Households across the country are looking for ways to reduce their energy bill as prices continue to skyrocket.
One major way for households to save energy is to tackle vampire appliances in their home, which could be costing them hundreds of euro per year. According to British Gas, up to 23 per cent of energy use of homes in the UK could come from vampire appliances.
With the average household energy bill in the UK currently standing at around €2,850, this means these appliances may be adding an avoidable €655 to your bill. Here's what vampire appliances are and which ones could be costing you the most.
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What are vampire appliances?
Vampire appliances are devices left on standby that continue to use energy even when they are not actively being used. These types of appliances are also known as remote-ready appliances, which remain on standby, ready to receive orders to switch on.
Vampire appliances often have a standby or sleep mode or require one button to activate them. Even though they may not be in use, devices in standby mode still use an electric current when plugged in as they continue to update, record data and connect to remote servers, hence increasing your energy bill.
Examples of common vampire appliances include microwaves, game consoles, TVs and satellite and cable boxes.
What are the worst vampire appliances, and how much do they cost?
The five worst vampire appliances and their costs according to the average annual energy bill are as follows.
- Hi-Fi system on standby - costing €162.40 a year
- Sky box on standby - costing €162.40 a year
- Laptop charger not in use - costing €131.06 a year
- TV on standby - costing €22.22 a year
- Printer on standby - costing €22.22 a year
The easiest way to stop your vampire appliances from wasting energy is to avoid using standby mode where possible. Instead, remember to unplug or switch off your appliances at the mains.
Chargers should be unplugged once your device has finished charging. Using extension leads for your devices may help as this means you can switch off multiple vampire appliances at the mains in one go rather than having to turn them off individually.
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