Personal finance guru Martin Lewis has warned about a ‘demon appliance’ which is the biggest energy guzzler in the home – and should be avoided at all costs.

Previously on his BBC Radio 5 podcast, Mr Lewis was offering advice amid skyrocketing energy bills. Mr Lewis highlighted one key appliance to use as sparingly as possible, as it can cost around £1 per use.

He said: “Do you know what the real ‘demon appliance’ is in most people’s houses – the one that you don’t want to use because it’s really expensive. Tumble dryers.

“You’re typically paying up to a quid per load so dry your clothes on an airer outside, to shorten the amount of time you’re using your tumble dryer, or avoid using it completely. Those who have dehumidifiers can take some of the moisture out of the air. It’s less wattage than a tumble dryer, so it can be more cost-effective.”

Live listener Rob had been noticing that his flat has become damp since trying to dry his laundry inside his home. He asked: “If I were to buy a dehumidifier, would it be cheaper than using the heating to keep the place dry?”

Martin answered: “Dehumidifiers take water out of the air rather than use the heating and they’re much lower wattage appliances than standard heating. So if the dehumidifier works for you, it will definitely have lower electricity bills.”

One of the problems is radiators heating areas which do nothing to increase the temperature and escape outside rapidly. Speaking previously on his BBC Podcast, Mr Lewis has said that people should consider using reflective panels behind radiators – to send the heat back into the room rather than through the wall to outside.

He said: “A tip for you reflective panels behind radiators. Sheets of reflective material can be placed behind radiators. Crucially, this is on external wall radiators, so the heat doesn’t escape. If you don’t want to pay for those, then tin foil can work, although it doesn’t work quite as well.”

He added: “If you’ve got radiators in rooms that you’re not using, go and turn them off before you turn the heating on so you’re not wasting cash overheating empty spaces.

“Changing the flow rate on your boiler can cut gas bill by over 9% and you won’t notice the change.”