A super savvy mum has revealed simple trick that could help slash your energy bill.
Heidi Ondrak, 51, from Plymouth, shares videos on TikTok with ways that she’s saved money amid the cost of living crisis.
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She boasts over 30,000 followers and collectively her videos have over 220,000 likes.
In one video, Heidi reveals a key trick on saving money on energy bills – by simply finding out how much each appliance costs to run.
Once you have this information, the mum says you can make logical decisions on which ones to use more or less of.
And using the method she says she’s slashed her own bill by £50 a month.
Heidi said: “The first thing I did was make a room by room audit of all the appliances in my house.”
She did this by making her own spreadsheet which breaks down each appliance and its cost, including the wattage.
Heidi revealed a website called Sust-it which will show you the wattage of your appliance.
She added: “Again, on the Sust-it website, you [then] go to their electricity cost calculator, you make sure that you select the October price guarantee cap on the box.”
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From here, you put the wattage of the appliance in and it’ll give you a price indication of how much it’ll cost you to use and for how long.
The savvy mum said: “Once you’ve got that information, you transfer it onto the list.
“What this has enabled me to do is make enforced choices around the appliances I use.”
She explained how this has helped her choose less energy guzzling appliances like an air fryer and slow cooker.
Heidi said: “So I know that cooking the big chunky chips in the oven takes me 45 minutes to get them crispy – it’s 20 minutes in the air fryer – I’ll compare the wattage of those two appliances and the time and I’ve got an idea of how much they will cost.
“And then when I’m choosing my groceries and what meals I’m going to make during the week, I can base them around the slow cooker, the air fryer, and choose meals where I don’t have to use the oven as much.”
Speaking to NeedToKnow.Online, Heidi said: “I want to share what I’ve done as I have saved over £50 a month on my electric use and loads of people are struggling.”
She also said the method has helped her cut down on using the tumble dryer and look for chances to air dry instead.
She said: “It literally took me 30 minutes to do, it’s so simple, anyone can do it.”
“Ditch the tumble dryer, locate the sunny window in your house and air dry in front of that to harness natural heat from sunlight, and open the window for a breeze too, if it’s wet to dry outdoors.”
You can also monitor your energy usage at home using a smart meter or smart plug.
It’s not the only way to work out your running costs.
Investing in a smart plug – they cost around £12 – will show how much power the item is using on a small screen.
Smart meters can also help you track the cost of energy.
These are different to the energy use plugs as they show how much gas or electric you are using in real-time for the whole home.
You can also calculate the cost yourself – Martin Lewis has explained how.
More ways to cut energy costs
There are other ways you can cut energy bill costs too.
During the winter months, instead of putting the heating on right away, use an electric blanket or throw.
While good ones can be around £70, they require a lot less usage meaning you should end up saving money.
Close your curtains in the evening when temperatures naturally drop, and then open them in the morning when the sun comes out.
Don’t open the oven door when you’re using it – this will drop the overall temperature inside the cooker – forcing your appliance to work harder to build the heat up, costing you more.
Don’t overfill your kettle.
Out of all the household appliances, the kettle is ranked one of the costliest, after the shower, heating and a fan-assisted oven.
Make sure you’re only filling the kettle up with the amount of water required to prevent it from working harder.
Boil water and put it in a flask to use throughout the day for tea and coffee.
This will stop you from having to boil the kettle multiple times.
See our 30 ways to cut energy bills piece for more ways on saving cash.
