As the cost of living crisis continues to hit families across the nation, many will be searching for ways to stretch every penny. One of the biggest bill increases households are facing is the spiralling cost of energy, off the back of the wholesale price of gas.
The price had been rising throughout 2021, but uncertainty in the market fuelled by the war in Ukraine has seen prices jump sky-high, meaning customers on Ofgem price-capped tariffs will face unprecedented rises of 54% in April and an expected further increase of around 20% October this year, when the price cap is next set to be reviewed.
With this in mind, and families facing the prospect of bills reaching more than £2,300 per year on typical use by October, we talked to energy charity National Energy Action to answer frequently-asked questions and bust common myths around energy use, to help households minimise their usage, and in turn, their bills.
Is it cheaper to leave the heating on low all day, or just put it on when you need it?
"It takes more energy to warm a house from cold than to maintain it at temperature. It is possible to set a modern thermostat to run at 19-21˚C during the times you want to be warm and set back the temperature to 15-16˚C at other times such as when you are out or overnight.
"It is important to run a heat pump more continuously and the setback temperature may be more like 17-19˚C. It is possible to improve the energy efficiency of a boiler by reducing the flow temperature on the boiler from about 80˚C to about 60˚C. The room may not heat up as fast, but will use less gas to keep it warm."
Does turning radiators down or off in unused rooms save energy when you put the heating on?
"It will save money if you turn down the heating in unused rooms. This can be done by turning the thermostatic radiator valve (TRV) down. It is best not to turn it off entirely as this can reduce the risk of condensation and damp. The more hot radiators you have operating, the more energy you are using."
Is the quickest way to heat a cold home to turn it up as high as possible?
"No! Some people turn the thermostat up to maximum to heat the home up quickly. Setting the thermostat to a much higher value makes no difference to the speed the home heats up. It does mean however that it overshoots the optimum temperature of 21˚C and wasting energy and money.
"With heat pumps, this is particularly wasteful as heat pumps will have to work very hard and less efficiently to achieve the higher temperatures of the radiators."
Should you leave your boiler on all day?
"A gas boiler is not normally run all day. There will be times, particularly in the morning and evening when the programmer and room thermostat will be set to warm the house and the boiler will operate. At other times of day, the room thermostat is typically set to a lower temperature and the boiler rarely kicks in, or the programmer is set to turn the boiler off at these times.
"The boiler does not need to be turned off with a switch like an electrical appliance when you go out, it is best to use the programmer, thermostat and TRVs, or use the smart thermostat functionality on more modern systems. A heat pump tends to run all day, with a small reduction in room temperature at night or when residents are out."
Is it cheaper to heat water for cooking in the kettle, or on the hob?
"It costs as much to heat water in a kettle as it does on an electric hob – both use about the same amount of electricity to heat the water. If you heat the water on a gas hob it will be cheaper as the cost of a unit of gas is cheaper than a unit of electricity."
How much could I save by not leaving appliances on standby?
"The Energy Saving Trust has estimated it is possible to save £55 per year by switching off appliances left on standby. This can include appliances like TVs, but also microwave ovens and washing machines As appliances are becoming more energy efficient, the standby power losses are however becoming lower."
Does a phone or laptop that’s fully charged still use power while it’s plugged in? Could we save by unplugging them?
"A phone or laptop will continue to draw some power from the mains while it is plugged in, even when it becomes fully charged."
Is a microwave cheaper for heating food than a hob?
"A microwave can heat food more quickly than an oven and does not require time to heat up. A microwave is also likely to be quicker than heating food on a hob, but the difference is smaller. A gas hob is cheaper than an electric hob."
Is it cheaper to have a bath or a shower?
"It will be cheaper to have a shower if you have a quick one. Those who spend 20 minutes in the shower could use more water than a large bath."
Can filling the oven shelves save energy, or will it take more energy to heat the oven if it is full?
"If you are cooking something in the oven you can save money by cooking more things at once or making further use of the oven while to oven is still hot. With dual oven cookers, the smaller oven costs less to run than the larger oven."
Does washing clothes at 30˚C actually clean them?
"Much of the electricity consumption from washing clothes is from heating the water. Many clothes just need refresh which can even be done in a cold wash at 20˚C. Modern biological cleaners can remove all apart from the toughest stains at 30˚C. An advantage of washing at lower temperatures is that clothes are less likely to shrink or suffer from colour fading."
We all know tumble dryers aren’t an energy-efficient way of drying clothes - what is the best way to dry clothes indoors without causing a damp problem?
"Clothes could be hung on a drying rack in the vicinity of a radiator. However, as they dry, the air absorbs the moisture and there is the risk of damp unless there is good ventilation, perhaps by partially opening a window. However, this will cause heat loss from the room. Older tumble driers can use 4.5 to 5.5 units of electricity to dry a full load of washing. In comparison, the latest heat pump tumble driers can use less than 2 units of electricity, but they cost more to buy."
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