How much it really costs to run an electric fan in a heatwave | Personal Finance | Finance

With the UK heatwave set to return this weekend and bake Brits in temperatures around 30-32C, everyone’s sure to once again turn to ways to keep cool reliably and for as little as possible. The Met Office is predicting temperatures will begin to rise from today, with sweltering 32C temperatures peaking on Saturday, and three days of 31C conditions either side of that, on Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

Even though experts have warned that electric fans don’t cool a room, and aren’t recommended for us at all in true heatwave conditions above 35C, many millions of Brits still use fans to try to stay chilled in the summer warmth. But heating experts at BOXT have worked out the true cost of running an electric fan, especially with many people leaving them switched on overnight.

Right now, the average Ofgem electricity unit costs 25.73p, but yours may be higher if you’re in a specific area, or have a tariff which changes price by day, or for example you use a credit meter, which usually charges more.

Next, you need to work out the kW output of your fan. You can do this by checking its wattage, which can be found on the fan or the instruction leaflet. Once you know the wattage, convert this figure into kilowatt-hours by simply dividing the wattage by 1,000. This will reveal the amount of energy your fan uses per hour.

Multiply these two figures, the cost of a unit of energy by the kW output of your fan, and that will be how much it costs to run your fan per hour. To work out how much this is costing you per day, you can multiply by how many hours your fan is switched on.

Boxt ran the numbers. Adjusted for current prices, the findings are:

• Box fans consume 0.073 kWh worth of electricity per hour at full speed. With an average electricity price of 24.5p, these fans would cost up to 1.87p per hour. For an eight-hour working day, this would cost 15.02p.

• Tower fans use 0.0565 kWh on average, costing around 1.45p per hour to run. If left on for 24 hours, this would add around 34.8p to your energy bill.

None of those figures sound like a lot in isolation, but running a fan for three months at 15p a day would add £13.50 to your electricity bill. If you had three fans running in your household for 90 days, you’d be looking at £40.50 on your electricity bill, in addition to all your other household appliances’ costs.

Andy Kerr, founder at BOXT, said: “As temperatures rise, consumers often look for ways to cut their bills. However, it is possible to cost-effectively cool your household with fans during the summer months. Whilst the average 110w floor fan uses 2.7p of energy an hour or 64.8p a day, which would add £20.05 to your monthly energy bills, this price can be lowered if you are strategic with your fan and utilise their strengths.

“Many will keep their fans in storage during the colder months. However, this means they will have accumulated a lot of dust once you get them out – reducing their efficiency. Before switching them on, be sure to remove any dust from the blades and any other surfaces before using your fan to boost their efficiency.

“Fans are their most efficient on their lowest power setting, so pick the slowest speed which will give you a decent cooling breeze. Additionally, whilst you may be tempted to place your fan in front of an open window to try and improve its cooling effect, if it’s an especially hot day, this may result in blowing warm air throughout your home. Instead, you should try placing a bowl of ice cubes or cold water in front of the fan, which will help to circulate a cool breeze throughout your property.”