It’s that time of year when we all begin making resolutions ahead of the New Year. Usually these involve keeping fit, despite previous figures suggesting we waste £37 million a year on gym memberships and exercise classes we never attend.

Ahead of 2015, instead of making resolutions which are likely to be broken by February, why not make some you’ll not only be able to keep, but will also benefit your home?

To give you a helping hand, we’ve suggested a few below.

Safety First:

You cannot put a price on the safety of your loved ones; yet a survey from 2012 found 1.5 million homes in England were without a smoke alarm. The survey also found 52 percent of people checked their smoke alarms less than once a month, with a further 7 percent admitting theirs didn’t work.

Installing a smoke alarm is an inexpensive yet effective way to increase the safety of your home. If you don’t have smoke alarms in your home, there’s no better time to install a couple.

NB: When installing smoke alarms, make sure they’re placed 30 centimetres away from any wall or ceiling lights.

Along with installing smoke alarms, increase safety within your home by fitting carbon monoxide detectors which will provide advanced warning should high levels of the gas be detected. We would also recommend installing a few security lights around the outside of your home, as these act as a deterrent to unwanted visitors.

Energy Efficient:

With many of us looking to carry out home improvements in the New Year, there are various steps which can be taken to make our homes more energy efficient, which in turn will save money. Such steps include:

Switching to energy efficient light-bulbs:

According to the Energy Saving Trust, lighting accounts for 7 percent of a typical household’s energy bill. But you can reduce the amount of energy your light-bulbs consume by switching to energy saving light-bulbs. It’s estimated that this will save the average household as much as £40 per year.

You can find the perfect light-bulb for your home by viewing our energy saving light-bulb comparison chart.

Limit fridge / freezer openings:

The more you open your fridge / freezer, the more warm air gets in, and the harder the appliance has to work to keep cool. Try and limit the number of visits you make to your fridge / freezer by taking out everything you need in one go.

Switch off standby:

It’s estimated leaving appliances on standby results in £80 being wasted a year, with the worst offenders for wasting your electricity and costing you money being phone chargers and televisions. But by switching your appliances off at the wall, instead of leaving them on standby, you can help to reduce your electricity bills.

Check Appliances:

Our homes are made up of various appliances, from those we’ve purchased on a whim through to those we use on a daily basis to make chores easier. To get the most out of all these appliances, it’s important to make sure they’re working to their full potential.

As we move into the New Year, now is the time to give your appliances a once over, checking for any damage. Should you spot damage, visit our advice centre and learn how to fix it yourself. Not only will this bring your appliance back to its former glory, but it’ll also help to save you money, in both the short and long term.

Tags: New Year's Resolutions; Smoke Alarms; Carbon Monoxide Detectors