Preparing for Winter Budgeting the electricity

determinedtodothis

Hello - found a very interesting page on the EON website today, and seeing as on the OS board they are looking to ways of cutting expenditure i thought this might help everyone - certainly made me look at my appliances in a more MSE way!

Cost of:

1 boil of a kettle 2p
1 use of a 4 slice toaster 1p
1 hour use of a LCD Tv 3p
1 hour use of a set top box 1p
1 Min use of a microwave 1p
1 hour use of a Wii 1p
1 hour use of a laptop 1p
1 bath 10p
1 10 min Shower 5p
1 hour hoovering 16p
30mins use of a hairdryer 13p
20 mins use of straightners 2p
1 cycle 30 deg wash 14p
1 hour ironing 30p
1 hr energy saving lightbulb 1p
1 cooked meal in elec oven 11p
1 electric hob used to cook 10p

I gives a list of items these numbers are based on but when I put in my daily usage of these items it just about worked out.

Butterfly_Brain

Thanks determined
It is getting scarier, because prices are set to rise again.

geordie_joe

Sorry, I know you mean well, but that list is worse than useless.

There are far to many variables to make it even remotely accurate. For example, an energy saving bulb equivalent to 100 watts would cost around £0.0025 per hour. Anyone who has the100 watt bulbs and takes your list at face value would get there calculations 400% wrong!

You'd be better off finding a web sight that shows you how to calculate electricity usage for your self, then you can calculate your real costs. Basically it's just;

(Wattage x Hours Used Per Day) / 1000 = Units used

Olliebeak

Many thanks for that, determinedtodothis. I, for one, am very grateful for you posting this list.

It's made me think twice about reboiling the darn kettle :eek: - definitely getting the flask back out again. In fact, I think I can find about three flasks :rotfl: - the kettle will get boiled ONCE a day and flasks filled!

ChocClare

Thanks for this, determinedtodothis - I've decided not to do any ironing or hoovering ever again, as they use too much electricity...:D

I've just signed up to Oxford University's scheme where you monitor your electricity usage - thought it would be interesting and might focus our minds in the way that going on the grocery challenge has focussed our minds on the food budget. Basically, you post them your meter reading each week and they tell you how much electricity you're using and what it's costing you...:eek:

If you want to have a look, it's here http://www.imeasure.org.uk/index.php

freyasmum

determinedtodothis wrote: »

Cost of:

1 boil of a kettle 2p
1 use of a 4 slice toaster 1p
1 hour use of a LCD Tv 3p
1 hour use of a set top box 1p
1 Min use of a microwave 1p
1 hour use of a Wii 1p
1 hour use of a laptop 1p
1 bath 10p
1 10 min Shower 5p
1 hour hoovering 16p
30mins use of a hairdryer 13p
20 mins use of straightners 2p
1 cycle 30 deg wash 14p
1 hour ironing 30p
1 hr energy saving lightbulb 1p
1 cooked meal in elec oven 11p
1 electric hob used to cook 10p

Well it's a no brainer then - see you all here :beer:

Perfect!

purpleivy

Ironing's far too expensive! I have a bad arm at the moment, so got dd to iron some of dh's shirts. Gave her the best pair of pillowslips, cotton and lace. She wanted to know why she was ironing them. For a visitor who isn't family!

My children believe in ironing even less than I do. My mother isn't much of an ironer either. Looks like the ironing gene is from the other side of the family. WHen I first started going out with my dh I would sometimes go round for tea on SUnday evening. His gran was always there ironing stuff for my MIL! My Mil irons too. Looks like the gene has bred out of that bit of the family anyway. I wonder what Mendel would have made of that?

Who uses a hairdryer for 30 mins? I wear a wig, so heat of any kind is the enemy!

greenbee

ChocClare wrote: »

I've just signed up to Oxford University's scheme where you monitor your electricity usage - thought it would be interesting and might focus our minds in the way that going on the grocery challenge has focussed our minds on the food budget. Basically, you post them your meter reading each week and they tell you how much electricity you're using and what it's costing you...:eek:

If you want to have a look, it's here http://www.imeasure.org.uk/index.php

There's an MSE carbon club on there (Money Saving Carbon Club)... have a look at setmefree2's 'My Energy Use Diary' thread on Green & Ethical for details, as there are a lot of people involved already.

esmf73

I'm trying not to think about the electricity we use (OH is a computer junky and doesn't realise lights don't turn themselves off! LOL) but am hoping to make a saving on the heating. It will be a tough one as we've just moved from Cyprus to the UK and the temperature change is a shock!!! So I'm making draught excluders this weekend!

Olliebeak

Hi Determined

Have made my first coffee of the day and dutifully filled 2 flasks with the remaining boiled water :j. I used to do this ages ago, but had got out of the habit. Your post has re-energised me in this habit so :T.

Ollie xx

I don't 'do' ironing - so now I'm feeling very virtuous (instead of slovenly) :rotfl:!

skiTTish

Bllueeerg water tastes horrible once its been in a thermos ,be it metal ,glass or plastic ,I can taste the difference
Definitely giving up ironing tho ....