The age-old debate about whether it's cheaper to leave your heating on all day or just when you need it is especially topical this year, and Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis has come up with his answer.
Brits are worried about how they are going to afford their winter heating bills amid the cost of living crisis and many families, especially those working from home, have been asking themselves whether they should keep their heating on low all day, or just blast it every now and again.
It's a question that comes up every year, with most experts agreeing that the definitive answer is it depends on how well your home is insulted, because this will determine how much energy you need to heat up. But speaking on Good Morning Britain, Mr Lewis settled the debate and finally confirmed what you should do.
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"The general advice from the Energy Saving Trust is that you have your heating on when you need it, and you turn it off when you don't need it," he said. "The myth that it is cheaper to have it on all day is false. In most cases, you turn the heat on when you need it and turn it off when you don't. It's best to do it on a timer and a thermostat."
And the broadcaster highlighted a mistake people tend to make when it gets colder that could also be costing them money.
"When it gets cold, people turn their thermostat up, but if it's set to 20 degrees, you don't need to turn it up because you're cold now. You're just going to have to wait until it gets up to the temperature. Don't turn it up to 22 just because it's not on right now. That's what a thermostat is for. It will give you the temperature that you've predefined it to be."
Viewers took to social media to share how they had saved money by only turning on heating when they needed it.
One said: "He's right. Switching it on when needed saved us £5 a day putting it on for 2 hours. We're in a new build. When heating on permanently condensation build up is really bad, when off through night, there's next to no condensation," while another added: "I ended up with huge bills after being told better leaving heating on low. Well, it definitely isn’t."
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