--- title: The cost of running a household description: I used the energywise running costs calculator to work out the approximate costs of some of our key appliances, and it was a really interesting exercise. --- [0800 030 646](tel:0800030646) - Search - [Contact Us](https://nzhl.co.nz/contact-us/) - [Find Us](https://nzhl.co.nz/find-us/) - [Client Login](https://nzhl.co.nz/login/) [![NZHL](https://blog.nzhl.co.nz/hubfs/Nzhl_January2019%20Theme/Images/logo-footer-nzhl.png)](https://nzhl.co.nz/) - [Home Loans](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans) - - [Change to NZHL](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/switch-to-nzhl/) - [Buying your first home](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/first-home/) - [Buying your next home](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/next-home/) - [Interest rates](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/interest-rates/) - [Home Loan calculators](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/tools-calculators/) - [FAQ](https://nzhl.co.nz/about-nzhl/faq/) - - [How much could I borrow?](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/tools-calculators/) - [Where's my nearest office?](https://nzhl.co.nz/find-us/) - [How much deposit do I need?](https://nzhl.co.nz/home-loans/first-home/getting-a-deposit/) - [Insurance](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance) - - [Your Life](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance/your-life/) - [Your Health](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance/your-health/) - [Your Home and Car](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance/your-home/) - [Your Income](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance/your-income/) - [Request a quote](https://nzhl.co.nz/insurance/request-a-quote/) - [FAQ](https://nzhl.co.nz/about-nzhl/faq/) - - [NEW! 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It got me thinking about what in our home actually uses the most power, and some of what I found was actually quite surprising. I used the energywise [running costs calculator](http://www.energywise.govt.nz/tools/running-costs-calculator)  to work out the approximate costs of some of our key appliances, and it was a really interesting exercise. This is approximately how much my appliances cost to run each year: - Heat Pump (Living Area) $136.87 per year\*(heating four months of the year) - Head Pump (Bedroom) $61.23 per year\* (heating four months of the year) - Dishwasher (5 loads per week) $52.88 - Fridge / Freezer (main) $89.92 - Fridge / Freezer (garage) $89.92 - Little Freezer $70.35 - Washing Machine $79.14 (10 loads per week on warm) - TV $39.97 - Computer $50 *\* note: heat pump costs are only for heating, does not include use for cooling (I’ve no idea if cooling uses more or less energy than heating?)* ## Here are some of the things that surprised me: - I was really surprised that the dishwasher costed so little to use, and it was really good to see how much of a difference the energy stars made to the running cost. When it comes to buying new appliances I'll definitely be buying 5 stars where possible. - The running cost between a smaller and larger freezer aren't that hugely different, so buying a proper chest freezer wont cost us too much more to run and could potentially save a lot in foods costs (if I'm clever and organised). - I couldn't believe the difference in cost between doing warm vs cold washes in the machine. Warm washes nearly $80, change it to cold washes less than $20 a year! I don't think I'll be able to / want to do every single wash in cold water but for some of the more lightly soiled items this is a really good cost saving option. Even if I do 50% in cold it will still make a difference. - While heat pumps are some of the most energy efficient types of heating, they still chew through the power – the above costs are just for heating for 4 months of the year – if I double the costs to include cooling it would be nearing $400 per year to run the heat pumps- ouch! If I add up the above I know that it doesn't come anywhere near what our annual power bills come to so I'm going to do a bit more investigative work into what the other costs are that contribute to our power bill, particularly in regards to lighting and heating. This post first appeared on [Nested](http://www.nested.kiwi) , republished with permission. *The information contained in this article is of a general nature and should not be taken as advice. It reflects the opinions of the writer only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of New Zealand Home Loans.* *[![New call-to-action](https://hubspot-no-cache-ap1-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/default/5029003/15f9b75f-b0b2-4fde-a7e7-54af0db03053.png)](https://hubspot-cta-redirect-ap1-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/redirect/5029003/15f9b75f-b0b2-4fde-a7e7-54af0db03053)* - Emily Doran *Author* **Share this article** - LinkedIn - Facebook - Twitter - Google - Reddit - Tumblr ##### Related Articles Get in Touch With Us ##### Popular Posts [![Should you break your loan?](https://blog.nzhl.co.nz/hs-fs/hubfs/shutterstock_1233077740.jpg?width=300&name=shutterstock_1233077740.jpg)](https://blog.nzhl.co.nz/articles/should-you-break-your-loan) [**Should you break your loan?**](https://blog.nzhl.co.nz/articles/should-you-break-your-loan) 11 June 2015 In my recent article I spoke about the[impact of the OCR if you are floating](http://www.nzhl.co.nz/are-you-benefiting-from-the-ocr-drop/). 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