What to know how you can save money with your washing machine?
It’s been a tough year for most people, and we’ve all been trying to save money where we can. Depending on how often you wash your clothes or how many loads you need to do, your washing machine can account for up to 7 – 9% of your energy bill. It can be an expensive task, especially if you also use a tumble dryer afterwards. By looking at how you can use your appliance more efficiently you could save money with your washing machine. Read on for some things you can do to reduce your energy bill.
Aim for a Full Load
Sometimes we might just run out of socks and decide to put half a load on for a quick wash. This can cause your energy usage to increase significantly. Think about it, the more half loads you do overall, the more times you’re going to have to use your washing machine to get through all of your laundry. By waiting for a full load of washing, you’ll save energy and also save on water.
Choose Short and Sweet
For dirtier clothes or more delicate items, it might be better to do a longer cycle. However, it’s not always necessary to do this. You can save money with your washing machine if you opt for shorter cycles when doing general washes for lightly soiled clothing.
Pre-Treat Stains
If you do need to wash heavily soiled clothing with tough stains, always pre-treat them. This can be with a stain remover gel applied to the clothing directly or by hand-soaking it before washing. This helps to get the stains out the first time which helps avoid the need to spend more money to buy new clothes. Not only this, but it means that you won’t need to do repeat washes to get the stain out, giving you another way to save money.
Try Lower Temperatures
We’ve been told for years now to wash our clothes at 30⁰ to be more eco-friendly. It is true that by washing at a lower temperature you can help the environment. This is because it lowers your energy usage. Subsequently, by washing at 30⁰ or 40⁰ you can save even more money with your washing machine.
Higher Spin Speed
At the end of a washing cycle, your machine will spin your clothing to remove excess water. For more delicate clothing a slower spin speed is more suitable. However, a faster spin speed can be used for a general ‘daily’ wash. This will lead to more water being removed from your clothes and them being dryer when they come out. Dryer clothes mean that there is less water to remove and therefore there will be minimal need for tumble drying afterwards. You can save money with your washing machine by using this feature to limit how much you’ll need to use your tumble dryer.
Eco Cycles
Most modern machines will now have an ‘eco’ wash cycle that you can use. These cycles combine lower temperatures and less water usage to save energy. They tend to be longer washes to ensure that you’re still getting just as good of a wash as you would when using higher temperatures to wash your clothes. Choosing one of these cycles takes all the thinking out for you and chooses settings that will reduce not only your energy bill but also your water usage too.
Keep on Top of Maintenance
We’ve gone through things that you can do to help you save money with your washing machine when it comes to actually washing your clothes. There is one more important thing that you can do between washes – maintenance. You should be looking after your machine and keeping it working at its best to avoid build-up or damage being caused. This includes checking the filter and using a washing machine cleaner to clear away any build-up and unpleasant odours as well as cleaning the detergent drawer. By looking after your appliance, you will reduce the risk of needing to spend more money on repairs or replacements.
I hope that you have found these tips helpful and that you will enjoy discovering ways you can save money with your washing machine. If you have any issues or serious concerns regarding your machine, we can help with our repair service. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us and we would be happy to help!