There are lots of ways to save money around the house, but there are a surprising amount of kitchen appliances which could be costing you more money than necessary. In today’s gadget heavy world, a lot of us have eyes bigger than our purses and tend to buy appliances that we think will work well within our homes. More often than not these appliances turn out to be gimmicks and they get put away and start gathering dust. Other appliances take up a whole wad of electricity whenever they are used, adding to the ever upward creep of the bills. Surely everybody wants to cut their bills if they possibly can?
We’ve put together a number quick pointers looking at some of the most common money wasters in the kitchen so that you can hopefully cut your power and water bills. Read on to find out more.
Too Hot to Handle
Everyone has some form of central heating in their homes which often extends into the kitchen/ However, as the cooking takes places in the kitchen, this obviously naturally raises the air temperature significantly every time you use the oven. In times such as these there may be no need to use your central heating in the kitchen. Turning off your kitchen radiators will help you to save money on heating bills. Plus, if you’re ever offered underfloor heating when you’re buying a kitchen, it is likely to be a waste of money, so decline.
Out With the Old
The older your appliances, the less efficient they can often be, and it can surprise people to find out that buying a new model can save them money in the long run. For example, older microwaves use a lot more power and take a lot longer to heat food than newer versions, and for the eco-minded they are a lot greener too. In kettles, old temperature switches can lose their sensitivity and take longer to register when the water has boiled, meaning they take longer to switch off which wastes electricity, so a newer one could be a better option.
Older appliances are also more liable to break under pressure, so if you don’t want to be splurging on a bunch of new appliances, try to replace your appliances with regular use. Another example of a feature of every home that should be replaced regularly is your boiler, as the chance of a breakdown increases significantly once it passes a certain age. You certainly don’t want to be left in the lurch over a cold winter with a broken boiler, so this is something that needs attending to as soon as possible.
Wasted Water
Dripping taps are easily fixed with a new washer, but if you don’t spend much time in the kitchen or it’s a noisy space you might not notice it constantly dripping. It might not seem like much at the time, but the constant dripping can really add up over time, This may be a task you feel able to tackle yourself, or if not it’s a very easy job for a plumber to do, and can save you money on your water bill in the long run.
You might also want to think about the amount of water used for washing dishes, including the water you use in the sink and the dishwasher. A dishwasher, while powerful and incredibly useful for those leading busy lives, can become a frivolous money waster if not properly taken advantage of. Check to see the capacity of your dishwasher and make sure only to use the dishwasher when it is fully loaded. Stack your dishes in a way that means they will be washed after only one cycle and see whether or not you can save water by washing some dishes by hand.
Blowing Hot Air Around
Many ovens have inbuilt extractor fans for processing the steam and smoke that arises when you’re cooking to remove moisture from the room. This is a useful invention but it can be a superfluous one when you are looking into saving money. You could instead open the window to encourage the hot air to move outside on its own, and it’s always good to get fresh air in a kitchen anyway. Kitchens with good air circulation help to reduce the appearance of strong cooking odours and also help reduce the build-up of grease and grime on the walls and ceiling.
When looking at ways of saving money in the kitchen, you need to ask yourself whether or not you need everything you own in your current kitchen. Some appliances, while useful, may use up far too much electricity to justify their place in your kitchen. If you need to cut corners in some aspects of life, you need to start looking with a hard heart – toastie makers, for example, while lovely to have as a treat, don’t really get a whole lot of use outside of the ‘teenage cooking’ phase – and to get rid of things you don’t really need.
Sometimes all it takes to make positive steps towards being better with your money is thinking a little bit more about the purchases you make. Try to invest in long life produce and always pick the stuff that is likely to go out of date later. Only buy fresh fruit and veg if you know for certain that you will be eating it, otherwise it is just a waste of money. Invest in a timer if your oven doesn’t have one already so you don’t keep it on for longer than it needs to be and always supervise the running of taps to prevent wasted water. It can seem a bit tiresome at first, but it really helps when you are trying to cut down on the costs of living.
Article provided by Mike James, an independent content writer working together with Sussex-based applications engineering specialist App Eng, who were consulted over this post.
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