The Government wants you to choke on bills. The energy you release as you fight for breath can be harnessed to feed the rich. Read about how to make that slightly less likely.
It’s been another difficult year for UK households with the cost of living increasing across the board.
Notably, the annual year-on-year increase of the Consumer Price Index topped 10% this July.
It seems as though no aspect of living costs has been left untouched by inflation and electricity bills are no different.
Put simply, electricity bills (like gas bills) have primarily increased due to the sharp increase in demand that accompanied the pandemic winding down, as well as the supply side decrease in gas due to the recent conflict in Eastern Europe.
These factors have led to an increase in the price of natural gas, which is still responsible for a large proportion of the country's electricity production.
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How Much Will Electricity Bills Increase?
Before discussing how you can save on your electric bills, let’s briefly look at where we are.
Here is how the price of a kWh of electricity has changed in recent years and where it is likely to reach:
2p for October 2020 to March 2021
8p for October 2021 to March 2022
9p from October 2022
The above prices exclude the standing charge which is set to reach 46p per day from the 1st of October.
And, unfortunately, energy prices are likely to continue increasing until April 2023 (although it's been reported that they may peak around January/February).
It’s hard to say when prices will likely fall to more affordable levels, similar to those seen in 2019/2020.
But, in the meantime, there are thankfully various steps you can take to save on your electric bill.
Learn how you can save money by trading in your old boiler for a new, efficient model in our YouTube video below:
How to Keep Your Electric Bills Down
There are many approaches you can take to lower your electric bill, ranging from how you use utilities on a daily basis, to reducing heat loss in your home as much as possible.
With that said, here are some practical steps you can take to keep your electric bill as low as possible:
Quick summary of the energy-saving tips with annual estimated savings:
Insulate your hot water cylinder:
Could save you around £35 a yearSwitch off stand-by:
Could save you an estimated £55 a yearAvoiding using your tumble dryer:
Could save you up to £60 a yearShort showers (avoid a bath):
Could save you up to £70 a year
Use Optimal Temperature Settings for Wet Appliances
Starting with these key energy-consuming appliances, we recommend running your washing machine at 30° and loading it as much as possible.
These are examples of ways to improve your energy efficiency, which is a key way to reduce your electric bills by an estimated
Like with your washing machine, it’s best to ensure your dishwasher is full or close to full before running it
Although just be careful not to leave it too long either, in case of bacterial growth. It’s a matter of balance really.
Moreover, running your dishwasher at a lower temperature can also reduce your electricity bills.
Avoid the Tumble Dryer
If you can, avoid or limit using the tumble dryer as much as possible.
They are one of the most expensive appliances to run - on average around £55 a year.
Instead, consider using an iron maiden, otherwise called a drying rack in the winter and an outdoor maiden during the summer months.
You can check out the running costs of appliances here.
Optimise Your Fridge and Freezer Temperatures
Ideally, your fridge should have a temperature between 3°C and 5°C, while your freezer should probably have a temperature of -18°C.
However, you should double-check with your manufacturer guide to find out what the optimal temperature is.
Using the best temperatures for your fridge and freezer can improve energy efficiency.
Opt for a Shower Instead of A Bath
Please note that this step only applies to people that are using electric water heating, however, if you use gas for water heating, you will still find it cheaper to use the shower instead of a bath.
Another way of lowering your electricity bills is to shower instead of using a bath.
Naturally, baths use more energy to heat up water than simply taking a shower.
If you already shower, you could shorten the length of your time in the shower.
Spending less time in the shower can help, in fact, spending just 4 minutes in there could save a typical home £65 a year on their energy bills.
If your bathroom comes with a power shower, you could dial down the pressure as another way of lowering your energy consumption.
Energy Help Guides:
Use Appliances More Efficiently
Here are some basic tips that cover appliance use in most UK households:
Turn off wall plug sockets when the relevant appliance is not being used
Instead of using a tumble dryer, try drying your clothes on a clothesline or clotheshorse if feasible. Alternatively, you could take a hybrid approach (i.e., use the tumble dryer some days and clothesline/clotheshorse at other times)
Defrost your fridge and freezer approximately once every six months. Of course, you’ll need to take appropriate steps when doing so, such as doing so when you are low on freezer food or/and are prepared to use what is left. If in doubt as to what this entails, see the manufacturer’s guidebook
Make sure you shut down your PC/laptop each night and ensure it’s using the power-saving mode for when its battery runs low
If you currently have a small budget to spare, you could:
Replace your existing light bulbs with energy-efficient light bulbs such as LED bulbs. Trading traditional light bulbs for LEDs could save you £20 a year.
Buy an air fryer and use it to cook foods that are suitable for air fryer cooking
For related information, check out our blog discussing how much energy/electricity different household appliances use.
Electric Water Heating Tips
Most homeowners use a gas boiler to heat their homes and for the supply of hot water.
However, if you use an electricity-based heater, like an immersion heater, there are steps you can take to reduce your electricity bills by using your immersion heater in the right ways or even making adjustments.
In most cases, you only want to run your immersion heater for an hour or two a day depending on your needs.
If you use an electric shower, less than two hours of usage should suffice to cover your hot water needs for the day.
Next, you should consider whether you are paying more than you should be.
If you are on an economy 7 or economy 10 tariff, the price of electricity is typically much cheaper during off-peak hours, so it’s helpful to try and limit your use to this window.
This is particularly helpful if your home uses an immersion heater to heat water. You can easily set your thermostat timer to reap the rewards of certain energy tariffs.
For example, customers on the Economy 7 tariff can set their timer to only switch the heater on during off-peak hours
You can also insulate your immersion heater; in which case your water will stay hot for several hours after it has been turned off.
An insulating jacket that is no less than 80mm in thickness. Also, the hot water pipes should come with foam insulation.
You can easily find out the tariff you are on by asking your energy provider.
If your immersion heater doesn’t meet these expectations, you could hire a professional to add these for you, with a total supply cost of around £30 to £40.
Exclude Draughts & Insulate Your Home
Another approach worth considering is preserving heat and preventing heat loss.
For example, a quarter of heat is lost via the roof in an uninsulated home.
So installing a layer of insulating material in your attic can make a significant impact, helping to keep the heat in your home for longer, potentially reducing your central heating use and therefore energy bills.
Looking at curtains, you should pull them over at night in order to keep the heat in.
Of course, you should do the exact opposite during the day and let the sun heat your home.
Only take this approach when it’s cold and you should still open your windows when suitable for ventilation and to prevent mould growth.
You should be aware, though, that you shouldn’t hang curtains over radiators.
This is because it can result in heat being funnelled out via the window.
DIY draught-proofing is also a relatively easy solution and if you take draught excluding measures around windows, doors and skirting boards, you could save as much as £45 a year.
Other ways of keeping the heat in include:
Keeping doors closed
Keeping furniture away from vents and radiators if safe and possible
Read all about the steps you can take in our draught-proofing guide.
Switch Energy Suppliers
Due to the current energy crisis, there isn't as much opportunity to change your current energy tariff to a more competitive deal, but it may still be worth checking.
However, many energy suppliers have closed down and many others continue to refuse to take on new customers at present.
In usual circumstances comparing energy, quotes can be one of the quickest ways to save money on both your gas and electricity bills.
But you also need to be cautious here since energy prices are changing so fast.
Please also note that if your energy supplier were to go bust, you don’t want to switch suppliers or tariffs prior to your account transferring to your new provider.
Recommended reading:
Government Support 🤞🤞
Aside from taking steps such as the ones we’ve discussed today, the government will be giving £400 to every household as an energy bills discount.
This discount will be paid via each household’s energy supplier from October of this year until April 2023.
To clarify all households are eligible for this and there is no need to apply. The discount will apply automatically.
Further supporters exist for those most in need, such as:
£650 one-off cost of living payment (about 8 million households will be eligible)
£300 one-off pensioner cost of living payment (around 8 million pensioner households will be eligible)
£150 one-off disability cost of living payment (approximately 6 million people will be eligible)
The government also launched online support to provide advice for homeowners to reduce their energy bills. Additional details on the £400 energy discount and related support can be found on Gov.uk.
More measures may also be announced in the coming months. But for now, the future is very much up in the air.
However, with the right steps, you can ease the strain caused by your electricity bills.
Eventually, the situation will improve (and hopefully around summer to autumn of next year we will begin to see significant relief) and there is light at the end of the tunnel.
For now, it’s a matter of doing what we can to get by.
