Dave Wallace knew that his family of seven would have to think big about their energy use. “Our bills have gone up 35% from around £600 a month to just over £800 because we use electric radiators,” said the 52-year-old. “I am worried about the price cap rise in April - even though we use electric radiators, the energy market (opens in new tab) is all connected.”
The energy price cap is a measure that is put in place by the energy regulator, Ofgem (opens in new tab), to protect customers from significant price increases when using default tariffs. The cap will be reviewed in February and applied from April 2022, and will see millions of households pay more for gas and electricity.
With this in mind, the Wallace family made four significant changes in their home in Henley, Oxfordshire to keep energy bills low.
First up is targeted heating. “We heat just one room - the kitchen - where we spend most of our time and like hanging out as a family. The benefit of smart radiators is you can set them to work wherever.”
Next, Dave tweaked how the family does its washing and tumble drying clothes. “You can imagine the amount is significant for a family of seven. Now we wash clothes for 20 minutes at 30 degrees and air dry afterwards so we have completely cut out our tumble dryer.”
The family has also started to use dehumidifiers rather than heaters for other rooms in the house. “This seems to work! We don’t actually have a damp problem but it warms the room,” explains Dave. “It is less expensive than a heater and when it takes moisture out of the air, the dry air seems to ease the cold.”
As the price of logs is cheap, the family has also moved back to occasional use of a log burning stove for heat and clothes drying.
Dave, who also wears three pairs of socks when he works from home as director of a digital agency, believes the family’s overall consumption is down. “I reckon we have cut it by 30%. We can’t see the financial effect yet and with energy costs rising the aim is to mitigate the effect and at least not see our bill go up again. It is frightening to read about energy fiirms going bust and how many people could be pushed into poverty by this.”
-
Can thermal curtains save £327 per year on your heating bill?Quick and affordable, thermal curtains could cut £100s off your heating bill according to experts
-
Millions of Virgin Media customers to see a 13.8% hike in broadband bills
Virgin Media announces broadband bill hike of 13.8% for customers from April or May - find out if you can beat it
-
Save up to £350 on a new iPhone or Samsung with this simple money-saving hack
How to cut costs by changing the way you buy your phone - how you can save £350 on your phone bill
-
Missing cost of living payment: “Am I owed £650 from last year?”
“Am I owed £650 from last year?” Money Edit reader Anne thinks she is missing cost of living payments. Katie Binns helps her find outt. We help her find out
-
National Grid activates plan to pay households to use less electricity between 5pm and 6pm - we explain eligibility
Millions of households will be paid up to £20 to turn off their appliances this evening amid electricity supply being tighter than normal
-
Economy 7 electricity price hikes: what you need to know
Households with Economy 7 could see electricity bills go up this month as suppliers raise prices – how can this happen under the Energy Price Guarantee?
-
Sky Mobile confirms 9% price hike in February: your options
From 14 February, Sky Mobile customers who are out of contract will see an average 9% price rise on their phone bill. Here’s everything you need to know
-
BT, EE and Three confirm 14% bill hikes: how to beat them
BT, EE and Three customers will see price hikes on their broadband bills later this year. We tell you how much prices are going up and what you can do about it
