Octopus Energy has suggested that reducing shower time to just four minutes could cut up to £45 a year off energy bills for a typical household. The advice, which also includes a potential saving of 17,000 litres of water annually, comes as the weather turns colder and the price cap recently increased.
How Shower Length Affects Bills
The length of time spent in the shower directly affects water and energy bills, according to the energy provider. On its website, Octopus Energy said: "Keeping your shower time to just four minutes could save a typical household £45 a year." The advice originated from the Energy Saving Trust, a UK-based organisation promoting energy efficiency since 1992.
The trust claims that taking a four-minute shower "could save a typical household in Great Britain £45 a year" and that the average household will "also save 17,000 litres of water a year". Studies show that many people spend up to 10 minutes washing each time they shower, and reducing this to four minutes could substantially cut energy consumption.
Additional Water and Energy Savings
The trust also recommends skipping baths in favour of showers. It says: "Some of us might enjoy a long soak in the bath, but swapping just one bath a week with a four-minute shower could save you £10 a year in Great Britain."
Octopus Energy also backs swapping out a standard shower head, claiming it "can save an extra £25 per year on energy and water heating".
Other Energy-Saving Tips
Phil Steele, Future Technologies Evangelist at Octopus Energy, suggests a lesser-known hack he calls the '6.30pm rule'. He said: "Something as simple as closing your curtains when it gets dark can help keep warmth inside your home, particularly if you have thick or thermal curtains. Just make sure they don't hang over your radiators, as this can trap heat behind them rather than warming the room.
"It's a small change that can help you make better use of the heating you're already paying for."
