Ways to Save Money on Energy around the Home

Spend well, live well with our smart ways to save money around the home. Having been high street heroes for 150 years, you can always count on us to provide sound advice when you need it most. 

With energy-saving in mind, we’ve put together a whole range of ideas to help you through the months ahead, with tips across laundry, cleaning, DIY and appliances.

Money Saving Ideas to Help You Cut Costs at Home

Making small changes here and there can all add up to make a significant difference to your monthly outgoings. Around the home there are plenty of little swaps you can make to help those pennies turn into pounds. 

Hang Big Bills out to Dry 

Doing the laundry can get very expensive if you use the tumble dryer, so hang your washing out when the weather’s warm enough. Then all you need to spend on is some humble pegs and a washing line. For cooler days as we head into winter, swap your tumble dryer for an indoor airer and save up to £182.93 on energy costs, or use a heated airer such as the Status Portable Heated Clothes Airer with Wings, which costs just 12p an hour to run. 

If you simply can’t part with your tumble dryer when the weather’s not on your side, pop an Ecoegg Dryer Egg into the drum. These amazing little eggs reduce drying time by 28%, which can save up to £63 a year!* 

The Ecoegg Laundry Egg can also help save you money. Each egg features eco pellets that last for up to 70 washes and, once they need replacing, you simply buy some Refill Pellets. As well as saving plastic and being much kinder to the environment, it works out significantly cheaper than buying bottles of detergent. 

Wise up with Appliances 

It’s a myth that turning lights on and off uses more energy than just leaving them on. If you often forget to turn lights or other appliances off, use a smart plug with a timer to make sure nothing’s left on.

Likewise, appliances that are left on standby – and even those that are turned off but plugged in – still use energy! Avoid paying for energy you don’t use by turning off these ‘vampire devices’ completely, and unplug them when you can. You can save around £55 a year just by remembering to turn off your devices and appliances when you’re not using them.

For chilly days at home, avoid turning to the central heating to warm you up. Heated throws like this one from Glamhaus will keep you warm in the evening without you having to heat the whole room. This is especially ideal for older relatives who feel the cold more, or who may live in older, less insulated homes.

Smart thermostats shouldn't be underestimated: it’s a simple way to control and monitor the energy used in your home. Developed to reduce your energy usage, they’re great long-term money-savers.

Switching to LED bulbs like this Osram Classic Bulb or Osram Candle Bulbs – 3 Pack, will also enable significant savings to be made. Swapping all your bulbs from halogen to LED could save you up to £375 a year**, so it’s well worth the switch.

Keep the Draughts Away

Save around £45 a year by draught-proofing doors and windows***. With our range of draught exclusion products you can stop heat - and money - escaping out of your home.

Do It Yourself 

Why pay someone to do a job when you can do it yourself? While it may be more convenient to have someone do some household jobs for you, it’s much cheaper to do a bit of DIY (as long as you feel you are able to, of course). So roll up your sleeves and get those walls painted or that garden gate fixed. With handy decorating sets like this Harris Essentials 11-Piece Set, and budget tools like this Rolson 30-Piece Tool Kit, you can’t go wrong.

Making just a few of these small changes can make a huge difference to your monthly bills. So that’s less money wasted and more time to simply enjoy and get on with life.

*Based on a 9kg capacity tumble dryer using 5.2kWh for a full load, at £1.46 per cycle, 3 times a week. Cost correct as of Energy Saving Trust’s April 2022 figures.

**Calculated on an average of 34 bulbs per home. Based on 2.7hrs per day at an average cost of 0.28p per kwh on a 60W equivalent bulb.

***Draught exclusion savings based on a typical gas-fuelled semi-detached property in England, Scotland or Wales. Source: energysavingtrust.org.uk Cost correct as of 19/08/22.