At a time when things feel more expensive than they’ve ever been, many are looking for ways to save money on everyday expenses.
Unfortunately, many of the costs of daily life are non-negotiable. However, some have managed to find methods for reducing their average spending. These include cleaning the air conditioning unit to improve efficiency or splitting drinks with free refills. Also, some save money on groceries by being a little unethical.
Now, an internet user has people talking after revealing her way to save money on her bills. It involves choosing which time you do your everyday chores.
Is it cheaper to do your laundry at night?
In a video with over 359,000 views, TikTok user Maisha (@maisha_thealchemist) explains that, for some people, utility bills are not based solely on how much of your utilities you use.
“There’s dynamic pricing on our utilities,” she states. “Yes, our electricity, and our water, and, of course, sewer.”
So what does this mean in practical terms? According to Maisha, by doing things like washing the dishes and running your washing machine at night, you can save a considerable amount of money.
“It’s cheaper to do it at night, because a majority of Americans tend to work daytime-running jobs, and those people that run daytime-running jobs have somebody at home that is also maintaining the house at the same time,” she explains. “So, if you wash your clothes on opposite times than what the majority do, it’s gonna cost you less over time.”
Is this true?
In general, a person’s utilities can be billed in one of two ways: at a fixed rate, or through something called “time-variable pricing,” or TVP.
As noted by the U.S. Department of Energy, with TVP, “electricity prices vary at different times of day (and often seasonally).”
“Most utilities offer at least one TVP option for any given customer class,” the site reads. “These often include simple time-of-use (TOU) rates, where prices move at set times and amounts through the day—generally with an afternoon peak period, overnight off-peak hours, and two ‘shoulder’ periods in the hours in between.”
The goal of such programs is to encourage and reward consumers for using electricity at times when less strain is put on the electrical system.
That said, these programs are not universal, so if you’re wondering whether you could benefit from doing your laundry at night as Maisha claims, you might want to reach out to your utilities providers to see if you are subject to time-variable pricing.
Creator responds
In an email to the Daily Dot, the TikToker recounted her history with the program.
“I learned about this when I was about 16. Actually, my mother found out from the electric company when we had moved into an apartment in Nevada around 2005…and she told me to not wash large piles of dishes during the day, and wait till evening and wash my clothes at night,” the TikToker stated.
“I didn’t notice the impact until I moved into my own apartment by 2010. My first bill was like $200 and I didn’t understand why until my mom came over and reminded me that I need to Unplug what I don’t use until 9 PM,” she added. “That dropped my bill from 200 to 80 dollars.”
While she says she understands why this pricing is in place, she says that electric companies could “push even further” in their implementation of such programs.
“I think that our country could push even further with maximizing this type of pricing dynamic by adding in the hundreds of thousands of solar panels across the country (owned by [people] like myself) to contribute to the grid and help the grid not work so hard, and of course, in turn offer citizens some reprieve on energy costs,” she wrote.
Commenters share their thoughts
In the comments section, several users thanked Maisha for the advice, though many questioned why it was cheaper to time out their utility use in the first place.
“Sounds like a scam. Like everything else,” said a user.
“Why isn’t anyone talking about why this is the standard why!!!! Why do utilities companies do this!” exclaimed another.
“So it does pay off to be a night owl,” stated a third.
The Daily Dot reached out to Maisha via email.
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