One mum has shared how she ‘slashed her energy bills’ by switching up standard bathtimes for ‘disco baths.’
Vivienne Mckean says she drops glowsticks into the water so she can leave the bathroom light off.
The 31-year-old simply fills the bath and pops in five or six neon glowsticks before her kids Lucas, nine, and Vienna, four, jump in separately for a 20-minute soak.
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For just €1 she buys a pack of 15 glowsticks that light up the room from beneath the water, so there's no need for her to turn on the lights.
Vivienne says she has sworn by the hack for the past two years and says it saves her money every time.
Now she is plotting other creative ways to reduce the family's electricity consumption after noticing their energy bills rising.
The sales assistant says the kids 'love it' and she even turns up their favourite music to turn bath time into a mini disco. Vivienne said: "It saves putting a light on for a while, the kids love it.
"It's a cheap way to keep them happy and entertained. They get excited as if it's a mini disco. We have music on through the speaker, whatever music they like, they aren't fussy.
"We do bath time one after the other and they both have glowsticks. It's definitely a worrying time, it's playing on my mind.
"You don't think you'll be affected that much but you see the money going down fast and I've noticed my electricity going so much faster. You know what kids are like, they walk around leaving lights on and you have to tell them to turn the lights off.
"You can buy things on 'pay later,' which helps a lot but it doesn't help with the electricity. This has inspired me a bit to try and think of ways that I can save some money.
"The baths are 20 minutes at a time and if not every night it's every other night and it helps. Every little helps, definitely."
After sharing a photo of the brightly-lit bath on Facebook, lots of users were arguing over whether or not it was actually cheaper to just switch the light on rather than spend €1 on glowsticks.
Vivienne said: "The comments were so mixed, you get trolls. One guy said 'that doesn't save money, glowsticks are €1 and it doesn't cost €1 to put your light on.'
"I'm not going to argue. I just thought it would save putting on the light. Someone mentioned how much water would go in the sewerage but you've still got to have a bath for god's sake.
"One guy said it costs 3c to switch your light on for an hour but 3c is 3c. Some people have money to burn. The majority of people said it was a good idea, people will be doing it with their kids. People said they were going to try it.
"People suggested putting them in plastic bags in case they burst. I've never done that before but I'll start because it could be dangerous for the kids and the bath."
The post, which racked up 2,400 likes, shares, and comments, was flooded with comments both praising and criticising the money-saving hack.
One wrote: "It wouldn't cost €1 to run a light bulb for the time you are in a bath. Agreed it's a fun idea for the kids but definitely not saving money."
Another commented: "What about the water and sewerage bill?"
One wrote: "Are we just skirting over the fact that these are way more expensive than just turning on the light for half an hour? Fun idea though."
Other parents praised the idea and said they were going to try it out for themselves. One wrote: "Fun for bath time."
Another commented: "We call them disco baths and my girls love autumn and winter as it’s the only time it’s dark enough to have them and properly enjoy them."
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