Consumer experts have shared the simple tips and tricks that will help to cut the cost of your laundry by more than $500 a year, and how you can save money on electricity, water, detergent and more.
Choice explained that by making a few easy changes to the way in which you wash your clothes, you can save $536 over the course of 12 months.
Comparing two scenarios including one that is the common set-up for most homes, the consumer experts showed how easy it is to boost your bank balance.
So what are the six tricks you need to know?
Consumer experts have shared the simple tips and tricks that will help to cut the cost of your laundry by more than $500 a year (stock image)
1. Run full loads of washing
The first – and perhaps most important – tip to remember with your washing is that it’s much better to do a full load of washing every two days than it is to do half a load of washing every day.
‘A full laundry basket is only around 3.5kg of laundry, and your machine can take much, much more – so much you may even have trouble getting the door shut,’ Choice’s laundry and white goods expert Ashley Iredale said.
‘Your machine can still get your clothes clean, even packed in that tightly. Just remember that not all programs are suitable for a full capacity wash.’
The first – and perhaps most important – tip to remember with your washing is that it’s much better to do a full load of washing every two days than it is to do half a load of washing every day (stock image)
2. Wash on a cold setting
Secondly, the consumer experts highlighted that you’ll get ‘pretty much the same cleaning power’ from a cold wash as you will a warm wash, but you’ll use far less electricity.
They found that if you were to switch from washing a half load every day on a warm wash to washing a full load every two days on a cold wash, you could save yourself an impressive $135.854 per year.
3. Switch to a cheaper detergent
Just because detergent is expensive, it doesn’t mean it’s good.
Choice recently found that the top performing laundry detergents range all the way from 13 cents per wash all the way up to 86 cents per wash.
In fact, one of the top performers is Aldi’s Almat Concentrate Arctic Breeze, which costs 13c per wash, or $47.45 per year.
By switching from Omo’s Active Powder Front Loader (50c per wash, $182.50 per year) to the Aldi, you can save $134.55 per year in detergent costs.
While you might think using more detergent means cleaner clothes, Choice are quick to highlight that overdoing it with powder can actually have the opposite effect (stock image)
4. Use less detergent
While you might think using more detergent means cleaner clothes, Choice are quick to highlight that overdoing it with powder can actually have the opposite effect.
‘You’ll find that using just a third of the recommended amount of laundry detergent will still give you excellent results – and your detergent will last three times longer,’ Ashley said.
Using a third of a scoop of the Aldi detergent would cost you just $14.24 per year in detergent.
According to Choice, fabric softeners often reduce the moisture absorbency of your laundry, which means bad things for sheets, clothes and towels (the ways to cut costs pictured)
5. Skip fabric softener
Fabric softener is a pricey and often unnecessary addition to your washing.
According to Choice, softeners often reduce the moisture absorbency of your laundry, which means bad things for sheets, clothes and towels.
By ditching fabric softener, you could save as much as $73 per year, based on one wash per day.
Finally, Choice said by using your dryer sparingly and instead opting to dry your clothes on a washing line, you can save $153 over the course of the year (stock image)
6. Use your dryer sparingly
Finally, Choice said by using your dryer sparingly and instead opting to dry your clothes on a washing line, you can save $153 over the course of the year.
‘If you do need to use the dryer, make sure you’ve used the highest spin speed available on your washing machine to get as much water out of your laundry as possible – that way you won’t need to run the dryer as long,’ Choice explained.
This can also make a big difference to your bills.