This week’s simple swap saves up to 59 per cent on the portion of your annual energy bill that relates to your washing machine, and it’s just by pushing a button.

This enormous saving is due to the eco settings on washing machines, provided you use a low temperature and this results in ‘saving up to 59 per cent of the energy of your washing machine’ according to The Guardian.

This is because heating the water takes the most energy, 90 per cent of a washing machine’s energy consumption comes from heat. The actual spinning of the drum uses very little power in comparison.

In addition, wash modes are always a mix of three things: temperature, time and water. With eco mode, you’re using less water and a lower temperature than most settings. Although, you are in for a longer wash to get the same level of cleaning.

Based on an average of eight loads of laundry per week, multiplied by four weeks in a month, the average monthly cost to do laundry is £166.72. This results in up to £99 in monthly savings. Over the course of a year, the savings could reach up to £1,188.

During, the 80 years average life span, you could see savings of up to £95,040 and this would increase depending on the number in your household.

In addition, studies show that the eco mode drastically reduces electricity consumption by 33 per cent and the water consumption by ‘36 per cent compared to a normal laundry cycle’, shown by the research of a consumer association in Spain.

On average, washing machines use 19 gallons of water per load, which, for the average household that runs between 5 and 6 loads per week, adds up to an unforeseen amount of 5,605 gallons of water per year: equating to an astonishing average water savings of 2,017 gallons of water.

To reduce your water footprint further always put on full load. Reducing our water footprint is quintessential as there is a growing water scarcity. Reservoirs that collect water from the River Thames supply much of London’s water, but the South East is classed as ‘seriously water stressed’. Climate change and a growing population are putting increasing pressure on the capital’s water supply.

Unless water use is drastically reduced, severe water shortage will affect the entire planet by 2040. “There will be no water by 2040 if we keep doing what we’re doing today” says Professor Benjamin Sovacool, Aarhus University, Denmark.

Reaching ‘Day Zero’ is the day when a city’s taps run dry and people have to stand in line to collect a daily quota of water. Countries like; South Africa, Morocco, India, Iraq and Spain, etc are already facing water scarcity.

It is extraordinary that the ‘eco mode’ on your washing machine can save you £1,188 annually just by pushing a button. Saving the planet, saving you money. Next week’s simple swap is another simple step in reducing your water footprint and reducing your bills.