An Aussie pensioner who's been struggling with the rising cost of living has resorted to flicking off the switch on his power, which he says has now saved him hundreds of dollars.

The penny pinching retiree might be living in darkness with his self imposed blackouts, but Lofty, 74, from Newcastle said there's a method to his madness.

"All the power that comes into the (metre) box, you don't have to pay for. It's only going from the box into the house, that you have to pay for," Lofty told A Current Affair.

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"That's what I cut off when I turn all them switches off."

Everyday the 74-year-old turns his electricity off at 8.00am.

He then turns "the radio on" which he said runs on batteries and only costs him "$1.25 each" and Lofty said he has a technique which makes them last too.

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"What I do to save batteries … I put them in a plastic bag … but only two at a time and put it in the freezer," he explained.

"It recharges them, but you've got to leave them in there for seven days for them to do it."

He said there's other ways he gets by with limited power as well, which includes boiling the jug and then putting it in a thermos, before switching the power off each morning.

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"It's (the thermos) got two cups and one on the top and you get three cups out of it," he said.

He said that gets him by until lunch time.

At 11.30am he turns the power box outside on, for lunch and also switches on the light, stove and water so he can cook.

But he only has it on for 25 minutes and by 11.55am Lofty turns the electricity off again.

He turns it on again at 5.00pm for the night.

It's been three months since he started his self imposed blackouts and it's paying off.

He said before he started turning the power metre off his energy bill was $678, but afterwards another bill only cost him $152.72.

He said now he's "in credit of $522".

"If you want to save money, it's the only way to do it, you can't save on food or water or anything else but you can save on that," he said.

Lofty said he believes his method is going to save him $2026.73 a year, but like most pensioners, he's been doing it tough.

"It is hard enough living as it is, with the cost of everything going up … you only have to go shopping (to see), most of the shelves are bare," Lofty said.

"I have to change my eating habits … you can't live out of tin food all the time.

"I can only drive my car once a fortnight because the petrol is too dear."

Lofty said he's saving money and reducing his power consumption at a time when we're being told there's potentially not enough to go around.

While Lofty has managed to see some savings with his power, not everyone is convinced his approach is best.

"I think it's a bit bizarre to be honest, going out to the metre box and turning everything off," electrician Alex Murker said.

"I'd be worried about the fridge going off everyday and things not staying cool."

Murker urges everyone to remain cautious when handling electricity.

"Turning a circuit breaker or a safety switch on or off is safe, but it can get a little bit confusing because there is quite a lot going on in the metre box," he said.

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