The “how much does this cost to run” thread?

[AtomicBlondeRose]

Based on posts about people thinking of using candles instead of electric lights - which is both dangerous and not likely to save any money, I’d like to set this thread up as a place where people can ask how much items in their house cost to run, to let posters make informed decisions about whether or not to keep using them after energy price rises.

If you want to ask, useful information to have is: the energy usage of the item - eg a heater might say on it that it’s 1000w. If you don’t know that the name/model number as accurately as possible. Also to give you a useful estimate it would be good to know your current gas/electricity price tariff price per unit. However it’s easy enough to work out at current and predicted price cap levels.

I can’t promise to answer everything so please can I call upon other numerate MNers to help out? I think this could be a real lifesaver.

@AtomicBlondeRose I was thinking of the little LED plug in lights, I have no idea if it would be more or less or just comparable... has the bonus of not having the light on which probably annoys others in the house...

Thanks @HairyKitty for the washing machine comparison, I hadn’t read all of thread. We use machine almost daily so reckon it will have an impact reducing to 20 or 30 degrees.

I don’t separate different types of washing though (other than colours) so I’m a bit unsure of cold washing everything Inc underwear!

I sometimes use a kettle on hob half full, is this cheaper than an electric kettle to run

If people want to get the heated Lakeland airer, keep an eye on their official Ebay shop. They have refurbished ones with a very good discount quite often.
This one is £49.99 on Ebay
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/255460762826?epid=18041693803&hash=item3b7aa5e4ca:g:XqMAAOSwWgdiTCgu
but £119.99 on the official site
www.lakeland.co.uk/25904/dry-soon-mini-3-tier-heated-airer

Make sure you check which size you want as some are smaller than they look.

What’s the cost of running an electric blanket, single size.? Thinking of getting one for Dd.

Oh found the calculator, looks like it’s about 6p an hour for an electric blanket.

@QuebecBagnet For some reason electric blanket listings never tend to put the wattage on! Anyway I managed to find one where they said a single blanket was 60W, which is 1.7p/hr right now or 3.1p in October.

Can I ask how you got to 6p?

I posted this on another thread this morning.

threadreaderapp.com/thread/1563090922165846016.html

I just had a look and wow that's ridiculous. Are they not regulated? I think they would then not be able to claim that 1p...
I found 1 brand which has it. Of course it changes bit based on settings.

These thing should be way clearer and easier to find in ALL manuals

@Bubblebubblebah Yes a lot of them are still
plastered in “1p!” logos which was true once but certainly not any more. That info sheet is interesting. Of course most people tend not to have them on full whack for very long as they do get far too hot so won’t be using the full wattage.

But the 2x120W one (I’m assuming a dual
control king size) is costing nearly 7p/hour right now and 12.5p/hr in October to run at the highest setting. This still works out way way cheaper than putting the heating on though so I wouldn’t discourage people from using them. I find putting mine on for half an hour before I get into bed is enough to keep you snug, and on cold evenings I get into bed early with my electric blanket on rather than sit up and use the heating. It is more economical regardless.

Just jumping on to ask if anyone knows how much a chest freezer costs to run? We’re weighing up turning ours off over winter and just doing without frozen food - we live just a few minutes from several supermarkets by foot so it might be better just to buy at eat a packet of fish fingers rather than freeze a bigger pack!

Dependhs on size of it. Any chance you can see what type it is? Might be a sticker somewhere

@Thurlow Yes, we need specifics, they vary a lot depending on age/size etc.

Electric kettle is 3kW. I just timed mine at 90 seconds to boil 1/3 full (2 cups) is 0.025 hr.
That would be 0.075 kWh or about 4-5p per boil at the new price.

Say 25p per day/ £7.50 per month. Maybe double that for heavy use?

It will cost the same on an electric hob but possibly less on a gas hob in an efficient kettle not over filled. Boiling in a saucepan probably less efficient and causes washing up.

When we were a house of seven, I had a huge fridge, an under counter one and two freezers. Now I just have a fridge freezer, and I'm always running out of freezer space. We have room for one in the cellar which could be an 'overspill' one. I looked at a small A+ (old energy rating) one and the estimate was 250kwh per year.

I was very tempted because i batch cook a lot, but I've held off. I couldn't justify it for supermarket food when we live in a town and can easily get a delivery next day.

I have never had a tumble dryer or heated airer and am married with 3 teenagers. If you are in a house with enough clearance over the stairs I would recommend one of the Victorian style clothes airers on a pulley system. In our last house we had one over the stairs which is where all the hot air rises through the house. A load of washing used to dry quite quickly. In current house I have a couple of normal free standing airers and if the item is thick material I hang it over a couple of slats/ rails to allow air circulation. For duvet covers etc, I lay towels on upstairs Bannister and hang covers over Bannister. I turn them over after a few hours. I have a whirlygig in the garden and any sun or wind I try and make use of all year round.

I too batch cook. Nah, wouldn't have it for supermarket frozen food (sounding like proper mumsnetter, I don't actually buy any except veg and fruit). I dream of having a chest freezer😂 I grew up with it and it was such a magical box of surprises at the bottom😂

I think people like me have to weight up cost of bigger/extra freezers vs what is it they want. I batch cook for busy days but also as calorie control because I am in the middle of losing like 180pounds. For me bigger freezer space is worth the extra money. But if I wasn't batch cooking, I wouldn't bother with it.

Look in camping/outdoor stores for a wind-up lantern. If the kids are old enough they could have the task of winding it up each day.

I think that considerin an outlay for the lamps, the ceiling light might workout cheaper. Depends on the bulb.

Thanks

I have a gas hob

Ooh I tend to put the extractor on while using the hob kettle

Plus bear in mind that it’s difficult to boil the exact amount you need and people often end up boiling more. I worked out that getting a hot water dispenser (£52) would pay for itself for my family in 18 months

Does anyone know how to work out how much is saved by turning one radiator off? I’ve got a relief it won’t be much for the discomfort.

I did measure it out in a jug plus a bit for warming the pot - tea lover

Thanks for this helpful thread - I have a washing machine query.

My beko does a 9kg wash at the following:

• Quick 30 degrees, 28 mins, 0.25 kwh
• Eco, 1 hour 20 ish, 0.86 kwh

Am I right in thinking that in terms of electricity, it's cheaper to use the Quick wash? It uses twice as much water as the Eco but we're not on a meter (appreciate worse for environment but in terms of CoL query). Not sure if I'm missing something!

@Gufo Yes, you’re right - the Quick uses 7p at current rates, 13p in October. The Eco is 24p/45p.

This is a good example of why you can’t give a hard and fast rule about which wash is best. Some machines have an Eco mode to save water, some to save electricity, and some quick washes are surprisingly energy-intensive.