Common mistake drying clothes is causing energy bills to rocket - but there's an easy fix

If you're drying your clothes on a radiator then pay attention - as you could be making your energy bills skyrocket. The wild weather on British soil could leave you unable to hang your clothes outside, and while it could make sense to hang them over a radiator, the practice could be pumping up your monthly energy consumption.

Thankfully, there's an easy fix though. The rookie error of using radiators actually allows heat to become trapped - which means that they may need to run for longer. It can also increase mould growth, something that nobody wants to deal with.

The experts at Which? have shared the importance of avoiding radiator drying in an Instagram post. The experts explained that setting your heating to 20 degrees will allow your boiler to stop when it hits the optimum temperature - but when wet or damp clothes cover the radiator, it can act as a 'barrier to the heat'.

• Read more: 'Perfect time' to check energy bills now as average household can get £210 back

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Which? explained: "This means you could be heating your room for a lot longer than you need to."

The Mirror reports that so while it may dry your clothes quicker, you wont feel the benefit of having your heating on while in-turn increasing the risk of mould growing in your home. The easy fix is to place an airer near a radiator, with experts claiming: "It might take longer, but helps the air to circulate around the room.

"If you want to speed that up, you might want to buy a heated airer."