use plantation shutters instead of curtains, as these will also reduce leaks. The choice is yours. 

Use Energy Efficient Bulbs

If you’re at home all day, you might need the lights on, especially during the autumn and winter. You’ll need the lights on if it’s raining. You’ll need the lights on if you like to work in the early mornings or late at night. This will cost you money every time you flick the switch. 

To make things better, swap your standard bulbs for LED lights which are more energy efficient. Since they don’t cost a lot to buy and changing them is a simple thing to do, it’s well worth switching all the lights in your house to ensure every room is energy efficient. However, the best place to start is probably your office, as it’s the room you most likely use. 

Turn Everything Off 

How many times have you finished work for the day and left your laptop, printer, scanner, tablet, and chargers all plugged in and on? The answer is probably more times than you’ve turned everything off, and that will be the same answer that most people give. After all, you might want to return to work at any time, and you need things to be ready. 

Firstly, that’s not a good attitude to have when it comes to working from home – when you’re done, you need to be done. Otherwise, you’ll constantly be working and never resting. Secondly, you’re costing yourself and the planet more by leaving everything on. Even if things are technically switched off, if they are still plugged in, they are using energy. 

Make sure you unplug everything when you’re done for the day, and you’ll be amazed at the amount of money you can save.