With the UK in the midst of a cost of living crisis, many families will be looking for any possible way to save some pennies.
Energy bills are on the rise but there is a simple way to keep costs down - it all has to do with washing your clothes. The time of day when you use the washing machine could help you save a load of cash, the Mirror reports.
If you're with an energy provider which makes it more expensive to use appliances during peak hours, the priciest time to run your washing machine is between 4pm and 7pm. Ofgem, the energy regulator, increased the Energy Price Cap to £1,917, adding £693 to the price of annual household bills.
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One way to keep the bills down is to take a look at your energy expenditure, to see if there are any areas where you're letting it go to waste. Electrical appliances are a good place to start, as the cost of electricity fluctuates throughout the day so anything that isn't on all the time can be a big drain if used at the wrong moment.
A washing machine uses around 1kWh of energy for an hour-long wash, which costs around 28p. If you were to wash one load a week, that would be £14.56 a year, or £29.12 for two washes, and three would cost £43.56.
Some energy providers charge more for power during busy periods, such as between 4pm and 7pm. While some firms charge as little as 9.76 for off-peak power, about a third of the prime-time 28p.
The UK has already been battered by the cost of living crisis, with millions of families facing an even bleaker future thanks to a string of price hikes. And campaigners warn the cruel rises could crush low-income households as they demanded Rishi Sunak call an emergency Budget to tackle the agony.
