Householders in the county will be able to use energy monitors to keep track of the amount of electricity they use at home, enabling them to save money and help them reduce their carbon footprint.

Northamptonshire County Council will soon be making the devices available at libraries across the county. They can be borrowed for free for up to three weeks – exactly like borrowing a book.

The scheme has been introduced at Northampton Library. The initiative will then be rolled out across the county over the next few months.

Energy monitors can help cut electricity bills by measuring how much energy is required to power appliances in the home.

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A display unit shows how much electricity is being used at any one time and will show energy use as lights are switched off or a hair dryer starts up.

By turning off individual devices and leaving one running the monitor can show how much energy that device uses whether left on or on standby and more importantly how much it costs to power that device.

Cllr Ben Smith, County Council cabinet member for regeneration and growth, said: "This is a simple way of monitoring the amount of electricity we all use and keeping an eye on our energy consumption will help us all identify the small changes which can be made to cut the amount we use.

"Not only will this be of benefit to the environment by reducing our carbon footprints but also it makes sense economically too by helping us see how we can reduce our bills.

"Often it is introducing small changes that can bring the biggest benefits such as not leaving appliances on standby and by only boiling the required amount of water in the kettle."

(CD)