UK households facing higher energy bills this winter can reduce costs by using their television's power-saving settings, according to Money Saving Expert. The Ofgem price cap for a typical household paying by direct debit currently stands at £1,723 per year, but energy analysts at Cornwall Insight forecast this could climb to £1,999 in January.
TV Settings and Energy Costs
Money Saving Expert reports that the average cost of running a TV per hour is 0.79p. A Sky Q box can cost 1.18p per hour, while a PlayStation 5 can cost up to 5p per hour. On average, households across the UK spend roughly four hours a day watching television.
Most televisions have power-saving settings that automatically adjust screen brightness to reduce energy consumption. If your TV lacks that setting, you can manually adjust brightness and contrast. Switching the picture mode to the "standard" option is the most energy-efficient choice. Some televisions also feature a sleep timer that automatically switches off the TV after inactivity.
Reducing TV Box Energy Use
Changes to TV boxes can also help reduce energy consumption. Many models come with an eco mode setting. Sky Q boxes feature an eco mode that powers down the box between 2:30am and 5:45am. Virgin and BT offer similar options, so look out for the "eco" or "power saving" settings.
Standby Mode Savings
Switching off devices completely rather than leaving them on standby is preferable. According to the Energy Saving Trust, households can save £45 a year by turning devices off standby. However, devices consume considerably less energy on standby than when actively in use. Under EU legislation, TVs and other devices manufactured after 2013 cannot use more than 0.5 watts in standby mode.
Money Saving Expert explained: "For perspective, a TV left on standby for 20 hours a day would cost about £1 a year. Similarly, even power-hungry devices such as games consoles use only small amounts of energy while on standby. A PlayStation 5, for example, uses just 0.4 watts in standby mode (assuming it's not downloading any updates or charging controllers). This would cost less than a penny if left on standby all day."
