As prices continue to rise, households should consider purchasing energy-saving devices to reduce the cost of the bill.
According to Smart Energy, over half (56%) of households have invested in new appliances to reduce their energy bills.
Heated air handling units could save households more money than tumble dryers
Overall, the average household spent £645 on appliances in the last year alone, with one in six (15%) purchasing an air fryer.
But some devices will be worth the investment while others won’t bring you big savings.
Smart Energy has teamed up with the Energy Savings Trust and consumer advocate Angelica Bell to uncover the devices that are and aren’t worth buying.
They were based on how long it would take for a customer to recoup device costs through energy use.
Gadgets like air fryers and heated drying racks are wise investments.
Using an air fryer instead of an oven could save you around £45 a year in energy and would only take you three and a half years to recoup the money you spent buying it.
The power of an air fryer is measured in watts, and this determines how much energy it uses – and the cost of using it.
But the more powerful the device, the faster it will cook your food.
A 1,000W air fryer costs just 17p for 30 minutes and 34p for an hour.
While a 1,500W air fryer will set you back 26p for half an hour and 51p for an hour.
And a heated tumble dryer can save you €40 a year compared to using a tumble dryer.
For heated tumble dryers, it costs 16p to run a typical heated tumble dryer for one hour based on the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG).
So if you wear it for eight hours it would cost £1.28.
The research also found that it would take less than five years for the two to pay for themselves in the amount of energy saved, no matter how much you spend on them.
That’s a lot less than ovens and tumble dryers.
Although spring is basically here, it’s still pretty chilly, but switching to an electric blanket could save you money.
Compared to an electric heater, you can save €7 per year with the electric blanket.
By comparison, the research found it would take Britons more than 35 years to recoup the cost of a games console compared to PC games.
Typically, switching to PC gaming can save you around £10 a year.
And for those who want to stay cool, you would recoup the cost of a desk fan much quicker than using a small air conditioner.
Using a fan for eight hours would cost you the same as using an air conditioner for 15 minutes.
A simple fan could cost you around £18 and you would pay for it within a year.
Don’t forget to turn down your thermostat too.
Households could save a whopping £145 a year by turning it down just one degree.
And if you can shower cheaper, cutting four minutes can save you £95 a year.
What other ways are there to save on energy costs?
Adjusting the flow rate on your boiler is definitely not the only way to reduce energy bills.
For example, using your washing machine’s Eco setting can save you a whopping £63 a year.
This is because it reduces water consumption when washing and thus adjusts energy consumption.
And switching the dishwasher to Eco mode could save another £28 a year for similar reasons.
You can save another €53 simply by using your tumble dryer’s spin setting.
It removes excess water from the laundry, allowing your clothes to dry faster.
Vampire gadgets can suck up the bucks too if you’re not careful, like fridge freezers.
Keeping your fridge freezer clean can also save you £45 a year – dust on condenser coils can reduce efficiency by up to 25%, says which?
And if you don’t thaw it, for example, that could add an extra £150 a year.
Read more about expensive vampire gadgets and how to save here.
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