Move your fridge and drop the ‘shoulds’ – 37 expert tips to winter-proof your life

theguardian.com:

Keep it away from heat sources, such as ovens, and try to keep it out of direct sunlight. Shift it forward so it’s not pressed against the wall, as this allows air to circulate more easily, so the fridge uses less energy. Cleaning behind it also helps. Meanwhile, a well-stocked fridge is cheaper to run than an empty one. Uswitch recommends putting bowls of water in there to keep it full between shopping trips.

Switching off and unplugging gadgets and chargers that you are not using can save money. It might only cost a few pence to leave a TV on standby for eight hours, but across lots of devices over time, that will add up. Some games consoles can be particularly power-hungry on standby.

If you are earning and on PAYE, check that your tax code is correct – you could be paying too much. If yours is wrong, you may be due a refund of hundreds or even thousands of pounds. The code will be on your payslip, and HM Revenue & Customs will often send letters containing it. If you have standard earnings from one employer and do not get taxable benefits or pay the child benefit charge, your code is likely to be 1257L. To get an idea of whether you are on the right tax code, try Moneysavingexpert.com’s online tax code calculator.

Check you are getting all the financial support you are entitled to by using a free online benefits calculator, such as those provided by the charity Turn2us and the website entitledto.co.uk. For example, more than a million eligible households are not claiming pension credit, which means they may also be missing out on the other help that this unlocks, such as a council tax discount and (for over-75s) a free TV licence.

Look at your phone, TV and broadband contracts and use comparison sites to see if you are