How much does it cost to run a washing machine per hour UK?
Washing machines are an essential bit of kit. Next to ovens, they’re quite obviously a household essential. With the rising costs of utility bills and cost of living, it’s important to figure out just how much each wash and dry is costing you. Here at Love2Laundry, we’ve put together some helpful tips on how to calculate how much you’re spending on your wash, and how to bring it down.
How to calculate your washing machine running costs:
We’ve previously covered how doing laundry can affect your electricity bill, but every machine is different. We’re all counting pennies at the moment, so finding out exactly how much it costs to run your washing machine per hour can be a handy piece of information to have.
In order to get an accurate figure, you’ll need to find out a few things:
1. Your current electricity rate
Don’t worry, you’re not expected to know this offhand! This bit of information is easy to find though, it will be under ‘About your tariff’ on your energy bill or listed on your online account with your energy supplier. Alternatively, you can drop a quick call to your energy supplier and they’ll tell you what your current energy tariff is.
2. Your washing machine wattage/consumption:
This will either be listed physically on your washing machine, or it will be in the instruction booklet. You’ll need to do a bit of math’s here; once you’ve found out the wattage, divide it by 1000 to convert it to kilowatt-hours. This will give you the amount of energy your washing machine uses in an hour.
3. How long you use your washing machine:
Obviously, we need to work out how long your washing machine is on. Most washing machines have timers on them, but it’s worth setting a phone timer when you start a wash and ending it when it finishes to get an accurate reading. If you use your washing machine more than once a day, make sure you take that into account as well!
Working out your washing machine energy usage
In order to get those all-important numbers, it’s a very simple equation:
Power consumption = washing machine wattage x duration of use (hours)
So, for example, 1-month washing machine power consumption = 300 watts x 16 hours = 4,800 WH = 4,8 kWH.
Now you have that number, you can multiply it by your current electricity tariff. This will then give you exactly how much it costs for you to use your washing machine per hour, which will in turn help you assess your washing machine’s usage and the impact it’s having on your energy bills.
You can apply this useful equation to any of your electrical appliances to work out their hourly usage, allowing you to get a total overview of how much energy you use over the course of a week or a month. You can also take a look at this Citizens Advice article about Checking How Much Your Electrical Appliances Cost To Use for some handy comparison tables.
Ways to save energy using your washing machine
Now you know how much it costs to run your washing machine, here are a few ways that you can help keep costs down when using it:
Wash at 30
Did you know that about 80% of a washing machine’s cycle is heating the water? If your clothes aren’t hugely dirty, a 30-degree cycle will be perfect to get them clean, and uses 40% less energy than a hotter wash!
It’s only best to use a hotter and longer washing machine cycle for things like towels, bedding, those pesky oily stains or when someone is ill; a hotter wash will ensure any nasty bacteria has been removed.
Using your washing machine at a lower temperature not only helps you reduce your bills, but reduces your environmental impact. So, it’s good for your wallet and good for the world!
Cut down on the amount of detergent you use
If you can see suds whooshing around in your washing machine, there’s a strong change you are using too much detergent! Little things like ensuring you’re using the right about of washing liquid can add up over time. Use the measuring cup and recommended amount that comes with your detergent instead of filling it all the way to the top!
Pro tip: When you’re popping your clothes on a cold wash, opt for liquid detergent over powder. This helps to avoid white residue build up that can mark your clothes and or cause grime to develop in your washing machine, which is something we definitely do not want!
If you’re not sure what detergent to use, take a look at our blog post about what are the best detergents
Wash your clothes at off-peak times
According to MoneySupermarket, off-peak energy times are usually between 10pm and 8am. Most washing machines have a built-in timer, or you can go old school and utilize that plug timer you normally use to turn the lights on and off whilst you’re away on holiday. Setting your washing machine to run at night could certainly save you a few pennies!
The most expensive time to pop your washing machine on is between 4pm and 7pm, which makes sense as most people have just come back from work and are about to launch into their household chores.
Make sure you have a full load
It might be very tempting to wash a handful of clothes half way through the week; especially if you know you’re going to busy at the weekend. But doing one full load is always cheaper than doing two small ones. If you need a piece of clothing washed during the week, and before you’ve hit the top of your laundry basket, it might be worth finding out if a friend or relative is able to split the load with you.
But remember, don’t overload the washing machine! A three-quarter load is perfect, as you don’t want to put any strain on the machine and reduce how effective the cycle is, you want your clothes clean and your washing machine functioning after all!
Line dry or ‘air’ your clothes
Instead of using the tumble dryer to dry off your clothes, a great way to save money is to air dry them. If you can dry them outside, remember it doesn’t even have to be sunny! You just need a dry day and ideally a bit of a breeze, which will speed up the drying process.
Air drying indoors is also a good option, especially at the moment. Using a freestanding airer or even a smaller one that you can hook on to a radiator works well when there’s a cold snap outside.
Line drying also reduces the need for ironing! Gravity tends to help the creases out, so it can be a more efficient way to dry your clothes (unless you enjoy ironing).
Wear your clothes for longer
This might be a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many clothes are washed more than they need to be!
T-shirts and underwear – items like these are right next to your skin, so they need to be washed after every use ideally.
Jeans, jumpers and outwear – you can wear things like these 2-3 times before popping them in the machine.
Towels – big items like these can be used several times before they need a wash
Bed sheets – depending on how often you change your bed sheets, these can be washed once a week or once every two weeks, depending on what the weather is like – you’ll need to wash them once a week when the British weather decides it’s going to give us a summer!
What if you’re in a rush to wash your clothes though?
We know that feeling all too well, you’ve dropped something down a uniform, or you’ve noticed a blob on your shirt and it needs to be back in action as soon as possible! There’s that mad panic of “how am I going to do this in time” as well as “this is going to drive up the bills”. Well, we have you covered, we sat down a few weeks ago and shared out top tips for Getting Your Laundry Done In The Fastest Way Possible, so, make sure you take a look!
About Love2Laundry
Love2Laundry is one of the leading laundry service providers in the UK, serving London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bolton and Bury.
We have an array of services to make things easy for you: from laundry and dry cleaning to linen services, ironing, shoe repairs, upholstery cleaning and alterations.
For more content like this, check out our blog here to read more articles.
Find out more about Love2Laundry’s dry cleaning and laundry services by visiting our website here.
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Contact us at 0203 600 0296 or at info@love2laundry.com.
We hope you now have the answer to the question ‘what is the fastest way to do your laundry?’
