A savvy mum has shared her money saving tips to cut down on energy bills. Top tips include switching off the oven, using garden solar lights inside the home and working in Wetherspoons for the day.
Heidi Ondrak, 51, has seen her direct debits for gas and electric soar from £98-a-month to £268-a-month. This is a 173% rise and Heidi is already dreading another increase in October this year.
The mum-of-two is finding as many ways as she can to cut down on her bills and save energy. She has taken to showering at her local gym to save on her water bill.
She also limits showers to four minutes if using the one in her home in Plymouth, Devon. She saves £28-a-month on meals by switching off her oven and hob, instead using an air fryer, slow cooker or George Foreman grill to make her family dinners.
Heidi has also decided to light her home with cheap solar panelled garden lights which she charges at her window during the day, so that she can keep her house lit for free. Heidi, a project manager, said: “I try to do as much as I can to save where I can.
“I had the idea to buy some garden solar lights in the sale. I can charge them up all day on the window and then use them in the evening so we’re not using electricity by having the lights on.
“I haven’t used my oven in months as it costs so much more to heat than my air fryer or slow cooker. I’ve got my heated blanket ready for the winter months.
"I am also prepared to go to Wetherspoons to work as you can buy a £1 refillable coffee. This is much cheaper than heating the home.”
Heidi started looking for things she could do to save money when her energy provider was switched to a £268 direct debit with Eon. “They had quoted me £388 at first but I haggled to get it down to a more affordable price and explained all the things I would do to cut my energy bill down,” she said.
“It’s definitely worth doing this. I stopped using the oven and hob as I worked out that to cook a roast chicken, it was costing me about £1.80 for two hours.
"Whereas if I do it in the slow cooker it costs about 80p for eight hours. My teenagers still like quick freezer food, but I get them to defrost it in the fridge slightly first.
"This lowers the temperature of your fridge too, before cooking it for 10 minutes in the air fryer." Heidi is super organised when it comes to saving money on her food shopping.
She said: "I make an inventory of my fridge and freezer so that I’m working my meals around what I already have and only buying what I need. I batch cook a lot too to get more out of the meals.”
Heidi has also taken to using the facilities at the gym to save on her electric and water bill. “If you normally shower at home and swap to showering at the gym, I worked out that you could save £760 a year on the electricity bill if you have an electric shower, and £320 if your shower is run through gas.
"This is because you're not using the energy to warm up the water," she said. “My gym is just a five-minute walk away and costs £20 a month so I make sure to use the shower there when I go for a workout.
“I’ve got a timer for the shower at home, so it limits us to four-minute showers.” Heidi works from home most of the time, as her office has shrunk in size due to the pandemic.
It may make sense for some to go into the office to work, if the building is close by. However it is a balancing act if you have to pay for fuel or public transport to commute to the office.
Heidi is worried about the costs associated with spending more time in the house. “I’ll go into the office every so often but I’m thinking of going to Wetherspoons or the library, just so I’m not draining my electricity and gas at home," she said.
“You can pay £1 for a refillable coffee or tea and then work away in the warmth. It’s tricky if you have to make calls but if you just need to do some desk work it might be helpful to save you some money.”
Heidi has also ditched her tumble dryer and is doing the ‘sniff test’ on clothes to avoid as many loads of washes a week. “If it still smells alright I’ll give it a spray and not wash it until it’s actually dirty,” she said.
“I’m doing everything I can to cut down.” Here are Heidi’s top tips to save money by reducing energy bills.
Ways to reduce your energy bills
- Switch off your oven and use slow cookers and air fryers
- Defrost frozen food such as chicken nuggets in the fridge first before cooking in an air fryer for half the time and cost
- Work at a Wetherspoons, a library or museum if you can’t go into an office
- Shower at a gym to save on your water bill, and limit showers at home to a set amount of minutes
- Ditch the tumble-dryer and be more stringent on washing loads
- Make an inventory of your fridge and freezer so you can meal plan with what you already have and buy less
- Light your home with fairy lights or solar charging lights
