Everyday appliances that cost a small fortune in bills even when not being used

Seven electrical gadgets have been singled out as the worst offenders when it comes to wasting energy while they are not in use.

Many households are unaware that leaving certain devices on can cost a small sum, even if they are in standby mode.

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With energy bills rising, and thousands of people being forced into fuel poverty, everyone is doing everything they can to cut costs.

Some people are only turning their heating on for limited periods, while others have been forced to turn their heating off for good as they can’t afford the rise in payments.

But there are some home appliances that may be costing you, without you realising and tips to save money.

While the figures may seem small to begin with, they quickly add up over the year and could end up costing you hundreds – on top of the 54 per cent increase that’s set to come into force from April.

Research from electricity and gas supplier Utilita has revealed that the average UK household has ten items left plugged in and on standby, despite not being used.

The worst offenders are games consoles and TVs, adding a significant chunk to your energy bills by the end of the year.

Additionally, an estimated 30% of UK homes have items left on standby that haven’t been used in a year.

Archie Lasseter, sustainability lead at Utilita, said: “Standby mode is a real energy drainer – some items use the same amount of energy as when they’re switched on.

“In each home, leaving just one TV on standby can waste up to £16 of electricity a year, which is a staggering £432 million for all UK households.”

The seven most costly appliances are:

Xbox and Playstation

While enjoyable to play, a games console becomes significantly less fun when you realise just how much they could add by the end of the year.

According to Utilita, a Playstation costs 2.41p per hour played, and an Xbox 2.22p – this is because they use 130 and 120 watts respectively when in use.

When left on standby, the consoles still use 10 watts, meaning even when not in use they’re costing 0.18p per hour. While seemingly insignificant, it works out at 4.45p a day, equating to £16.24 a year.

TV

It’s very easy these days for our TVs to switch to standby mode without us being able to do much about it. Back in the day, your buttons were on the TV and off meant off, however, today the remote tends to only use standby mode.

This means that unless your TV is off at the wall, it’s probably costing you a pretty penny throughout the year.

Utilita states a TV uses 40 watts of energy while in use, but much like the consoles, it uses 10 watts when sitting on standby.

That means, for five hours of watching it’s costing around 3.7p, but even if it’s left untouched all day but in standby, you’re still paying 4.45p a day.

Over the year this amounts to £16.24.

Printer

Our printers have a sneaky habit of sitting out of sight and out of mind, unless you need it at a specific moment.

While tucked away and out of use, it might be worth unplugging it, as this is third on the list for standby costs.

Like a TV, a printer uses around 40 watts of energy in use, and when still left on standby it continues to eat up 4 watts.

By the end of the day, this totals 1.78p, equating to £6.50 a year unnecessarily added to your bills.

If you work from home, this might be unavoidable. But you can save by sourcing supplies like HP 207X toner cartridges from online stores that offer great discounts.

Baby monitor

It’s universally known that babies are expensive to raise, so make sure you’re not making life any more difficult for yourself.

Of course, it’s needed when your baby is sleeping, but when your baby is with you and awake, it may be worth switching off your baby monitor completely.

On average, a baby monitor uses around 15 watts of energy when in use, and 3 watts when on standby. Over a year, that’s an extra £4.87 on your energy bill.

Laptop

With so many of us moving to home/hybrid working, our laptops have become a critical part of our everyday lives.

Utilita says running a laptop for five hours will cost around 6.95p as the device uses about 75 watts of energy.

Make sure your laptop is unplugged when fully charged and switch it off when you’re finished, rather than just closing the lid.

While the device will only use around 3 watts of energy in standby mode, leaving on idle mode can cost an extra 1.33p a day, adding up to £4.87 over 12 months.

Smart speaker

Smart speakers are undeniably handy when in the home, you can check the time, set alarms, check the weather, and stream music.

While in use a smart speaker will only need about 3 watts of energy, however on standby that barely changes, dropping to 2 watts.

This means over the year it can add an extra £3.45 to your bill – and that’s just per speaker!

Phone charger

Most of us are guilty of using when we sleep to charge our phones, meaning it may be charging for longer than necessary.

It’s definitely not the biggest cost per year, but a phone will add an extra 32p to your bill, not including the energy you use while actually charging, so try and think ahead when finding a convenient time to charge your mobile.