Worried about the latest raft of bills to land on your doormat? You're not alone. But fear not - because the home of the future promises to cut our bills in a number of weird and wonderful ways.

It sounds like fantasy, but scientists are already working on a number of technologies that promise to make the home cheaper and easier to take care of. Here are some of our favourite ways the home of the future will save you money.

Self-cleaning materials

Need a window cleaner? That'll be £5 a week. Car wash? Call it £10 for a proper job. And let's not get started on all the expensive sprays, soaps and creams you'll need to keep the inside of your home clean. Thankfully, the home of the future will make things much easier (and hopefully cheaper).

Self-cleaning materials, which repel dirt, liquid and bacteria, will make keeping your home clean a much easier task. Self-cleaning windows that clean themselves when it rains are already available, as are 'oleophobic' touchscreens (that's the reason your smartphone doesn't get as greasy as your old phone did). It's likely we'll see more and more of this technology throughout the home in the years to come.

Of course, things will still need a wipe down every now and then - or you could just get your robot butler to do it…

Robot butlers

It may seem like sci-fi, but in the future many of us could have our own robot butlers to do our bidding. All those jobs you hate doing round the house? Let Ro-butler take care of it!

In fact, Japanese scientists have already created a robot that can pour & serve tea and wash dishes - and there's every reason to believe the robots of the future could be more capable than humans at boring household chores.

On a more serious note, it's hoped that robots will be able to help care for the elderly - particularly in Japan, where more than a fifth of the population are over 65.

How will it save you money? Well, it's probably cheaper in the long run than hiring a real butler.

TVs and smartphones that re-use their own energy

The TVs and mobile phones of the future will be able to turn light into energy - and not just sunlight. Scientists at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have created new screen technology that can actually use the device's own backlight as an additional source of power. In other words, it can re-use some of its own energy - up to 75% of the energy used for backlighting, to be precise.

The 'polarizing organic photovoltaic', to use its scientific name, can also use sunlight and even the light from a light bulb to draw energy - so you could be charging your phone just by taking it out of your pocket.

Smart windows that keep your home cool

Heat-reflective windows, which help keep your home cool in the summer and warm in the winter, are nothing new. However, current technology isn't perfect: the reflective film used to keep out the summer heat also limits the amount of sunlight that gets in during the winter, which means more need for central heating.

Electrochromic glass, also known as 'smart glass', gets around this problem. It can turn from clear to dark just by applying a small voltage, giving you greater control over the light that gets in. What's more, it's thought that the smart windows of the future will double up as solar panels that help to power your home.

App-controlled heating, lighting & appliances

British Gas have already got the ball rolling with their myHome app, which allows people to operate their central heating through their phone. But in the future, you'll be able to control more or less everything in your home through one system - even when you're not there.

Through your TV, computer or phone you'll have access to a full virtual map of your home, telling you the temperature in each room, what lights are on, what appliances are being used and more. More importantly, you'll be able to control everything from the comfort of your armchair - or even while you're at work or on holiday.

By controlling what's on and off in each room this way, you'll never end up leaving things switched on in rooms that people aren't using - and that means lower bills.

'Frozen smoke' insulation

No amount of double glazing or cavity wall insulation can prevent modern homes from feeling the chill during the winter. But the homes of the future will be insulated with an 'aerogel' material, also known as 'frozen smoke', that provides significantly better insulation than today's materials at a fraction of the thickness.

To put this into perspective, just 6mm of aerogel would provide the same insulation as three inches of fibreglass.

And it's not just good for keeping homes toasty warm. The material will also be used in thinner and lighter refrigerators, clothing and anything else that relies on insulation.

Better solar power

Solar power is becoming an increasingly important renewable energy source, but today's solar panels aren't all that efficient: the very best panels only use around 40% of the energy available, and a typical panel on a house roof uses less than half that. But as the technology improves, more and more of our energy will come from sunlight.

To improve the amount of electricity generated, scientists are working on 3D solar panels that can absorb almost as much energy on a cloudy day as when it's sunny. Today's flat panels only work well in direct sunlight, which isn't much good when you live in the UK!

Computers that check your home for faults

That sharp intake of breath before a plumber tells you how many months' salary your leaky tap is going to cost you: worse than nails down a chalkboard. But in the future, computers will constantly monitor the condition of your home and look out for faults.

In effect, this means you'll be warned that a water pipe is damaged before it bursts and floods your home - potentially saving you a fortune in repair bills. The same will apply to electrics, gas pipes and even the structure of your home.

Electric car charging points

Electric cars promise to significantly cut the cost of motoring, compared with fossil fuels like petrol or diesel. Even today's electric cars can deliver the equivalent of more than 100 miles per gallon, compared with just 38 miles per gallon for the average UK petrol or diesel car. That means fuel bills can already be more than halved by switching to an electric car - and there's every chance that they will become even more efficient in the future.

One problem for now is that electric cars can take a few hours to fully charge, especially if you're charging at home. In the future, fast-charge stations will be common, allowing people to charge their cars just as easily as they'd charge a laptop or mobile phone.

Quantum computers

Quantum computing isn't as close as some people have been led to believe, but once scientists crack it, it promises to bring super-computer speeds to the home.

While modern computers use billions of tiny 'transistors' to do their work, quantum computers will, in theory, use individual atoms to perform calculations. Put simply, that means powerful computer chips will take up much less space and much less material.

It's difficult to imagine exactly what we'll be using these super-computers for, but the possibilities are endless. Why create a boring spreadsheet when you can simulate another universe from your armchair?

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