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Smart plugs could save you £100 over two years - and these are our top picks Posted: 16 Feb 2022 12:00 AM PST A small investment in affordable smart plugs could save you a bundle over time, and make your entire house that bit more clever in the process. Right now we’re all trying to figure out easy ways to reduce our regular outgoings, whether that’s shopping around for the best energy bills or changing up our go-to supermarket. But many don’t realise how much cash could be saved just by making their ordinary household technology and appliances a little smarter – with very minimal upfront costs. So we’re not talking about spending thousands on the best new smart fridge or throwing away every inefficient device in your home, but rather adding some smart plugs to minimise the energy wasted by technology left on standby (or even that lamp you always forget to turn off!). You can then control your electronics using just your phone, or one of the best smart speakers if you want to dive further into the automated homeworld. According to research by Ocean Finance, enlisting smart home products in the fight against rising bills has the potential to save you more than £400 over just two years, with smart plugs just one of the quick, inexpensive fixes available. With a smart plug, you can set routines for your electronics to turn on only when they’re needed, and some even turn your devices off and on depending on whether you’re home or not. The same is true of smart bulbs, and you can read more about these in our guide to the best smart lighting. Our pick of the best smart plugs to get you started – from £14.99 TP-Link Tapo P110 Mini Smart Wi-Fi Socket The Tapo P110 is a compact smart plug that gives you a choice between controlling your appliances and devices with a smartphone or tablet, or a smart speaker with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant on board. Away mode automatically powers the plug down when you’re not at home, and you can also monitor your power usage in real-time within the app – handy! View Deal Wiz Wi-Fi Enabled Smart Plug Another budget smart plug, this one from Wiz also works with Siri so, if you’re in an Apple household, could be the best choice. The smart plug lets you set routines, use voice control and switch them on and off from anywhere (as long as you have your phone with you). It’s also incredibly easy to set up. View Deal Amazon Smart Plug A slightly more expensive option at £24.99, the Amazon Smart Plug is still a bargain when you consider how much it could save you over time. Of course, the plug works with Echo devices, but you can use it even without a smart speaker, with the ability to set routines and schedules within the Alexa app. View Deal Ideas for what to use with a smart plug Lamps and fairy lights – who doesn’t want to walk into their bedroom and see that it’s already turning into a cosy oasis? Connect your bedside lamp or mains-powered fairy lights with a smart plug and set them to come on 5-minutes before bedtime. Coffee machines, microwaves and other small appliances – appliances left in standby mode can be big energy wasters, especially when many of them aren’t used after breakfast time. Have your smart plug schedule switch them off when they’re not needed.  Space heaters and fans – ever leave the house before panicking that you’ve left the space heater going? Well, smart plugs not only let you check on things from the bus, the office or a friend’s house, but can often also switch off automatically when you’re a certain distance from home.     The post Smart plugs could save you £100 over two years - and these are our top picks appeared first on Ideal Home.

DIYers share dark navy blue kitchen makeover – and it only cost £80 Posted: 15 Feb 2022 11:00 PM PST A couple has transformed their kitchen by painting the cabinets dark navy and replacing the handles. Tom and Katie described the navy blue kitchen makeover as the ultimate ‘trust the process’ project, and you’ll see why. The savvy pair revamped the space with their bold and beautiful navy kitchen ideas and only spent £81.57. Before Image credit: Tom & Katie @tomkatshouse The white kitchen was in the house when Tom and Katie moved in a few years ago. ‘It wasn’t exactly what we wanted,’ Katie says, ‘but we had so much work to do in the rest of the house that it wasn’t a priority. ‘It was easy to ignore it when I left the house to go to work every day, but over the various lockdowns, I got tired of looking at it! I decided that in the absence of a full kitchen renovation I’d try to do what I could quickly, cheaply, and easily to make the best of the kitchen we already had,’ Katie shares. She admits that bringing her blue kitchen ideas to life was daunting. But the choice of this bold kitchen colour scheme paid off, with some guests assuming it’s a brand new fitted kitchen. After Image credit: Tom & Katie @tomkatshouse Before getting out the paint rollers, Katie and Tom did all the boring-but-necessary prep. They removed the existing handles, cleaned the cupboard surfaces, and applied masking tape to the edges around the countertop and walls. They also used a degreaser spray and lint-free cloth to remove grease and fingerprints on the surfaces. Next, they used abrasive pads to remove the shiny gloss finish from the cupboard doors. Then, Katie used a small roller (plus a smaller brush to get into the edges closest to the wall and countertop) to paint on a coat of primer. The next day, she used a roller and a smaller brush to paint the surfaces in Steel Blue paint. Four coats were needed to get a totally opaque coverage. Image credit: Tom & Katie @tomkatshouse When the paint was finally dry, Katie attached the new handles. She also used the grout reviver on all the tile grout to brighten it up and give a more uniform white. They made use of a degreaser spray and abrasive pads that they already had, and the cost of the primer, paint, copper handles, and grout revival came to just £81.57. Expertly done. The post DIYers share dark navy blue kitchen makeover – and it only cost £80 appeared first on Ideal Home.

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