Martin Lewis explains how to calculate cost of household appliances as energy bill hikes hits millions

Martin Lewis has revealed how to calculate the energy cost of household appliances as millions start to feel the impact of the energy bill hikes.

It comes after the government’s new Energy Price Guarantee came into effect from 1 October, meaning bills are "frozen" at £2,500 for the average household for the next two years.

However, this government scheme is not a total cap on energy bills as it only caps the unit rates and standing charges you pay for gas and electricity. It means that if your energy usage is high you will end up paying more.

Families across the country will be looking to manage their budgets this winter as the new cap takes effect and the Mr Lewis has offered a simple tip to help households cut down on costs..

The MoneySavingExpert founder shared a tip on Twitter explaining how to calculate the cost of varoius houshold appliances, including toasters, washing machines, and microwaves.

In a short step-by-step tweet, he explained that to find out how much an appliance is costing you, you must first find its wattage. He said you should know that 1000W is a Kilowatt (kW) and you pay roughly 34p per kW per hour.

Mr Lewis added: "So 100W (a tenth of a kW) appliance on for two hours is 3.4p an hour x 2 = 6.8p"

The money expert said his calculation was a "rule of thumb" to give people an indication of running costs, rather than an exact amount. He also added that the calculation is most useful when talking about how much it will cost to switch on a specific appliance, rather than appliances that are constantly on.

Warning to house buyers

Martin Lewis has also warned house buyers to be aware of interest rates as they are expected to rise up to 6% next year – the highest in 30 years.

The finance guru suggested first time buyers should not buy a house now unless they are fully prepared and plan to live in it long term.

Mr Lewis appeared on Good Morning Britain last week to answer questions about the property market amid concerns over interest rates and said it is difficult to be sure what will happen with the housing market because we are “working with so many variables” and “no firm answers”.

However, the Money Saving Expert founder said there are warning signs, including the removal of hundreds of mortgage offers from the market last week and entions of possible 30-year high in mortgage costs.

He said on the breakfast show: “If you’ve got a decent deposit, and you’ve found a house that you love, and you’ve got a mortgage that is affordable for you, and you’re going to stay in that property for a long time, get on with it, buy your house.

“If you’re doing this because ‘this isn’t the house that I want but I feel I should do it before everything goes wrong and it all goes belly up’ – don’t buy your house.” He added: “There are no firm right answers and I apologise if we play this back in two years time and I was totally wrong, that’s possible.”