Washing your clothes seems like a free thing, but it costs a decent bit of money over a year. Washing machines have the unique ability to both use electricity and water. So, they affect your water bill and your energy bill. If you’re not careful, you can waste loads of money every year!
You don’t want your washing machine to take your money. At the same time…you need to wash your clothes!! There’s no way around this, so here are three tips that’ll help you save money every time you wash your clothes.
Get a bigger washing machine
Tip number one is simple; get the biggest washing machine you can afford/fit in your house. Trust me, it’s a worthwhile investment. The larger your washing machine, the more clothes you can wash in one go. I’m not saying you should look into buying commercial and industrial washing machines, but you should take a leaf out of their books. Opt for something with a high load capacity so more of your clothes can be chucked in at once.
As a result, you may only need to run your washing machine once or twice a week – instead of three or four times. Think about how much electricity and water you save by, basically, slicing your washing time in half every week.
Turn down the temperature
Washing machines will automatically pick a pretty high temperature to wash your clothes. However, you should turn it down to use less hot water. Instead of washing at 40 degrees, turn it down to 30. This could save around 40% of the energy used every year! That’s absolutely staggering, and your clothes will still come out clean.
Modern washing powders or detergents will work at lower temperatures. You don’t need to turn the heat up – unless there’s a particularly stubborn stain. Even then, you’re probably better off treating the stained item separately before putting it in the wash.
Air dry as much as possible
Lastly, save money when washing your clothes by turning off the dryer. Hang your clothes outside and let them air dry whenever possible. If the weather’s bad, hang them indoors on a clothes horse or something similar. Instead of using an hour’s worth of electricity drying clothes in a drier, you let it happen naturally. Sure, it takes longer, but the financial savings are more than worth it.
You could invest in a dehumidifier as well, which helps to dry your clothes while using a fraction of the energy as an actual tumble dryer.
Most of us don’t realize how much money we spend when washing our clothes throughout the year. We use loads of water, which adds up over time. More importantly, we consume far too much energy, so our energy bills go through the roof. All you need to do is wash more clothes in every load, turn the water temperature down, and air dry your clothes as much as possible. These three tips will reduce your energy and water bills, saving you serious amounts of cash.
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