HEATED airers have soared in popularity as a way to cut down on rising energy bills.
But did you know that where your handy appliance is in your home could be adding to your costs?
Your energy bills could be increased just because your heated airer is in the wrong place
At the moment the average energy bill is capped at £2,500 but the exact amount you pay can be higher or lower depending on usage.
Despite the cap, households are still looking to save where they can.
While a heated airer is considerably cheaper than a tumble dryer to run, having it in the wrong spot in your house could have a bigger effect than you realise.
This could push your bill up by as much as £50 extra a year, according to heating and energy expert Nicholas Auckland, at Trade Radiators.
He told HOAR: “Using a heated airer in a large room instead of a small room will take longer for your clothes to dry, therefore it will cost more to use and dry your clothes.”
Nicholas explained that while every electric clothes dryer will use a different amount of kWh, a typical one costs 16p an hour to run.
The average heated airer takes three hours to dry, but if it’s placed in a bigger room, this could add at least two extra hours to your drying time.
This means that you would be paying 32p more to dry your clothes, per load.
Plus, if you have several people living and washing their clothes in your house and dry three loads a week this would amount to just under £50 extra a year.
But the size of the room isn’t the only element at play when it comes to where you should put your airer within your home.
Nicholas added: “There are more factors that make heated clothes dryers take longer to do their job, such as ventilation.
“If you have your windows open wide, the heated airer won’t work as effectively.”
Although, if you have your window open a crack, it will.
“This ensures that all condensation leaves the room, and doesn’t make the clothes colder or more damp than they already are,” he said.
So, the key to drying your clothes more quickly and therefore more energy efficiently is to keep your electric clothes dryer in a smaller room with the windows open just a crack.
This could be a utility room or a spare bedroom for instance.
It’s also worth putting the gadget in a naturally warmer room, perhaps which gets more sunlight, as colder temperatures could mean your clothes take even longer to dry.
Your heated airer isn’t the only household appliance that could be adding to your energy bills because it’s in the wrong spot.
It turns out, not leaving enough space around your fridge freezer could decrease its energy efficiency by 15% – and ramp up your bills.
While, your washing machine could be costing you extra money and causing mould in your home based only on where it’s positioned.
Another energy saving gadget, a dehumidifier, could also cause your energy bill to go up if you have it in the wrong place.
Plus, there’s a chance your sofa could be blocking heat from your radiator – meaning you end up spending more than you need to on your energy bill.
How else you can save on energy
We all know that putting the heating on is one of the biggest drains on your energy bill, but sometimes you’re accidentally doing things that can increase your bills too.
For example, there’s one fact in particular to know if you want to stop spending unnecessary money – don’t dry your clothes on the radiator.
If you do, it keeps the radiator from working properly and you might need to leave the heating on for longer to feel its effect.
Potentially, up to £55 could go down the drain every year as a result.
Of course, it could be more or less depending on the size of your home, your provider and how much energy you normally use.
Letting heat escape through your chimney could throw away up to £300 a year as well.
That’s because you need something to block the opening whenever you turn on the heating.
This could be a damper, which is a seal for your chimney to ensure cold air stays out and warmth from indoors can’t escape.
You can install one by yourself if you’re used to carrying out small DIY jobs – you shouldn’t need any tools to help.
It should fit right up into the flue system which sits above the smoke chamber.
Hopefully it’ll slide in comfortably, but there might be a few screws to tighten if your damper comes with them.
But that’s the most you’ll need to do.
We’ve seen dampers from the likes of Amazon for £22, but don’t forget about added delivery costs.
However bear in mind it’ll cost an average of £250 to have someone come in and fit it for you, which could be quite pricey.
Don’t forget to do regular annual boiler service checks either – they could actually save you up to £550 a year.
For more energy-saving tips, make sure to read through our handy guide.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected]
