Concerned over electricity usage

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 8 October 2017 at 7:21PM

Hello all.

I'm concerned about what is using my electricity whilst at work. I use a pre-payment meter.

I live alone in a two bedroom maisonette and when I go to work I come home and over £2 has been used each day. That may not sound a lot (?) but i'm using over £20 electricity per week including what I use in the evenings and I was speaking to a friend who spends more time in her home than I do mine and she spends £15 per fortnight! I've not even turned the heating on yet - I thought the amount I spent was normal until my friend told me her usage and then I look around the internet and it seems I am on the high side.

Aside the fridge and freezer, the only other things I can think of are the DVD Recorder recording from my Sky Box (old Sky Box, not Sky+ or HD) and the boiler that are used in the day. Bear in mind I work fairly short days - around 7 hours from me leaving in the morning to me coming home later in the day.

I'm thinking of avoiding recording on the DVD for one day to see what happens. Will it be cheaper to turn the boiler off when at work? I don't use hot water as soon as I get in but need it for my morning bath.

I know their is a standing charge of £2.01 per week, but not per day! My KwH price is £14.09 and their is no debt.

daveyjp · 8 October 2017 at 8:10PM

Dont worry about DVD players.

How do you heat water? Electric shower? Electric cooker? These are what really use power.

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 8 October 2017 at 8:16PM

daveyjp wrote: »

Dont worry about DVD players.

How do you heat water? Electric shower? Electric cooker? These are what really use power.

Water is through my electric boiler. I bathe in the morning so I suppose it re-heats whilst at work. No shower.

I don't have a cooker/oven - just a slow cooker, grill and hobs.

MeterMan · 8 October 2017 at 9:57PM

Turn off your boiler after your bath and see what it does tomorrow.

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 9 October 2017 at 9:06AM

It's turned off and i'll see the result when I get home.

Thanks.

Jsnb88 · 9 October 2017 at 9:55AM

By electric boiler do you mean an immersion heater? (A copper cylinder possibly coated in foam) or an actual electric boiler. If it is the cylinder and it is turned on all day/night that would be what’s costing you.

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 9 October 2017 at 5:11PM

Jsnb88 wrote: »

By electric boiler do you mean an immersion heater? (A copper cylinder possibly coated in foam) or an actual electric boiler. If it is the cylinder and it is turned on all day/night that would be what’s costing you.

Yes, it's an immersion heater.

So, had it off today and rather than over £2 spent whilst at work - 14p! Wow.

Now I know what it is that's doing it, rather than regretting what I have been doing, it's onwards and upwards and time to turn it off in the day.

Now, how long do these immersion heaters tend to take to heat up fully, for a full bath. I appreciate they may all be different, but on average?

I'm going to have to turn it on in the evening and also overnight so I have hot water for my bath in the morning and a bath in the evening plus washing up etc (or maybe i'll just go dirty in the evening

)

matelodave · 9 October 2017 at 6:31PM

Have you got a single rate or peak/off peak tariff (like E7) check your leccy bill.

If it's an E7 tariff, try setting the hot water heater on between 5-6 oclock in the morning and see how much hot water you have. If you are on an E7 tariff then it will cost you twice as much to heat the tank during the day or in the evening as it would if you heated it between midnight and seven am.

You'll probably find that there's enough for a bath both in the morning and the evening, especially if you don't fill it to your chin.

Do you really need two baths a day?. You could try showering although a shower will only save you money if you dont stand there for ages, limit it to five minutes maximum.

A properly insulated hot water tank will remain hot for around 24 hours so make sure the insulation is in good condition and if necessary put another insulatiung jacked over the one thats already there. Just turn it on for an hour and if that's not enough then try for an hour an half.

Start using water wisely. Dont rinse stuff (including your hands) under running water especially hot. Be aware that every time you turn on the hot tap to run off the cold until it's hot the the same amound of hot water sits in the pipework wasting energy. Save your washing up and only do it once a day.

It's also worth turning stuff off at the wal when it not being used and change your lightbulbs to LEDs. Just asving £2 a week is 3100 a year.

Start reading your meter weekly to find out where it's all going so you know how to save energy

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 9 October 2017 at 6:54PM

matelodave wrote: »

Have you got a single rate or peak/off peak tariff (like E7) check your leccy bill.

If it's an E7 tariff, try setting the hot water heater on between 5-6 oclock in the morning and see how much hot water you have. If you are on an E7 tariff then it will cost you twice as much to heat the tank during the day or in the evening as it would if you heated it between midnight and seven am.

You'll probably find that there's enough for a bath both in the morning and the evening, especially if you don't fill it to your chin.

Do you really need two baths a day?. You could try showering although a shower will only save you money if you dont stand there for ages, limit it to five minutes maximum.

A properly insulated hot water tank will remain hot for around 24 hours so make sure the insulation is in good condition and if necessary put another insulatiung jacked over the one thats already there. Just turn it on for an hour and if that's not enough then try for an hour an half.

Start using water wisely. Dont rinse stuff (including your hands) under running water especially hot. Be aware that every time you turn on the hot tap to run off the cold until it's hot the the same amound of hot water sits in the pipework wasting energy. Save your washing up and only do it once a day.

It's also worth turning stuff off at the wal when it not being used and change your lightbulbs to LEDs. Just asving £2 a week is 3100 a year.

Start reading your meter weekly to find out where it's all going so you know how to save energy

It's single rate - Rate 1 from EON.

On gym days I take three - before and after gym and then the evening, non gym days, just two. I only do that as i'm OCD about personal hygiene but I can ignore the evening bath if need be, unless going out, but that's rare of an evening.

I still had fairly hot water coming out of the tap when I came home - enough to wash dishes and more.

I currently have energy saving bulbs - they aren't LED's, they are those spiral type ones.

I'll start switching things off at the wall more. I do most things.

I look at my meter each day now. I started becoming concerned when i'd been out and i'd lost £2 per day, every day. I was spending £3+ a day and that included no heating - today, after dinner etc I have spent a total of 57p so far.

CloughiesBrewerArmy · 10 October 2017 at 8:44AM

So I turned on the immersion for just over an hour in the evening and it cost approx 70p.

I then turned it off and turned it back on overnight - 9 hours, and it cost approx 84p.

Have had my bath, will be off to work and the immersion is off for the day - let's see how we go - i'll avoid a bath tonight

and see what the days end total is (and tomorrow morning).

Sadly I have no timer to ask it to switch on at 5am, so it has to be turned on before bed for my bath in the morning.

System · 10 October 2017 at 8:55AM

CloughiesBrewerArmy wrote: »

So I turned on the immersion for just over an hour in the evening and it cost approx 70p.

I then turned it off and turned it back on overnight - 9 hours, and it cost approx 84p.

Have had my bath, will be off to work and the immersion is off for the day - let's see how we go - i'll avoid a bath tonight and see what the days end total is (and tomorrow morning).

Sadly I have no timer to ask it to switch on at 5am, so it has to be turned on before bed for my bath in the morning.

By heating your water just before you use it, you will save a few watts of energy as all cylinders lose heat with the passage of time. The major driver of the cost you incur is therefore the cost of re-heating your cylinder each time that you draw a bath. It's basic physics. Here is a guide to the cost:

https://www.sust-it.net/immersion-heater-energy-calculator.php

Concerned over electricity usage

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