AS the cost of living rises, you’ll want to know every energy-saving hack in the book, including the ones that are just myths.
Prime Minister Liz Truss confirmed last week in the new Energy Price Guarantee that energy bills would be frozen at £2,500 per household for two years.
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The announcement means households will save £1,000 a year on average.
From October 1, households will have bills protected.
But the new price cap only controls how much suppliers can charge – your bill could be higher, based on your energy usage.
Trading experts Magnet Trade shared some popular kitchen energy-saving hacks that aren’t actually true, to keep you from wasting time as you prepare for an expensive winter.
Mike Norton, spokesperson at Magnet, told WalesOnline: ‘’From the kettle or hob controversy, to the cost of running appliances, people are heavily debating energy efficiency in the light of the ongoing fuel crisis.
“Some simple tips like turning the lights off, are well known and effective. However, there are several hacks, specifically in the kitchen, that are more of a myth than anything else and have little significant impact on reducing energy bills.’’
It’s worth noting that everyone’s energy usage is different depending on how much they use their appliances, who their supplier is and how up to date their washing machine/dishwasher/kettle etc is.
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So some of these tips might be more useful to others.
But we’ve listed a few false hacks below from Magnet Trade to keep you from making the any similar mistakes, just in case.
Washing dishes by hand is cheaper than using a dishwasher
Although it’s a common theory that a dishwasher uses far more energy than the sink, washing up manually uses four times more water.
How much money you could save wildly depends on how often you use your dishwasher and what model you have. If you normally use it several times a day, for instance, the amount you save might not be as significant.
An important method to use is to only put the dishwasher on once it’s fully loaded to make full use of the cycle.
And never underestimate the handiness of eco-setting. According to Magnet Trade, the energy-efficient setting saves 20% because it heats water slower and runs it over a longer cycle.
Turning electrics on and off wastes energy
The energy used to switch on a device is minuscule compared to the amount needed to keep it powered continually.
In fact, turning off appliances can save up to £55 a year, so get in the habit of switching off kettles, toasters or any appliance that isn’t in constant use.
Big burners on the hob use less energy
Many people believe using big cooking rings is better because they heat up food quicker.
But if you don’t match up the size of the pan to the size of the cooking ring, you’ll waste energy from the heat escaping around it.
The oven and hob makes up 4% of your annual gas and energy bill, so make sure you’re not adding on more money than necessary.
Washing clothes at night costs less
Although this is a common belief, it’s not the time of day that dictates how much it will cost to wash your clothes – it depends on the tariff you’re on.
It’s only cheaper for those on Economy 7 or Economy 10 tariffs – those are the ones which charge less at night.
Overfilling the kettle doesn’t waste money
By overfilling the kettle, the kettle needs to work harder to boil the water.
You should use the scale at the side of your kettle to aptly measure how much water you should be filling it with, to make sure it’s only working as hard as it needs to.
You could even invest in a more energy efficient kettle or instant hot water tap to help reduce energy bills – they can use up to 50% less energy than a normal kettle.
What’s more, according to Utilita, leaving a kettle switched on at the wall adds around a fiver to your annual energy bill. So make sure you stay on top of that.
Top tips for other energy-sucking appliances
But with bills so high, it’s important to do everything you can to reduce your usage.
And your kitchen could be among the most energy draining locations in the home.
Here are a few more tips to save money in the kitchen.
Tumble dryers
Tests show tumble dryers are the most costly appliance to run in the kitchen.
They cost the average household a whopping £140 a year.
But if you have a heat pump model this price is slashed in half – as they are far more energy efficient.
In warmer weather, hang your clothes outside to dry if you can, and you could save money by using a heated clothes airer too.
Freezers
American-style fridge freezers can cost a small fortune – setting the average household back £120 every year.
But freestanding models, which are usually smaller, are significantly cheaper to run.
These will only typically cost £84.94 to run – and integrated models are even cheaper at £72.41 a year, said Which?
The energy usage for these appliances are so high because freezers need to be on 24/7.
To save money make sure to let food cool down before putting it into the freezer – as hot food makes it work harder.
Oven
The average built-in electric oven costs £64.18 per year to run.
In general, electric ovens are more energy efficient and do better in cost-saving tests.
Turn off the oven a few minutes before food is ready, leaving it to continue cooking in what’s left of the heat (check it’s piping hot before eating though!)
You can also get away with not pre-heating the oven in most cases too.
Where possible, consider using the microwave instead as these are much cheaper to run.
More ways to save on energy bills
Switching all plugs and sockets off – we spoke to an expert who saved £180 a year with this hack
Meal prepping could also cut your food bills in half to roughly a tenner a week
You could try cutting down on bills you no longer need to pay – read more about that here
Here’s how to use your radiators correctly so you’re not wasting cash.
And here’s a little-known boiler trick which cut one woman’s’ bill by nearly £100 a month.
