The Scottish Mail on Sunday

Six simple gadgets to cut your energy bills

- By Toby Walne

IN the wake of the Government lifting the energy price cap on Friday, the average annual gas and electricit­y bill is set to rocket by a punishing £740 a year. Households need to look at all possible ways to keep increases to a minimum. So here are six gadgets you can buy that will wipe out most of the price increases over the next year.

ROBO-RADIATOR VALVE

THESE cunning little devices are individual radiator thermostat­s that can detect when a room is not being used by using a light sensor – and automatica­lly turn off the heating.

There is no need to have a degree in plumbing (or to worry about water leaks) to attach the valves. Simply unscrew the old radiator valve cover or thermostat by hand and replace it with a £50 device such as a RadBot.

The only inconvenie­nce is that they take two AA batteries that must be installed and will last a couple of years.

To save £300 a year, install at least five of these devices. The more adventurou­s might instead consider a wifi-connected robo-valve.

Such gadgets, which include the £80 Netatmo smart radiator valve, allow you to control radiators and heating temperatur­es via a smartphone app – or even turn off radiators with voice commands using household ‘virtual assistants’ such as Amazon’s Alexa.

LED BULB

A TRADITIONA­L 60-watt halogen light bulb left on for ten hours a day can add £25 a year to your energy bill.

An equivalent LED bulb, using 85 per cent less energy, left on for the same amount of time may consume £4 of electricit­y.

The cost of LED bulbs has plummeted in recent years to as little as £2 each. The average home with 34 traditiona­l bulbs kept on four hours a day might pay £340 a year in lighting electricit­y. Swapped for energy-saving bulbs that produce the same light, the equivalent bill falls to about £54.

Mark Sait, chief executive of ecotrader SaveMoneyC­utCarbon, says: ‘Anyone can change a light bulb. Forget preconcept­ions – these new LED lights no longer emit a harsh light or take ages to warm up, but offer excellent value for money.’

ECO-SHOWER HEAD

TAKING a shower rather than bath not only saves on water – using 32 litres rather than 100 litres – but also on the energy cost of keeping it piping hot.

A water-efficient shower head uses 60 per cent less water than a traditiona­l one because it is aerated. It means a four-minute wash with an eco-shower head might save the average person who washes every day £40 a year on their energy bill than if they had used a traditiona­l shower head – as the aerated head requires less electricit­y to heat.

It adds up to a saving of £160 for a family of four. You can spend as little as £10 on a basic Methven shower head, but a £30 Grohe Tempesta will feel far more refreshing. For pure luxury, consider a £160 Hansgrohe Croma.

SMART THERMOSTAT

HAVING a high-tech gadget controllin­g your entire heating system can help to mitigate the impact of rising energy prices. But it is an expensive investment and you may need to get an electricia­n to profession­ally fit it at a cost of around £100. For example, the Nest control (costing £190) replaces the beige hand-controlled dial box on the wall with an electronic gadget that includes a ‘learning thermostat’ that can automatica­lly adapt heating habits by working out when you are at home.

You can also control it from a smartphone app. They can cut energy bills by as much as 15 per cent. Other smart thermostat­s to consider include the £179 Hive Active Heating console; £246 Honeywell Evohome; and £140 Drayton Wiser Smart Thermostat.

STANDBY SHUTDOWN

UNLESS household appliances such as the TV are turned off at the plug socket in the wall, they will still consume electricit­y. Although the cost is no more than 4p a day, it amounts to some £15 over a year.

For some households where computers, phone chargers, game consoles, set-top boxes and printers are plugged in, the annual cost may be nearer £50.

This cost could be nipped in the bud with a standby shutdown device such as Bye Bye Standby (cost £10). This plugs directly into an electric socket in the wall.

You then plug your mains-powered electronic­s, such as a TV, into the By By socket. You press a button to switch off standby or can use a remote control that might cost £10 extra.

Similar devices include a £9 ProElec and £15 Efergy EcoSocket. A £20 Energenie MiHome Wifi Smart Plug allows you to turn electrics off and on using your smartphone.

TUMBLE DRIER EGG

A TYPICAL tumble drier left on for an hour uses 35p of electricit­y – hopefully enough time to dry a full load. For a family washing four loads a week this can total £73 a year.

By putting in a fist-sized plastic dimpled £10 Ecoegg you can expect to reduce tumble drier time by up to 28 per cent as it helps move laundry around and allows it to dry quicker. This could end up knocking about £20 off the annual bill. Or, hang up clothes to dry outside! toby.walne@mailonsund­ay.co.uk

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