Expert shares best day to put up your Christmas tree to save on energy bills

Christmas is fast approaching and with it often comes added cost – if you’re looking to save on lighting costs, an expert has shared the best date to put up your tree.

Sam Tamlyn, Interior Expert and Managing Director at Shutterly Fabulous has identified the exact day to put up your Christmas tree to spend less than £1 on lighting.

By putting up your décor on December 1, you can keep entire Christmas lighting costs under £4.

Lighting a Christmas tree with 9-watt fairy lights costs just 66p for the entire Advent period, says Tamlyn.

For many, keeping bill costs low is an important factor to consider when decorating for the festive season.

With electricity rates now at 24.5p per kWh, homeowners can illuminate their homes for well under £4 during the festive season by following Shutterly Fabulous’ advice, ending the year without any unpleasant surprises. 

Shutterly Fabulous analysed Amazon’s top-selling 9-watt fairy lights to calculate the cost of lighting a Christmas tree over the entire Advent period (from 1 December to the Twelfth Night ‘6 January’) for under £1. 

It concluded that the total cost of running your lights for averagely eight hours per day over 37 days would be approximately 66p based on current power and energy consumption figures. 

Lighting up an entire house won’t break the bank either – Shutterly’s experts found that a combination of both indoor and outdoor decorations will only cost £3.62. 

To save money on Christmas lights, you can use LED lights which are more energy efficient and last longer than other bulbs meaning you’ll save money in the long run. LED lights also emit less heat meaning they are safe for home use.

Another tip is to set a timer which can help you to only keep your lights on when needed. This reduces energy consumption and helps you to save money on bills.

If you’re worried about costs, you can also limit usage of your lights – if you reduce the number of hours you keep them on each day, this can make a big difference.

Tamlyn said: “Christmas doesn’t have to break the bank. By choosing smarter choices for your festive lighting, such as using LED lights and setting timers, you have the best of both worlds; a beautifully decorated home and very low energy costs.”