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Storage Heater/Electric Meter Problems
bada_bing_3
Posts: 2 Newbie
in Energy
Hello All
Can anyone please help me with my problem ? I'm on Economy 7 and
I have had new storage heaters fitted but they are charging up during the day. The 'clock' meter seems to be working fine, clicking on & off when it should , and the 'readings' meter ( Low & Normal ) is switching from one to the other with no problem.
If I turn my input dial up to a high setting during the day, my day rate meter starts to clock up very fast. I'm told this should never happen if i'm on Eco.7.
I had the same problem with my old storage heaters but thought this was just down to a 'boost' they may be getting.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Cheers.
Can anyone please help me with my problem ? I'm on Economy 7 and
I have had new storage heaters fitted but they are charging up during the day. The 'clock' meter seems to be working fine, clicking on & off when it should , and the 'readings' meter ( Low & Normal ) is switching from one to the other with no problem.
If I turn my input dial up to a high setting during the day, my day rate meter starts to clock up very fast. I'm told this should never happen if i'm on Eco.7.
I had the same problem with my old storage heaters but thought this was just down to a 'boost' they may be getting.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Cheers.
0
Comments
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Could be down to a few things.
a. The meter clock is faulty, or has been set up wrong; unlikley as you say it is switching over between normal/low.
b. It is possible that to make the job safe the electricians removed the supply to the clock. The type of clock you have fitted has a back-up to keep the correct time in the event of a power cut, however, it will eventually stop. If this has happened then the clock time will be wrong...you'll still get your 7 hours of cheap rate, just at the wrong time of day. When does the supply change between normal/low? If it's some time between 8am and 11pm then theres a good chance the clock needs it's time adjusted.
c. Your storage heaters have been wired into the wrong supply....in which case the elements within the heaters will be on 24/7. If this is the case you will be using a massive amount of electricity with the heating switched on (bills will be about 3x more than they should be)
If I was to hedge my bets I would say b is probably whats happened.0 -
If I turn my input dial up to a high setting during the day, my day rate meter starts to clock up very fast. I'm told this should never happen if i'm on Eco.7.
I had the same problem with my old storage heaters but thought this was just down to a 'boost' they may be getting.
Just because you have E7, it doesn't mean that you have a separate heating circuit that is only active when the meter switches over to the cheap rate for seven hours. Lots of properties have E7 meters that supply all circuits. The person who fitted them should have checked this.:doh: Blue text on this forum usually signifies hyperlinks, so click on them!..:wall:0 -
Just because you have E7, it doesn't mean that you have a separate heating circuit that is only active when the meter switches over to the cheap rate for seven hours.
If you have storage heaters they will be on a different circuit to your domestic supply.Lots of properties have E7 meters that supply all circuits. The person who fitted them should have checked this.
If the meter didn't supply all the circuits then something won't work! There are two consumer units in an Eco7 system, requiring seperate supplies. The domestic supply is energised 24/7, and a restricted supply for the storage heaters.
In the system you have the supply to the heating circuit is via the switch in the clock mechanism....when the clock timer goes to cheap rate the switch is made to power up the heaters and one of two immersion heaters in the hot water tank. (The second imersion heater is supplied from the domestic circuit giving you the 'boost' facility through the day.)
A smaller cable running between the meter and the clock energises a flag switch to change the meter dials from normal to low.0 -
OP should check if they have a radio teleswitch, this is normally located next to the meter.
If the heaters are wired correctly there is no way they should be live during the day.
Get the installer back
That gum you like is coming back in style.0 -
If you have storage heaters they will be on a different circuit to your domestic supply.
There are two consumer units in an Eco7 system, requiring seperate supplies. The domestic supply is energised 24/7, and a restricted supply for the storage heaters.
You have not seen this actual installation, so these statements are just assumptions.
In the system you have the supply to the heating circuit is via the switch in the clock mechanism....when the clock timer goes to cheap rate the switch is made to power up the heaters and one of two immersion heaters in the hot water tank. (The second imersion heater is supplied from the domestic circuit giving you the 'boost' facility through the day.)
A smaller cable running between the meter and the clock energises a flag switch to change the meter dials from normal to
low.
Did you read the first post?
..............Hello All
Can anyone please help me with my problem ? I'm on Economy 7 and
I have had new storage heaters fitted but they are charging up during the day. The 'clock' meter seems to be working fine, clicking on & off when it should , and the 'readings' meter ( Low & Normal ) is switching from one to the other with no problem.
If I turn my input dial up to a high setting during the day, my day rate meter starts to clock up very fast. I'm told this should never happen if i'm on Eco.7.
I had the same problem with my old storage heaters but thought this was just down to a 'boost' they may be getting.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Cheers.:doh: Blue text on this forum usually signifies hyperlinks, so click on them!..:wall:0 -
Hello All
Can anyone please help me with my problem ? I'm on Economy 7 and
I have had new storage heaters fitted but they are charging up during the day. The 'clock' meter seems to be working fine, clicking on & off when it should , and the 'readings' meter ( Low & Normal ) is switching from one to the other with no problem.
If I turn my input dial up to a high setting during the day, my day rate meter starts to clock up very fast. I'm told this should never happen if i'm on Eco.7.
I had the same problem with my old storage heaters but thought this was just down to a 'boost' they may be getting.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Cheers.
You've turned storage heaters on in the middle of summer? :eek:"Now to trolling as a concept. .... Personally, I've always found it a little sad that people choose to spend such a large proportion of their lives in this way but they do, and we have to deal with it." - MSE Forum Manager 6th July 20100 -
They will probably be on their own circuit to comply with electrical regulations, but that circuit may be live 24/7If you have storage heaters they will be on a different circuit to your domestic supply.
There is no obilgation to install them on a circuit that is only live during off peak periods as far as I am aware. It may be that each heater needs to be controlled by it's own clock (which may not have been installed) to ensure high cost, peak rate electricity is not used.
Whilst the set up you describe is the typical way storage heaters are installed, I don't think there is any obligation to do it this way.If the meter didn't supply all the circuits then something won't work! There are two consumer units in an Eco7 system, requiring seperate supplies. The domestic supply is energised 24/7, and a restricted supply for the storage heaters...
Btw, I have economy 7 (but no storage heaters) and only have electrical circuits that are live 24/7"Now to trolling as a concept. .... Personally, I've always found it a little sad that people choose to spend such a large proportion of their lives in this way but they do, and we have to deal with it." - MSE Forum Manager 6th July 20100 -
espresso - the statements are not assumptions, I've been fitting meters long enough to know how an Eco7 system works.
penrhyn - you are spot on, if the timer is a teleswitch the timings will not have changed, it is still possible that the supply out can be connected to the wrong terminal though.
premier - the load to the storage heaters will always be on a seperate circuit, normally in a different consumer unit. It is possible to rig them up within a split part of the same consumer unit, or to be energised via a contactor relay...but the supply to the heaters will be connected via the meter clock, whatever type it is. You, and thousands more people, will have an Eco7 meter with no storage heaters; the 24 hour supply still switches over if heaters are fitted or not.
bada bing - sorry for your thread getting a bit of creep in it. just like to ask a question. You say the day rate leaps up when you turn the dial to full, is this the heating or hot water control? I ask as if it's the hot water then it is probably the second immersion heater switching on. If its your storage heaters coming on then you need to get it looked at.0 -
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bada bing - sorry for your thread getting a bit of creep in it. just like to ask a question. You say the day rate leaps up when you turn the dial to full, is this the heating or hot water control? I ask as if it's the hot water then it is probably the second immersion heater switching on. If its your storage heaters coming on then you need to get it looked at.
It's definately the Storage Heaters coming on. An electrician looked at it yesterday and said the clock is faulty and it may also be wired wrong. He told me to phone my suppliers (e.on) which I did and the're coming to fit a new meter next week. Hopefully this will be the end of my problems.
Thank you all for your help.0
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