Electricity saving devices - money saver?

MsConstipatedPiggyBank

Please could people advise whether they have saved money as a result of using one of those electricity measuring devices inside the house? I live in a flat and my meter is in a communal cupboard. Between the meter and the flat is the meter cupboard door, a glass door and my front door, but my flat is actually only about 20 metres away fron the meter itself.

Could anybody advise:

a. What is the range of the electricity measuring devices and would it work, considering the barriers in the way?
b. How much should I pay for one of the devices?
c. Would I make a saving? (Bill is currently £120 per month in winter, and £60 in summer on cheapest EON tariff)
d. Has anybody else made a saving by using one of these devices?

pogofish

Better to do a good audit of every device using power in your house and become merciless at switching them off IMO. Keep anything needing to stay plugged-in to the bare minimum and switch off rather than use standby.

Also try to group power hungry tasks like washing, baths/showers etc and try to only have power on for water at just these times.

MsConstipatedPiggyBank

The water is on a timer, so only heats for 1.5 hours per day. I still think my kwH usage is too high. Does anybody have any comparable measurements?

Robert2009

I got one from Eon and hardly saved on my electric since I got it, There is only me and my wife and we're both over 60 and at home all day. There was not really anything for us to turn off to save on electricity the TV uses 6 watts on standby, Sky plus uses 40 watts on standby and 50 watts when on, charger for the phone uses 3 watts.

OK we saved about 5p a day with turning things off but to be honest it is not worth the hassle to save about £20 a year.

CH is gas so is hot water. In fact the most electricity is used by the computer.
If you get one for nothing then fair enough but I wouldn't buy one. Mine is on Ebay

Rob

Swipe

I bought one on offer from wilkos £3ish which you plug behind each device. For other consumption I check my main meter. I now turn my TV, other devices off at the mains and disconnect any laptop power adapters when not in use. They certainly can be an eye opener for some things. E.g my computer monitor (big trinitron crt) uses 125watts and 40 in standby. Almost double my big Sony 32" crt tv. The best energy saving I ever did was to bin an old chest freezer with a broken hinge on the top. That thing had previously been literally doubling my bills.

MsConstipatedPiggyBank

OK, I've decided to skip the electric saving device indoors. Instead, I've made a list of all of the appliances I can switch off, or alternatively, put on timers.

I'd like to buy some 24 timers that will allow me two on hour times per day. So, could I have my microwave on between12:00-14:00 and 18:00 - 20:00? The timers I've found allow me only one time on/off per day, and I've a few other devices I'd like to switch on for particular hours.

[I do realise that some people will say that I could just switch on/off when necessary, but in practice, this is forgotton and too much stuff just stays on eg. mobile phone chargers, which could just go on at night and off in morning and so be on for 8 hours and not permanently]

KimYeovil

MsConstipatedPiggyBank wrote: »

[I do realise that some people will say that I could just switch on/off when necessary, but in practice, this is forgotton and too much stuff just stays on eg. mobile phone chargers, which could just go on at night and off in morning and so be on for 8 hours and not permanently]

Yes, that is what they will say. They will also point out spending £8 or £15 on a timer for a microwave or mobile phone charger is very bizarre. And what about all the times when the timer goes on when you do not need it? My phone doesn't take more than one-and-a-half hours to charge. Why are you leaving them on all night if you are so fussy? Microwaves are used for five minutes at a time, not two hours.

I'm sure there are plug-in timers with dual time periods but you are not going to save any money.

(I have a similar confusion with people who suggest using central heating on timers - crazy for most people's circumstances.)

KimYeovil

(There may be a role for timers that are on for a period then switch off, such as with hall light sensors or the override that puts the heating on for one hour. But having things going on for fixed times every day regardless of whether they are being used is of no help.)

MsConstipatedPiggyBank

The timers are quite cheap, and I can get about 5 for £15 (I have two already), which I think will save help us save a huge amount over the year. I plug in my mobile every night, but obviously it needs less than 8 hours (I didn't know that), so I can adjust accordingly and put it on a timer.

We have quite set patterns at home, so there wouldn't be much that would be on when we weren't using. And my motivation is not only to save money, but also to be a bit greener. We're just forgetful. Last time, I turned the mobile chargers off, and we ran out of batteries.