Six gadgets to slash your energy bills – and save up to £270 a year
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WHETHER you're trying to become more eco-friendly or save money, there are a raft of energy-saving gadgets.
From ultra-energy efficient kettles to radiator reflecting sheets, we've rounded up some great tools to help save on your bills.
We've caluclated that they could save you around £273 a year.
But don't forget that you will have to pay for these gadgets.
Before you buy, work out whether the upfront cost is worth the saving you will make over the lifetime of the product.
1. Energy-saving kettles
Cost: £28-£33
Saving per year: £6
As a nation of tea-drinkers, households are likely spending more than they need to keep their kettles boiling.
An easy way to cut down costs is to invest in an energy-saving kettle but also to boil just one mugful of water at a time.
This small trick alone could save you around £6 a year, according to
Try for £33, which boils just one cup at a time or for £27.99, which “effectively saves more energy that your microwave, stove or your old kettle”.
2. Chimney Balloons
Cost: £16 - £20
Saving per year: £50
Having an uncovered chimney is like throwing a window wide-open for all the cold air to flood in.
An average of 80 cubic metres can travel up a chimney shaft per hour, causing cold draughts around the home.
But it's easy to keep all that warmth inside your home with the installation of a - a cushion-like contraption that effectively blocks it up.
The gadget costs cost between £16 and £20 and can save you a whopping £50 per year, according to the brand.
3. Smart Shower Heads
Cost: £63-£72
Saving per year: £120
Changing the head of your shower can not only help to conserve huge amounts of water, but can also take a massive chunk off the water bill.
Leaky showers can cost you £35 with a drip per second wasting 1,661 gallons a year.
There are lots of options out there but can save up to 70% of water and the brand claims you can save £120 per person per year.
4. Energy saving plugs
Cost: £25 for three plugs
Saving per year: £35
Households are full of plugged-in appliances, TVs, lamps and recharging phones that are draining electricity and sending electricity bills soaring.
But you can reduce costs by around £35 a year if you remember to turn your appliances off], according to the Energy Trust.
Switching off all sockets around the home would be one way to guard against this problem but an easier solution is energy-saving plugs like the
The plugs cost £25 for a pack of three via Amazon today.
You can use your smartphone to switch off appliances, devices and lights remotely to help trim down those bills with minimal fuss.
5. Radiator reflector sheets
Cost: £22 for three
Saving per year: £22
A lot of energy is lost out the back of radiators, especially those on external walls.
Placing a reflective foil between the wall and the radiator can help keep the home toasty but also lift a weight of the wallet.
claims its foils reflect 95% of heat energy into the room from the back of your radiator.
Starting at £21.99 for three sheets, the company claims you can make your money back on energy savings within a year.
6. LED lightbulbs
Cost: £8.75 for three
Saving per year: £40 for the whole household
Changing your lightbulbs to LEDs has to be the simplest and quickest way to reduce your bills.
LED bulbs use far less energy to create the same amount of light given off by a traditional incandescent bulb.
More on Energy Bills
If the average household replaced all of their bulbs with LEDs, it would cost about £100 and save about £40 a year on bills, according to the Energy Trust.
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So a really easy way to cut down on electricity use is by switching to an option like from just £8.75.
These save up to 80% energy and can last for up to 15,000 hours.
