HOUSEHOLDS across the UK will be bracing for incoming cold weather and turning on their heated clothes airers.

The useful appliances can be set up in any room and are generally a cheaper alternative to tumble dryers.

We previously revealed the nine best options for this winter but supermarkets including Aldi usually sell them.

Energy bills are rising from October 1 when the new Energy Price Guarantee comes into effect, so households will be looking to use appliances like air dryers to cut back on their costs.

But how much does it cost to run one, and how does it compare to a tumble dryer?

We spoke to Uswitch who revealed how much it costs to run one under the current price cap, and what that will go up to from October 1.

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How much does it cost to run a clothes airer?

Heated clothes airers are like traditional ones, but you plug them in.

The bars of the dryer heat up, speeding up the time it takes to dry the clothes hanging on it.

You can buy covers for some as well, which speeds up the time it takes to dry your clothes.

The cost of running a drier depends on the wattage.

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One model currently on sale at Lakeland is 300watts, but you can get some for 1000watts.

We asked energy experts at USwitch to calculate the cost of running the 300w models, but you can use the same method to work it out for higher wattage ones.

Usually, the higher the wattage, the more it will cost to run.

A 300w dryer uses 0.3 kWh – a kilowatt hour is the unit of energy used for billing you electricity.

Currently, each kWh of energy you use costs 28p if you're on a duel fuel tariff.

That means it's 8p per hour to run a 300w clothes airer (0.3kWh x £0.28).

If you have it on for four hours, it would cost 32p, and over a year based on daily use, would add up to an estimated cost of just over £116.80.

Based on the new Energy Price Guarantee, which will come into force on October 1, running a heated airer for an hour will cost 10p.

So, if you had it on for four hours, it would cost 40p.

And over a year, based on daily use, would add up to an estimated cost of £146.

Of course the exact cost can depend on a number of other things as well as the wattage.

The annual cost will change if you use it more or less – for example you might dry your clothes outside instead on dry sunny days.

The price will also depend on how much you pay for your electricity.

You can check with your energy supplier what your electricity unit rate is and it may be on your energy bill too.

How much does it cost to run a tumble dryer?

Like with heated clothes airers, the price of running a tumble dryer depends on what type of machine you buy.

On average, Uswitch estimates a tumble dryer uses roughly 4.5 kWh of energy per cycle.

Each kWh of energy you use currently costs 28p if you're on a duel fuel tariff – which means that you'll be spending roughly £1.12 per cycle.

For big families who do three loads of washing a week, that could mean you're coughing up £174.72 a year tumble drying your clothes.

But the bill for smaller households who do just one cycle a week comes out at £58.24 annually.

After the October Energy Price Guarantee comes into force, each kWh of energy you use will cost 36p if you're on a duel fuel tariff.

This means you'll pay £1.44 per cycle of using the tumble dryer.

For big families doing three loads of washing a week, that would see you spending £224.64 a year tumble drying your clothes.

The bill for smaller households who just do one cycle a week would come out at £74.88.

How to reduce your bill

You can cut down on the cost of drying your clothes in a few different ways.

The most obvious one to save money is to hang them out instead of using a tumble dryer.

It won't cost you a penny, unless you don't have a clothes line, but with winter incoming, it might be harder to do this.

If your central heating is already on, you could place clothes on radiators throughout the house.

You could also save money on washing your clothes too by reducing the temperature you wash them at.

And Which? home products and services editor Lisa Barber said keeping your tumble dryer in good shape can help shave money off your bill.

"Maintaining your tumble dryer could also trim your bill, as filters blocking up with dust and lint from clothes can add nearly £20 to annual laundry costs," she said.

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And if you wondering the same for a microwave, we've got you covered.

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