Brits still using almost twice as much energy as necessary to wash their laundry

Nearly half of Brits are still using almost twice as much energy as necessary to wash their laundry, according to research.

A poll of 1,000 adults who are responsible for the washing in their household found 48 per cent set their machine to 40 degrees as standard.

One in five believe washing above 30 degrees means ‘it gets the whites whiter’, and a further 34 per cent think a lower temperature wash means a sub-standard clean.

However, if every household in the UK turned their washing from 40° to 30° for even just one year, it would save CO2 emissions equivalent to powering 1,550 homes.

The good news is that this is a drop of 12 per cent from figures 12 months ago, suggesting eco-friendly habits are creeping into more Brits’ households.

The study was released by Ariel, for WWF-UK’s #VoiceForThePlanet campaign for Earth Hour –encouraging everyone to add their voice and make a pledge to protect the planet by taking simple, everyday actions to reduce their impact on the environment.

Ariel is giving WWF-UK £1 per pledge made over the Earth Hour campaign.

The study also found more than a third of respondents would be happy to wash their clothes at a lower temperature if they knew it would save money.

But the majority say assurances about their laundry coming out fresh and clean is the number one consideration.

And of those who do their washing at 30˚, 50 per cent do it because they care about the environment and want to save energy.

A further 61 per cent claim their washing comes out just as clean and fresh when washed at a low temperature, according to the OnePoll study.

Ariel senior communications manager Scott Popham, said: “Our long running ‘Turn to 30˚’ initiative calls for exactly the kind of behaviour change that can have a big environmental impact.”

Add your #VoiceForThePlanet and Turn to 30 this Earth Hour, March 30th 8.30pm.