UK homes are saving money and slashing emissions by changing laundry habits.
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41% of people admit to feeling guilty about the impact that doing laundry has on the environment
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In the past 12 months, 83% of UK households have made an effort to reduce their energy consumption
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Yet, over 9.5 million British households are still washing at 40°C or more
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To save money on energy bills and reduce CO2 emissions, AEG shares its five top tips to change the UK’s laundry habits and switch to 30°C wash
Long established behaviours around the home are changing in favour of the environment, as households seek to save on their energy costs, according to ‘The Truth About Laundry’ – the largest-ever European study of laundry habits from AEG.
81% of the 1,000 UK adults surveyed agreed the current energy crisis has made them think more about the energy used by their home appliances, and over half of those surveyed (60%) admitted energy efficiency will be a key consideration when they buy their next appliance.
However, despite this, the report revealed that over 9.5 million (34%) British households are still washing at 40°C or more. Additionally, many consumers are failing to take advantage of settings on their appliances that could be saving them energy. More than two thirds of those surveyed (69%) reported they consistently used the default time setting on their appliance, regardless of whether their clothes just need a slight refresh, and over half (61%) laundered using the default temperature setting.
With 87% of UK households believing it will be important to save money on their energy costs over the next 12 months, AEG has compiled a list of tips to help consumers make a difference to the planet and their pocket when it comes to energy usage:
Five steps to change:
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Make 30°C the new 40°C as often as possible. 34% of the UK is still washing at 40°C and above, let’s make the change to 30°C. Each year the total CO2 equivalent saved by one household switching from 40°C to 30°C is 27.2kg, meaning the UK has the potential to save thousands of tons of CO2 if more people make the switch1.
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Pick energy efficient appliances. They use less energy and are resource efficient which saves on energy bills and is kinder to the planet.
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Skip a wash, refresh instead. 62% of people in the UK say “getting rid of odors” is the main reason they wash their clothes. New technology now means consumers can refresh their clothes by steaming instead of running a full laundry cycle – maintaining that freshly washed feeling and tackling odors at a fraction of the energy cost.
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Unlock appliance potential. One effortless way to reduce energy costs and minimise the environmental impact is to explore the eco settings readily available on appliances.
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Start small, wash full. 46% of UK households are now washing full loads more often due to concerns over energy costs, so checking your laundry basket is full before washing is a small step to minimise resources and reduce costs.
Luke Harding, General Manager at Electrolux UK and Ireland, parent company of AEG, comments: “This new research, pulled together in our latest Truth About Laundry Report, highlights that consumers are already making a conscious effort to use less energy. These changes are working to drastically reduce carbon emissions and generate a positive environmental impact.
“However, it’s clear from our research that people still aren’t sure of how to use their machines in the most eco-friendly way, with 34% still washing above 30C. Therefore, it’s about educating our customers on the small steps we can all take in order to make a big change to the planet.”
The report highlighted some positives too with more than 13 million UK households already changing the way they launder in response to increasing energy prices;
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Over half (53%) of UK homes have reduced the wash temperature they use
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Nearly half (49%) have reduced the number of times they launder
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49% are wearing their clothes more often between washes
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Nearly 46% are washing full loads more often
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60% of the UK is now washing at 30°C or below, far above the average percentage of households adopting the same laundry habits across Europe (44%).
Harding continues: “It’s fantastic to see that households are starting to make small changes, where possible, as it highlights that people are wanting to move in the right direction. However, we’re aware that there’s still much more that can be done in order to lower energy usage and carbon emission, and these are just five easy, simple steps that all families can undertake to do their part.”
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NOTES TO EDITORS
All research was carried out by One Poll in December 2022 on a group of 1,000 nat rep.
Data calculated based on total figure of UK households at 28,100,000, as recorded in the 2021 Census.
1. A household saving up to 27.2kg of CO2-eq per year from turning down the wash temperature from 40°C to 30°C, is based upon decreasing washing temperature from Cotton 40°C cycle to Cotton 30°C cycle, using powder detergent, 8Kg FL WM delivers ~ 25% less impact on Global Warming Potential (GWP) of use phase. In real terms it reduces CO2 equivalent from 1436Kg CO2-eq to 1164 Kg CO2-eq over ten years or up to 27.2Kg of CO2-eq every year per household, based on one household having an average of one washing machine.
Click here for more information: Electrolux The Truth About Laundry 2023
