I noticed in my Google Analytics stats that I was getting traffic from people looking for advice on how to save energy over Christmas.

During the holidays energy use can often increase, especially if you are hosting the family!

Here are my top 10 tips on how to be green and save energy over Christmas:

• Don’t leave your Christmas lights on all day, have them on at night when they can be seen properly.
• Use LED christmas lights which use up to 90% less electricity that standard christmas decorations (they will also last significantly longer too!)
• When your Christmas lights are on, compensate by turning down or turning off the main lights in the room.
• Use recycled wrapping paper – try not to use too much and make sure that it all goes in the recycling bin on Boxing day!
• Turn down your heating. The extra people in the house combined with the cooking will heat up the house more than normal anyway.
• Shop locally and try to buy local produce where possible which will not have been transported as far as some supermarket products
• When cooking vegtables on the hob, cover your pans which will help reduce heat loss
• Reduce the time needed to cook your turkey by removing the legs. If you always end up throwing left over meat away, think about buying a smaller bird.
• Leftovers take less energy to reheat on top of the stove or microwave rather than in the oven
• Try to buy people gifts that are energy efficient – have a look at the energy rating on some of the presents you are considering buying. If you cant decide what to buy someone, go for the item that is the most environmentally friendly

And.. one more

• If you have a real Christmas tree, only buy one from sustainable suppliers and ensure that you either plant it in your garden or recycle it after the holiday period.