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Hacks to reduce energy costs

Yes, there are plenty of articles, but there is some disagreement over a few things - namely - is it cost effective/a good idea to dry your clothes indoors, on clothes horses etc. (And that depends on having the room to dry clothes indoors as well.) I have only ever visited England, and Scotland, but do remember the climate intimately. (How not to?) For indoor drying to work - in cold damp weather you would really need to be running a dehumidifer, and have heating in the room/indoors. and while you have wet clothes in your house, you are contributing to the dampness that needs to be dried up for comfort and health. I personally use this information to use indoor clothes horses as a 'finishing up' technique - ie only when jumpers and woollen stockings and so on (yes - left-overs from Sweden - and I love them) need to have the last bits of dampness dried up, and I have a fire roaring (ie - dry heat). I also have to have done housework recently, otherwise clothes horses on top of a messy house would make me too, ah - unhappy :).
 
I use the dampness of the drying clothes to humidify the air in my otherwise dry house in winter. They are on clothes horses around the Rayburn.
 
I thought I would share a handy percentage of energy used in a house pie chart and list. I poured over the Brit facebook list above for a while, and thought that was very interesting - yes indeed, and found equivalents for my country. (Aotearoa/New Zealand, just now departing from the cold wet season into the beginnings of the warm season where I live anyhow - pegged to be a dry one not a wet one in a couple of months - but still very wet indeed). We like everywhere in the world, are hit by big inflation, and food, power, and petrol being the really big costs, so power coinsiderations very 'interesting' indeed. The handiest visual I found was the percentage breakdown, attached. (sorry that part of the pie is cut off, but the info is there.)

And this % way you can adjust for household differences, for instance - in my kitchen the oven is on way more than many, as I need to cook from scratch, and, I find cold season morning baking, and roasts during the day, to be a great dual-system of heating and providing healthy food options. so I would even pop my oven-% up to 10% in the cold season. (In subtropical Aotearoa there are really only two seasons.) I have a new slow cooker which I use enthusiastically for batch cooking sauces and cheaper cuts of meat (which these days can't really be called 'cheap', so I should say 'less expensive' for sure.) I did use my dryers, as how not to? (Our wet season has been super wet.) (And a 'hack' to look at the weather forecast only goes so far when wet overcast days WAY outweigh the odd breezy sunny day when it comes to piles of dirty laundry.)
Percentage of energy bills household usage .png
 
I just used my washing machine for the second time in almost a month, and on a modest energy usage program as it was the dark things. I intend to use it for light coloured things and use a bit of stain remover rather than the higher temperature program I was using out of habit. I have thought of dying all my white clothes blue (as I have the dye on the shelf).
One thing I had forgotten about in the money saving advice is the halogen oven. I have used one for so long that it never really registered. I switched over to halogen after seeing it on the selling TV channel - it has a hinged lid, which is a great feature. I could see how much our energy use dropped as I used the halogen oven for more and more meals. It does need a little bit more faffing around - a big chicken needs to be started off on its front, then at half time in the cooking it gets turned over and the juices poured off - actually I have two almost identical metal bowls so I just lift it out, swap to the other bowl and put it back.
 
Resurgam said:
I just used my washing machine for the second time in almost a month, and on a modest energy usage program as it was the dark things. I intend to use it for light coloured things and use a bit of stain remover rather than the higher temperature program I was using out of habit. I have thought of dying all my white clothes blue (as I have the dye on the shelf).
One thing I had forgotten about in the money saving advice is the halogen oven. I have used one for so long that it never really registered. I switched over to halogen after seeing it on the selling TV channel - it has a hinged lid, which is a great feature. I could see how much our energy use dropped as I used the halogen oven for more and more meals. It does need a little bit more faffing around - a big chicken needs to be started off on its front, then at half time in the cooking it gets turned over and the juices poured off - actually I have two almost identical metal bowls so I just lift it out, swap to the other bowl and put it back.
Click to expand...
How is it on respect of time, compared to the conventional oven (which has the adage 20 mins per pound + 20 mins). I am thinking of a Halogen Airfryer for myself since the microwave does have some drawbacks.

PS Henry Ford said You can have any colour you like, so long as its black.
Applies to my cooking too.
 
Oldvatr said:
How is it on respect of time, compared to the conventional oven (which has the adage 20 mins per pound + 20 mins). I am thinking of a Halogen Airfryer for myself since the microwave does have some drawbacks.
Click to expand...
As it is a small enclosed space compared to the usual oven, it starts to cook at once, there is no warming up required. I have a Halogen oven, which has radiant heat from the element in the lid, and a fan so it makes great cheese on toast for my husband, and when making dinner I can put in a couple of small potatoes to bake for him, flipped over at half time. It is not at all like a microwave as things can be cooked dry or in their own juice - I do frozen fish in it, just put it onto a shallow dish set for a low temperature for 5 minutes, flip over and cook hotter for the time it looks to need - you soon get to know the settings and which of the levels to use.
Some things which need stirring and turning a lot are too much bother in the Halogen oven, but it gets a lot of use throughout the week.
 
Resurgam said:
I just used my washing machine for the second time in almost a month, and on a modest energy usage program as it was the dark things. I intend to use it for light coloured things and use a bit of stain remover rather than the higher temperature program I was using out of habit. I have thought of dying all my white clothes blue (as I have the dye on the shelf).
Click to expand...
In the last few years - my English DNA? - has responded with tears of compassion to things I have read and heard from English folks (via online), one was some working class people singing 'Rule Brittania' on a momentous day over a placard with a word I won't repeat here :), and now - this.

Re the laundry hack possibility - I do hope there is that famous English wit and understatement going on, and you are really being funny? (A wry smile is way preferable to crying!)

Otherwise, I give some true pathos to the moment, and provide some music...
Kate Bush singing Oh England, My Lionheart

 
Houses that have central heating do suffer dry air syndrome, and it is not unusual to see tubs of water sitting on top of radiators. For people with certain breathing conditions to benefit from the extra humidity. But then so does the fungus and mould so it is a toss up as to which provides the healthiest environment. The dry air is associated with frosty days and extreme cold, otherwise we are generally humid apart from the heating issue inside the house. (If you stroke a cat on a cold day then static electrucity is likely to make both of you jump) The air from the pods will be warm and humid, so not damp that you can see.
 
AloeSvea said:
You need to add dampness to the air in your house (in Great Britain?), in the winter, as the air is too dry otherwise? OK.
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I have a Rayburn. It draws air from the room and it's exterior is hot so the air in the room is dry. Not everywhere in the UK is damp. I have a south facing house in a windy valley. Our garden and house are as dry as coastal areas due to the wind.
 
We have all electric heaters which are very drying, my skin and psoriasis are always dryer in the winter, it’s the reason I don’t heat my bedroom unless it’s bitter cold, can’t stand a warm bedroom coal and gas fires do create a bit more humidity
 
AloeSvea said:
In the last few years - my English DNA? - has responded with tears of compassion to things I have read and heard from English folks (via online), one was some working class people singing 'Rule Brittania' on a momentous day over a placard with a word I won't repeat here :), and now - this.

Re the laundry hack possibility - I do hope there is that famous English wit and understatement going on, and you are really being funny? (A wry smile is way preferable to crying!)

Otherwise, I give some true pathos to the moment, and provide some music...
Kate Bush singing Oh England, My Lionheart

Click to expand...
Alas, no - my pension is not a full one due to having fewer than the required payments made and at the moment we are impacted by a fraudulent contact which turned out to be a scam and we lost money due to that, but we are not in desperate need, though I am not optimistic for the next few years. I can still find ways to bring in money from my work with knitting machines, but small savings do tend to add up, particularly when costs are high. At one time our mortgage interest rose to the high teens, so I did all I could to pay it off and reduce the burden on the finances. We were able to pay it off about 10 years early.
I think, in these unusual times we would all do well to remember the frequently quoted Mr Micawber principle. His advice in David Copperfield was this: 'Annual income 20 pounds, annual expenditure 19 pounds 19 shillings and six pence, result happiness. Annual income 20 pounds, annual expenditure 20 pounds ought and six, result misery. '
 
If you use containers in your fridge use round ones rather than square, the cold air can circulate easier keeps the fridge at a more even temperature and the fridge works less hard. Wrap lettuce, celery, cucumber in foil rather than bags, containers or cling film it will stay fresh a lot longer
 
If anyone is an unpaid carer or gets carers allowance, if you are a carer by profession, you can join a site called discount for carers, it’s totally free and there is lots of discount codes and offers especially for carers or they point you to sites that have sales offers etc. I’ve had a few codes including 25% of Roman original and 10% of appliances for Curry’s, if you are looking for anything in particular there is a search facility.

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Quick update. I have now had the bill for the last month since I started my economy drive. Gas consumption was unchanged from the previous month. The electric usage dropped and was 25 kwh less than the previous month and 75 kwh kess than the same period last year. If I keep that up through the year it will be saving me £400 in the coming 12 months at current pricing.
 
OK I got my new post Cap#2 charges from my energy supplier. Putting them into my spreadsheet shows some interesting comparisons. firstly they have reduced their standing charges by about 5% compared to Cap#1 prices. The unit charges are defined by the UKGOV Cap values. So going by the usage figures from last year, I will be £570 worse off compared to Cap#1 pricing that I am paying today. But UK GOV is giving me £400 one off payment. and then another £450 for being an old fart and on disability benefit. So I will actually be better off this year provided I do not use more energy than last year.

So I have been introducing my energy hacks and careful usage since the introduction of Cap#1, approx 5 months now. The effect so far is interesting when comparing energy wattage this last 5 months compared to the same 5 months last year, and I have used less than half the gas and only 2/3rds of the electricity so far. I have also been overpaying on my standing order and have a surplus of over £650 accrued so far. So it looks like I will be covered and not needing to panic.
 
Yes indeedy. I am a Winner. I win I win I win!

I was a winner last Xmas too. My energy provider ran a competition to encourage us to reduce gas consumption, and they collected and shared our tips and hacks. They also ran a competition to see who could reduce the most. I did not win, but I got a cash rebate as a share of the prize draw money. I reduced by 30% compared to the previous year just by using my new zone controller for the heating properly and controlling the heat in each room independently. and using my electic blanket more.

This May I took the step of reducing the hot water thermostat from 60C to 55C. Still hot enough for a bath but I no longer need to add cold water to cool it down before I got in. So this summer, the heating was off, and I was only heating the bathwater and kitchen. Surprising how much it has reduced by compared to last year I no longer use fan heaters or electric fires. This year I am going to use the fire grate since I salvaged the wood they removed when they repaired the roof.
 
Oldvatr said:
Yes indeedy. I am a Winner. I win I win I win!

I was a winner last Xmas too. My energy provider ran a competition to encourage us to reduce gas consumption, and they collected and shared our tips and hacks. They also ran a competition to see who could reduce the most. I did not win, but I got a cash rebate as a share of the prize draw money. I reduced by 30% compared to the previous year just by using my new zone controller for the heating properly and controlling the heat in each room independently. and using my electic blanket more.

This May I took the step of reducing the hot water thermostat from 60C to 55C. Still hot enough for a bath but I no longer need to add cold water to cool it down before I got in. So this summer, the heating was off, and I was only heating the bathwater and kitchen. Surprising how much it has reduced by compared to last year I no longer use fan heaters or electric fires. This year I am going to use the fire grate since I salvaged the wood they removed when they repaired the roof.
Click to expand...
Have you had your chimney swept and checked to make sure it has no leaks?
 
Oldvatr said:
I have also been overpaying on my standing order and have a surplus of over £650 accrued so far. So it looks like I will be covered and not needing to panic.
Click to expand...
I do the same thing, I pay in another $50.00 a fortnight, and so far this year up to the end of August I have $750.00 in credit. The bill for December quarter is paid, so I will be getting my credit out at xmas time.

We are lucky here in Australia as older people get various payments / subsidies which help reduce the bill down, the best one is from the state government of $175.00 every three months for me touse to pay my power bill as I use a home oxygen concentrator at night time.
 
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