Simple £8 gadget to spot energy guzzling appliances – and it could slash your bill by £100s
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A SIMPLE gadget you can buy for as little as £8 could help slash your energy bills by hundreds of pounds.
Costs are set to rise for households this week when the current price cap on bills of £1,971 rises.
From October 1, that will be replaced by the government's new Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) which will set a cap on costs.
The average dual fuel energy bill will rise to £2,500 a year, but the exact amount you pay can be higher or lower depending on usage.
Plus millions of bill payers will get a £400 discount on bills over winter.
But many are still looking for ways to cut back on costs - and forking out £12 for a smart plug could help you do just that.
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Savvy savers have reported how using these plugs can help them spot energy guzzling devices.
Retired gran-of-three Melinda Gaunt had no idea that an energy guzzling appliance hidden away in her basement was driving her energy bill up by £550.
It was only after using the smart plug that she found out how much it was costing her - and slashed her bills by turning it off.
And dad-of-two Mark Thompson managed to slash £750 off his bills by turning off or selling his energy guzzling appliances in every room in his house.
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But the exact amount you could save depends on your appliance - including how old it is, how much power it needs and how often you use it.
Older appliances usually drain more energy when not in use compared to newer ones, which often have "eco" modes when not in use to save energy and cash.
These plugs work by measuring the amount of energy your using on individual devices around the home.
They are placed between a socket and the plug of the device being measured, .
A screen on the plug shows how much power the item is using, and they run on batteries so they don't add more usage to your bill.
Each plug is different but it measures the energy use of the individual appliance you've plugged in.
With some you can enter the price you pay for energy and then the gadget works out the cost for you.
The cost per unit you pay depends on the tariff you're on but you can usually find this information on your latest energy bill or online account.
Currently more than 20million people are on price capped tariffs that limit the amount suppliers can charge at 28.34p per kWh for electricity.
From October 1 under the EPG that will be 34.04p per kWh.
Simple gadgets can save cash
For your chosen appliance, you can use the plug to check the cost of running it when it's in use, or just on standby.
You can pick up an energy monitor for around £20 depending on where you get it and the model.
For instance and has good reviews, but check they are reputable sellers first.
Shoppers have been warned that some devices promising to save people energy sold online pose a huge risk, including house fires and electric shocks.
Check the make is genuine and look at reviews from people who have used the device already.
They are also available to buy at well known shops. and it has several positive reviews.
You don't have to buy several, you can use one and check a device at a time.
It's not the only way you can monitor energy use around your home.
Smart meters can also help you track the cost of energy.
These are different to the energy use plugs as they show how much gas or electric you are using in real-time for the whole home.
Most energy suppliers are giving these out for free, but some have been beset by tech issues.
You can also get smart plugs which let you control some appliances remotely, like lamps.
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And one homeowner installed smart thermostats on his radiator to control the heating in each room, helping him save hundreds of pound on his bill.
We used a thermal imaging camera to reveal the home hotspots where you're losing the most heat - and they could be adding £750 to energy bills.