High Gas Usage?

njm_2

We live in a three bedroom house with mostly solid walls (little insulation) and the meter shows us using 10 units of gas per day - is this high?

Additional info: We only use gas for heating and hot water and the heating has only been on all day for the last couple of days; we were using 5-6 units per day with the heating on for a couple of hours am and for each evening. The heating is off overnight. The house is rarely warm and we only have the hot water on twice a day – providing equivalent of one bath morning and evening.

The boiler is serviced annually and, when checked last week, it was confirmed that it is just the boiler drawing gas.

Friends, who do live in a modern house, reckon they use 3 units per day on average and they cook with it as well; they thought we must be heating the whole street!

Cardew

It is high, but not excessively so, for a house without cavity walls. Although much depends on the size/type(detached/semi/terrace) of the house.

I assume you have the roof well insulated etc - there are plenty of advice websites on this.

njm_2

The house is a semidetached Victorian conversion, probably an 18C single story barn converted into a pair of two up two downs, with a 20 year old extension tacked on to the side – so about 1/3 has cavity walls. Next door has been unoccupied since we moved in. There is some roof insulation but access is difficult due to a low pitch. We do have double glazed windows but the heating has been off most of the year and the radiators are set very low.

We thought that our usage was high, as there was a discrepancy of 2700 units between our estimated bill and the actual meter reading over an 18 month period, so have been taking daily readings this week to confirm our actual usage as we thought the meter must be inaccurate. We have had a number of visits when the readings were taken but our bill always states an estimated figure – that’s Powergen for you!

We hope that a Gas usage comparison thread – like the one for electricity – could be started as I’m sure others are unaware if their consumption is high or not.

Cardew

njm wrote:

We hope that a Gas usage comparison thread – like the one for electricity – could be started as I’m sure others are unaware if their consumption is high or not.

It would be useful, but the trouble is that there are so many variables; size/type of property, number of people, out at work, insulation, type of CH, water heating/cooking? area in UK or simply how warm you like the house.

I think I read that the average gas consumption was 20,000kWh pa and that is how utility companies calculate that their latest price rise will only cost the average user, say, 57p a week.

If 20,000 kWh is indeed the average, then I use approx double the national average. Frankly knowing that information doesn't help me a great deal as there is not much I can do about it. Or rather I personally am not prepared to have the inconvienience and discomfort involved in reducing my consumption. That is not to say I waste gas, thermostatic valves on radiators. rooms not in use have radiators off etc.

njm_2

I do agree that perhaps there are too many variables, but do appreciate having the opportunity to have my own concerns confirmed. Further research revealed the following information:

"A high usage customer is typically a four-person family, living in a 3-bed house. The high usage consumption is based on Ofgem's kWh criteria - 4950KwH for elec, 28000kWH for gas."

My own calculations reveal that we used 116,279 kWH over the last 18 months which would give us an approximate usage 2.7 times their quoted high usage customer. I think the worst bit will be the bill, which will be something like £1,600 – not looking forward to sorting that out!

homersimpson_3

yes it does seem high- how many people live in this house?

njm_2

Four - 2 adults, 2 children (6 & 9years).

homersimpson_3

your bill seems ridiculously high- my friends and i spent some of weekend comparing gas and electricity prices to get cheaper deal. one friend's circumstances are virtually the same as yours in that she only uses gas for heating and hot water; her heating has not been on much over the summer and she only uses gas first thing in the morning and at night. weekends slightly different because she's home all day. i can't remember the exact figure but she uses around 600-650 units a year.
so compared to you-
you 10 units per day @365 days = 3650 units/ 4 people = 912.50 per person
you're using nearly 50% more per person than her and when you have the heating on you have to pay the same amount to heat your house whether there is one or 4 people in the lounge. does that make sence? you should not be paying four times as much let alone an additional 50% for each person on top of that. yes you live in a bigger house and it's semi -detached but even taking that into consideration it's a massive difference- suggest you ring gas supplier and get meter and you pipes (or whatever) checked.
thanks

Cardew

116,279kWh in 18 months is a massive consumption. Considering that only covers one winter and 2 summers your consumption is probably around 90,000kWh per year – which will be around £1,800 per year.

I have a small annex with its own central heating (formerly a stable with a hay loft above) that does not have cavity walls. It is not often used but in the winter it needs the radiators on full blast as the walls seem to ‘suck’ out the heat. To improve matters I had the internal walls dry-lined(I think that’s the term) 2 inch wooden battens attached to the wall with plasterboard fixed to them; with insulation inserted into the cavity. It has improved matters but it still loses heat quicker than conventional double cavity brick walls.

njm_2

I shall be on to Transco first thing in the morning to arrange to have the meter checked/replaced. Chatting this evening with friends and they have had a similar problem; they currently have a piggyback meter to check the accuracy but had dreadful problems arranging this with their supplier – no guesses – Powergen! They also mentioned that their gas was under high pressure and was, in effect, being pumped into their house at the rate their supplier anticipated they should need it, not at the rate it was being consumed. Not sure of the validity of this but when I turned the gas off last weekend we had to call Transco out to turn it back on as the high pressure tripped a valve – the Transco engineer stated he had never seen a meter like it (there appears to be some sort of regulator immediately after the meter).

Perhaps what is most concerning is that if our meter is correct then this gas must be going somewhere and since it feeds directly to the boiler my guess is that it is being only part used and the excess expelled through the flue. We have a British Gas contract on the boiler/heating system and they did a full safety check when we moved in and two annual services, yet the boiler is allegedly working efficiently!

Cardew

Below is a quote from isayoldchap in a earlier thread.

"I asked them what the boiler service procedure inspects.This is their email;
Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to your email regarding
the annual maintenance service.

I confirm the service engineer will carry out the following:

1. Complete a boiler emission test to measure the safety and efficiency of your
appliance.
2. Perform basic electrical safety checks.
3. Check the condition of the appliance and its operation.
4. Check the condition of the system, including ventilation, flue, pipework,
radiators, controls and air grilles, where appropriate.
5. Talk you through a detailed checklist of the work done and leave you with a
copy.

During the Yearly Safety and Maintenance Inspection, our service engineer will
use a performance analyser on your boiler. This is a precision instrument that
enables us to check the efficiency and safe operation of a wide range of gas
central heating boilers. A low reading indicates that the boiler is working
effectively, whilst a higher reading indicates that further investigation is
required and in these circumstances, the engineer would strip down the boiler in
order to clean and repair as required. The performance tester compliments other
checks the engineer will make on the boiler and system.

I trust this has answered your enquiry but if you require any further
assistance, please contact me at engineers@house.co.uk.

Kind regards

Angela Cuffe

house.co.uk - the online home of British Gas