![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/OP_TRP_FANCOST.jpg\")
<\/p>\nAS the weather heats up it is tempting to reach for a fan to keep temperatures down in your home – but how much will it cost you?<\/p>\n
Whether it is a desk fan for when you are working from home or a larger one to keep your bedroom cooler at night most Brits make sure they have one secured for the summer months.<\/p>\n
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But with the rising cost of living on everyone's minds, it might be worth knowing just how much it is costing you to keep cool.<\/p>\n
Household bills are generally lower during the summer months as there is no need to use the tumble dryer or have the heating on.<\/p>\n
But be careful not to cancel those savings out with your new household gadget.<\/p>\n
So, just how much does running a fan add to your energy bills?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Here's everything you need to know.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
To work this out you need to find out how much electricity your fan uses.<\/p>\n
First, you need to find out its "wattage", which will give you the answer and tell you the amount of power it's using.<\/p>\n
Then you need to find the total output you will have to turn that wattage into kilowatt hours.<\/p>\n
There's a little bit of maths involved though.<\/p>\n
First, you have to divide the kilowatt hours by 1,000 which will give you how much output is used in one hour.<\/p>\n
Therefore, if your fan is 70 watts output on its high setting and you always use this, divide 70 by 1000 = 0.07.<\/p>\n
You then need to multiply this number by the number of hours you've used the fan.<\/p>\n
For example, if you're using it for 12 hours at a time, then 0.07kW x 12 hours will mean 0.84kW output.<\/p>\n
One you have your kilowatt output, you need to multiple it by the amount you are charged for 1 kW of electricity.<\/p>\n
There is no standard price for electricity cost per kWh in the UK, so you'll need to look at your energy bill to find this amount.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Based on the price cap from July, suppliers will be able to charge up to 30p per kWh for electricity.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
With this in mind, you'd take your 0.84kW, and times it by 30 – equalling 25.2p.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The equation is: cost = power (kilowatt) \u00d7 time (hour) \u00d7 cost of 1 kWh (pence).<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
So if your fan costs 25.2p to have on for that long, and you have it on for a full week, that adds up to \u00a31.76.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
If you repeated that across a month of 4.5 weeks, the cost would be \u00a37.92.<\/p>\n
Obviously, costs will vary depending on what type of fan you have, how long you're using it for, what setting it's on and how much you pay for your energy.<\/p>\n
Uswitch energy expert Ben Gallizzi said: "Running a 70W fan for 12 hours overnight will cost you almost 28p at current electricity prices, falling to just over 25p when the price cap drops on July 1.<\/p>\n
"With temperatures forecast to rise towards the weekend, millions of households will soon be searching in attics and garages for their electric fans.<\/p>\n
"Try placing a bowl of ice cubes in front of your fan to send a cooling breeze around your room, and make sure to keep your device free of dust to make sure it runs as efficiently as possible."<\/p>\n
IF you’re trying to calculate energy usage the terms can be confusing, according to OVO Energy<\/p>\n
kW stands for kilowatt. A kilowatt is simply 1,000 watts, which is a measure of power.<\/p>\n
A kilowatt hour (kWh) is a measure of energy.<\/p>\n
So a 1,000 watt drill needs 1,000 watts (1 kW) of power to make it work, and uses 1 kWh of energy in an hour.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why, if you leave a TV or computer on standby, it is still using power and creating a kWh cost on your energy bill<\/p>\n
Although fans can't make a room cooler, they can make you feel cooler.<\/p>\n
The air moving over your skin can lower your body temperature but won't do much about the heat inside a room.<\/p>\n
So if you don't plan on being in the room there's no point in leaving the fan on as it won't do anything to the heat inside the room itself.<\/p>\n
Relying on just a fan to keep you cool could be adding to bills during a heatwave, but there are other options you could try.<\/p>\n
You could try cooling your sheets down before bed by sticking them in the freezer, according to TikTok star That Property Guy.<\/p>\n
Shutting curtains and blinds during the day can help the house stay cool, while opening the windows on both sides of your home can create a cooling through-breeze without the cost.<\/p>\n
He also recommends avoiding using the oven and turning off appliances which are not in use as they kick off heat too, even on standby.<\/p>\n
Tom Church, Co-Founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, said that having a cool shower before bed can set you up for the night to avoid overheating.<\/p>\n
You could try putting hot water bottles in the freezer, or a plastic bottle if you don't have one.<\/p>\n
You could also make your fan work harder by putting a a bowl of with water and ice in front to cool down the house.<\/p>\n
We have also calculated how much it costs to leave your air conditioner on all night.<\/p>\n
It's not just us struggling in the heat, here's eight gadgets to keep cool in a heatwave – including your furry friends.<\/p>\n