Living standards in the USA were so high that by 1915 wealthy Americans were able to buy a tumble dryer. A tremendous amount of wealth was created in the USA during the 1940s and the tumble dryer became a common sight across America. By the 1950s dryers had most of the features we’d expect today: dryness sensors, temperature controls and a cooling cycle.

Today 79% of American households have a tumble dryer, with an estimated 7% of American electricity consumption in 2009 accounted for by clothes drying.

In the UK, where hanging clothes outside has always been more popular, the number of households with a tumble dryer has only ever reached 56%.

We expect that there is a PhD study out there somewhere looking in to the cultural reasons why the Brits love to hang their underpants out to dry whereas the Americans always reach for the tumble dryer. But a recent study by Churchill Home Insurance¹ caught our eye. In March 2023 they found that:

• Only 53% of households own a tumble dryer (the lowest figure since 2001)
• Of this 53%:
  • 38% of households use their tumble dryer less now than a year ago
  • 7% of households never use it.
  • Only 11% of households use it daily.
• Of the 47% of households that do not own a tumble dryer, over half said that cost was the key reason for not having one. 

Sarah Khan of Churchill home insurance, said: “Amidst rising energy bills…although once a staple household appliance…regular use of a tumble dryer now hangs in the balance.”

The standard of living in the UK is falling.

Standard of Living has a pretty straight forward definition:

So the answer seem to be clear enough. Living standards, using the metric of tumble dryer usage, is declining in the UK relative to a few years ago.

But much worse than that, it is declining relative to 1940s USA.

In a society where we take for granted that things always improve, and that your offspring will be better off than you, this is a bitter pill to swallow.

How can standards of living in the UK increase?

Brimstone Energy firmly believe that everyone in the UK should enjoy Energy Abundance.

We know that with a household investment in a Solar & Battery system, the marginal cost of using a tumble dryer can be zero.

But it gets better. The return on your investment in a Solar & Battery system improves the more energy you use.

So it is to your advantage to use your tumble dryer every day, should you need to. As long as your Solar system is generating enough over the course of the day to cover the tumble dryer (4.5kWh according to OFGEM), your battery system will store that energy and release it on demand.

Let Brimstone Energy help you achieve Energy Abundance. Enjoy rising living standards with us.

1. https://www.directlinegroup.co.uk/en/news/brand-news/2023/08022023.html#:~:text=According%20to%20Churchill’s%20research%2C%20most,week%20(20%20per%20cent). ↩︎