The garden appliances that could add the most to your energy bills have been revealed in an analysis from Uswitch.com.
The price comparison site looked into the 'energy guzzlers' which could see Brits as a whole spend £11 million a week powering.
Analysis was conducted as people around the nations have been enjoying warmer weather in the last few weeks and are using these appliances more frequently.
Hot tubs are the biggest contributors to garden energy bills, but the cost of running lawnmowers, electric barbecues and plug-in water features can also add up.
How much do these garden appliances cost to run?
According to Uswitch the cost to run the garden appliances is as follows:
The UK’s hot tub owners could be building up energy bills of £8 million a week over the summer months if they all have very efficient models.
However, less efficient models can be even pricier to run — potentially running up bills of around £4.50 a day.
More than one million households own electric barbecues, which cost about 74p to run for 90 minutes of cooking.
Using traditional charcoal is more expensive, however, with 1kg of supermarket charcoal costing around £1.99.
In total, electric barbecue users could spend £832,000 cooking outdoors in a week, if all owners made one al fresco meal.
Electric lawnmowers are the most popular garden appliance, owned by more than a quarter (29%) of UK households. Using one for around 30 minutes a week will cost the nation’s gardeners £1.8 million.
Plug-in water features are a way to improve the appearance of a garden, and only add 2p per week to energy bills, whilst over 3.7 million households have electric lights.
Although they only cost 6p to run per home, it adds up to £236,000 across the whole country.
Ben Gallizzi, energy expert at Uswitch.com, said: “It’s finally sunny after a slow start to the summer, and many of us have begun flocking to our gardens to make use of barbecues and hot tubs.
“Running outdoor appliances during the summer is always cheaper than using the heating in the winter, but there are many ways people could use their gadgets more efficiently.
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“Hot tubs are the biggest garden energy guzzlers, as they need to be kept at an ambient temperature so they are ready to be used.
“When buying any new gadget or appliance for the garden, remember to weigh up not just purchase price, but how much they will cost to run. Sometimes the most energy-efficient devices are more expensive — but they will save you money in the long run.
“If you want to see how changing your energy habits makes a difference to your bills, make sure you’re tracking your usage. The Utrack by Uswitch app connects to your smart meter and can show you the impact on bills with hourly graphs, comparing gas and electricity use by day, week, month and year.”
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