Nick Knowles debunks common household myths as top 30 revealed

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Nick Knowles debunks common household myths as top 30 revealed

Millions of Brits swear by household ‘hacks’ they aren’t sure even work. A poll of 2,000 adults found half (49%) doubt the things they do in their home actually do the job, but carry on doing them anyway. Such habits include watering the grass at night, cleaning everything with vinegar, and placing conkers on windowsill to keep spiders away.

Other households always rinse dishes before putting them in the dishwasher due to warnings it is better for the dishwasher, or don’t use wooden chopping boards because they believe they are unhygienic without ever questioning whether they’re true or not.

It also emerged there is confusion about energy saving ‘hacks’, with some swearing by the belief that it’s automatically cheaper for everyone to use electricity at night, leaving heating on low all the time saves money, and painting radiators black maximises energy efficiency – but admit they do this without the knowledge that it works.

TV presenter Nick Knowles, has teamed up with Smart Energy GB to put some of the myths to bed. He said: “For a long time, I believed that lemon juice cleans everything, and that I’d definitely catch a cold if I went outside with wet hair.

“At the time you take it as gospel, but later on you realise some of it may not actually be true. The same goes for energy – lots of people think it’s cheaper to run the washing machine or charge the car at night, and this can be true, but you actually need to sign up to a specific tariff or scheme to be rewarded for using electricity flexibly.”

He said the good news is that more of these flexible tariffs and schemes are becoming available, meaning households with a smart meter can be rewarded for being flexible with their electricity.

The research went on to find 44% like to experiment with the way they do things around the home and 53% of those do this because they are looking for ways to save time.

For half of adults, the most popular way to get everyday household advice is from friends or family. And 40% say most of the tips they follow have been handed down through generations of relatives.

Social media and news articles are also popular sources of information. While two thirds (66%) make sure to double check what they’ve been told to make sure it’s accurate, according to the stats by OnePoll.

Around the same amount (67%) said they are always on the lookout for ways to save energy in their home, and 41% said they’ve changed their energy habits based on something they saw online.

A spokesperson from Smart Energy GB said: “Smart meters enable you to access schemes that reward you for being more flexible with your energy usage, which you can’t access with a traditional meter.

“That can be especially helpful at this time of year when we’re spending a lot more on heating, hot water and lighting. It’s great to see millions of smart meter owners are benefiting and saving money on their bills.”