is this gas use average? or not

mrs_baggins

Am really sad! am taking down reading every few days to see exactly what i use gas and elec wise.

have gas central heating (not on) and water. have pared down the water heating to what i think is the minimum to allow me enough water to shower wash up etc. Have made a note of readings and over 18 days I ahve used 8 units of gas which i think equates to 252 Kw which i think in turn equates to about £10. considering its height of summer (yeah right!) and water heating is a minimum i think this is high. what do you all think? for the same period of leccy I used 126 kw but did have tumble drier on twice in that time. Are these average or not? thanks all

1carminestocky

Seems high to me (Gas, especially). There are people who swear by washing up in cold water (I compromised and have it luke warm, don't see any difference in the state of the crockery, tbh). I have used 7 units of gas in the last month, which I think equates to 217kw. We have the water on for precisely 40 mins each morning and that lasts all day (but is ISN'T boiling, this is a waste as if you are washing your face you would need to put cold water in to the boiling water to cool it sufficiently). We also have bought extra lagging for the immersion and this has definitely helped.

Tumble drier use in this weather? :eek: IMO a complete waste of money! Try and rely on the weather forecast and plan your washing day/s for sunny/warm days. We do this now and haven't used the tumble drier for several months!

espresso

Assuming that your gas meter is an imperial one (cu Ft) then that sounds about right, apart from the cost which I would calculate to be approx £7.50 or 42p per day. Surely it would have cost more to heat your water using electricity.

jacksons_mum

i have just started reading my meters and i have used 6 units of gas in the last week - i had the hot water on once for a hour for baths and i have a gas cooker but it isnt used much. 6 units seems very high compared to your useage. is it right that the last 3 digits on the meter (the red ones) should still go up even when you are using no gas?

i have used 36 units of electric in the same week

AndysDad

Jacksons mum...If you're not using any gas then I should imagine the meter digits (Red or otherwise) shouldn't move.Don't forget that if your boiler has a pilotlight then that may be the reason that the last digits are moving.

espresso

jacksons_mum wrote: »

i have just started reading my meters and i have used 6 units of gas in the last week - i had the hot water on once for a hour for baths and i have a gas cooker but it isnt used much. 6 units seems very high compared to your useage. is it right that the last 3 digits on the meter (the red ones) should still go up even when you are using no gas?

i have used 36 units of electric in the same week

Are we comparing like with like here? Is your meter imperial or metric (cu M or Cu Ft)

Eight metric units equates to only approx 68kWh or £2.

jacksons_mum

AndysDad wrote: »

Jacksons mum...If you're not using any gas then I should imagine the meter digits (Red or otherwise) shouldn't move.Don't forget that if your boiler has a pilotlight then that may be the reason that the last digits are moving.

yes the pilot light is on so that explains that! on the boiler it has a switch that says thermostat - high, low, off. it is currently on high - should i switch this to off?

jacksons_mum

espresso wrote: »

Are we comparing like with like here? Is your meter imperial or metric (cu M or Cu Ft)

Eight metric units equates to only approx 68kWh or £2.

i dont know how can i tell? it says m3 on it

espresso

jacksons_mum wrote: »

i dont know how can i tell? it says m3 on it

Then it's a metric meter and your eight units equates to approx £2 or 28p per day.

jacksons_mum

thanks, i think i can live with that!

how do you work out the cost? (sorry for all the questions!)

i am paying 4.57p for first 670 kwhs per quarter then 2.91p but dont know how to convert my 8 units into kwhs

espresso

jacksons_mum wrote: »

thanks, i think i can live with that!

how do you work out the cost? (sorry for all the questions!)

i am paying 4.57p for first 670 kwhs per quarter then 2.91p but dont know how to convert my 8 units into kwhs

I just did a simple sum ignoring your tier 1 rate as you have to pay that (equivalent to a standing charge) and assumed a rate of 3p per kWh. You can easily convert cu M and cu Ft to kWh here.