'I'm an ex-builder and this €4 window sheet hack could…

'I'm an ex-builder and this €4 window sheet hack could save you hundreds on your energy bills'

Irish households are facing mounting energy bills this month with just one of the main suppliers reducing their prices so far in 2023.

Pinergy knocked 9% of their unit price but other big hitters like Electric Ireland and Airtricity are yet to follow suite, meaning Irish families are facing crippling bills.

While the government gets ready to announce a cost of living supports package on Tuesday, it is now looking unlikely they will include another €200 energy credit, at least not until later in the year.

Households receive the last of the three €200 energy credits announced as part of Budget 2023 in the coming months when they receive their March bill.

Energy bills have almost doubled in a year with all the major companies hiking prices on numerous occasions throughout 2022. With that in mind, one expert has come up with a cheap way to save on your energy bills.

Window and door installation company Safestyle says approximately 18% of the total heat inside a home is lost via the windows, and so making sure to address this area can make a significant difference to heating and electricity costs.

With this in mind, a savvy ex-builder has shared his tip for making a bargain version of double glazing, using a deceptively simple €4 plastic sheet. Placing this nifty film against your windows can apparently help to cut your wintertime energy bills, block chilly drafts, and keep any nasty mould at bay.

In an interview with The Sun, former builder, Clive Holland, now a broadcaster for tradesperson station Fix Radio, explained that you can buy specific cling-film packs for windows of various sizes to use as secondary glazing. Care should be taken when applying it, however.

Outlining the steps required, Clive told the publication: "Begin by cleaning the surface, so you have no mould. Then cut the plastic sheet to the right size and smooth it along the frame.

“At first, it will look saggy and horrible. But don’t worry about this, just make sure you have a really good seal. Once you take the hairdryer to it, it will shrink back into position.

"It’s such a simple technique, but it’s really effective. It will wrap the window so tightly, it will prevent any warmth from leaving through cracks. It will also stop any moisture from building up.”

The sheet may well end up wrinkling up a bit after a few weeks, so Clive recommends just giving it another blast of the hairdryer to get everything back into position once more.

Although any material can be used for the second layer of glazing, as long as it's transparent and airtight, Clive warns against using regular cling film, which he says is too thin and won't hold out when blasted with a hairdryer.