The new normal: £2 to tumble-dry and £45 a year for a smart doorbell

Mstty

Sea_Shell said:

[Deleted User] said:

Sea_Shell said:

datlex said:

[Deleted User] said:

datlex said:

Makes me laugh the assumption people have a dishwasher.  Mine is me!  So no saving there. I do have a tumble dryer but with solar panels certainly doesn't cost a lot.  Having the oven on for an hour each evening seems excessive as well.  30 -40 minutes cooking seems more realistic.

But did you not see the person earlier on this thread that said 2 loads of washing a week for a couple was way to low, because you had to wash all your bedding and towels as well?

No did not see that I find 1-2 washes sufficient to include washing all that. Mind you even if did more would just run it during the day when the solar panels are working.

It was me!!

How big a load (kg) does your machine take?

We have weekly 2 bath sheets, 2 bath mats, 3 hand towels, 2 tea towels, a fitted double sheet, top sheet and 2 pillowcases.

That doesn't fit in one load. 

That's even before the clothes we've worn.   

Throw in some running and swimming gear (towel) too (or other "mucky" hobby of choice) and there's at least another 1 or 2 loads.

Weekly?!  No wonder you have a lot of washing.

Yes weekly!!  Otherwise the linen would probably get up and walk off on its own.

🤮🤮🤮


How often to do change yours?

Every Thursday and Sunday like clockwork.

Can't beat that freshly washed and tumble dried feeling.

This is one thing my partner will not budge on, we have cut other costs right down but not cleanliness and comfort (more importantly allergen free)

I hear some don't wash them for months🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

TheBanker

comeandgo said:

Why do you use bath sheets and not bath towels?  I find I can put my two bath towels, three hand towels bottom sheet, don’t use a top one, duvet cover washed every fortnight, and two pillowcases, tea towels in as one load and clothing is the other load, one week it’s lights, one week it’s darks.  My husband does wash his sports gear by hand.

Again speaking as a single person, I could get away with one load a week in the summer, if I wasn't fussy about separating lights from darks. Switching from bath sheets to bath towels has made a difference, they take up far less space and are also easier to dry. I don't have a strict routine of changing the towels to any set frequency - they get changed when either they look grubby, they smell, or want to put some washing on and there's space in the machine. Bedding is the same, it's not based on whether it's been on for a certain number of days, it's based on whether it feels like it needs changing. 

One benefit to me of the new Work From Home world is the ability to do my washing during the day which gives me the best chance of getting it dry without using the dryer. This year the dryer will only be used to finish off heavy items e.g. towels, if they don't dry completely on the line. If it's raining, the washing will have to wait until the next dry day - I have enough clothes, towels and bedding to manage if I have to.

Norman_Castle

FreeBear said:

jimexbox said:

FreeBear said:

mr_stripey said:

how does a ring doorbell "cost" that in electricity? Am I missing something?

https://support.ring.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4407618977300-Safety-and-compliance-information-for-Ring-Video-Doorbell-Wired - Claims 1.2W when in standby mode. So that would work out at around £5.50 per year assuming 52p per KWh.

A 5W LED bulb, 0.26p per hour.

Couple of decimal places missed on the 5w bulb.

Lemme check the maths....

1KW = 1,000W

5W = 0.005Kw. So for one hour it is 0.005Kwh

1KWh of electricity will cost 52p in round numbers come October.

0.005 x 52p = 0.26p

Its how its expressed which could be clearer. 0.26p is £0.0026 but seems to be being read as 26p.

0.26p is just over 1/4 of 1p so four hours use costs slightly over 1p.

For anyone wanting to compare without maths https://www.sust-it.net/energy-calculator.php?fu=52&cu=uk Remember to set the tariff to 52p kWh.

Section62

jj_43 said:

I see the usual posters here with nothing to add, except their scepticism. It would be good to see them build on the information provided.

They have built on the information provided, by adding corrections and clarifications to an article which is interesting, but suffers from the usual constraints of modern journalism.

What you call "scepticism", others would call "preference for accuracy".

EssexHebridean

Section62 said:

jj_43 said:

I see the usual posters here with nothing to add, except their scepticism. It would be good to see them build on the information provided.

They have built on the information provided, by adding corrections and clarifications to an article which is interesting, but suffers from the usual constraints of modern journalism.

What you call "scepticism", others would call "preference for accuracy".

Yes, and “a desire to ensure that people are either scared unnecessarily or lulled into a false sense of security by the incorrect figures in some cases”. It’s worrying that even now some people are so adamant that if it’s in a newspaper then it must be correct. 

Section62

jackieblack said:

Am kicking myself for not spotting this yesterday and nipping out to buy a copy 😞

Maybe see it as saving £3.50 towards the cost of your next electricity bill.

Apparently that's 132 hours of TV watching, or 1.6 hours in the shower.

GingerTim

oldagetraveller1 said:

Oh no, 21p to charge my electric toothbrush. Back to manual hand brushing then at that price! Or subject everyone to some halitosis.

You're reading that wrong - that's 0.21p not 21p to charge your toothbrush. I think you can still charge it without bankrupting yourself.

jackieblack

comeandgo said:

Why do you use bath sheets and not bath towels?  I find I can put my two bath towels, three hand towels bottom sheet, don’t use a top one, duvet cover washed every fortnight, and two pillowcases, tea towels in as one load and clothing is the other load, one week it’s lights, one week it’s darks.  My husband does wash his sports gear by hand.

That’s made me think 🤔 
I’ve always used bath sheets - as a bigger person I couldn’t wrap a bath towel around myself to walk from bathroom to bedroom (have always dried and dressed in the bedroom as it freed the bathroom up for other household members to use)

Now I live alone and have lost almost 5 stone in the last 10 months, so a bath towel would be perfectly adequate and would reduce the weight of my wash, and dry more quickly!  I’m off to dig out a couple of bath towels from my stash and the bath sheets can be packed away!

gefnew

You would need to use 500 watts of electricity to consume 0.26p.
The 5w lamp will use 0.0026p of electricity.

pochase

gefnew said:

You would need to use 500 watts of electricity to consume 0.26p.
The 5w lamp will use 0.0026p of electricity.

500wh (not w) consume 26p or £0.26 from October, not 0.26p

A 5w bulb that is on for 200 hours will 1KWh = 52p. 52p / 200 = 0.26p not 0.0026p

It is £0.0026 not 0.0026p.