A woman says she has not turned her central heating on since February and has drastically cut her monthly energy bills.
Kerry Collinson, 51, slashed two-thirds off her gas bill and also halved her electricity bill. She says she now pays £10 a month after the £60 Government rebate.
Kerry, from Crewkerne, Somerset, only spends £1.20 a week cooking after swapping her induction hob for a camping stove, which you can buy at retailers such as Argos for as little as £30. Despite the cut backs, Kerry says her quality of life is just as good but she's "saving a fortune".
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"I don't want to cut back on the nice things I've worked hard for my whole life so greedy energy firms can put it in their pockets," Kerry said. "I'm very happy, I've still got what I need and I haven't had to give up the things I love to do like going out for dinner or Netflix.
"I've more than halved my energy bill, even from before the price rise. We never put the central heating on, we got a log burner instead, and we use electric blankets when we're cold. We never turn on the oven, and we stopped using the induction hob because I could see the smart meter literally spin every time I used it.
"So now I have two camping stoves and use an air fryer or a microwave to cook - it costs me £1.20 for the whole week whereas before it would cost 70p per meal." Solar lights are also something Kerry has used to help her cut costs.
The commercial cleaner never turns her lights on in the evening, and instead relies on solar lights that charge through the day, her log burner, and some chargeable tea lights from Amazon. She has also stopped using the tumble drier, which she says is an "inconvenience" but not essential.
She even has a window vacuum cleaner that removes moisture to ensure the house doesn't get damp. Her most important tip was to be aware of turning things off when they're not needed, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Instead of charging her phone and electrics from the mains, she has a transportable solar panel that can charge essentials during the day. She said: "We started buying solar stuff in the summer because, with the war, we had a feeling that we should be prepared.
"So we bought lights, lanterns and a fold up solar panel that charges our devices for free. We don't use the oven anymore and generally day to day we make sure all our lights are off and make sure everything's unplugged when we don't need it."
At it's highest, Kerry's bill for her three-bedroom bungalow was £230, whereas she says it's now only £95. She's decided she'll turn on the oven for Christmas Day, using it to cook her Turkey, potatoes, plus other cuts of meat for the days to come. Everything else will be cooked on the campfire stoves and in her air fryer.
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