New home owner with some basic questions!

Saver-Rob

Me and my girlfriend recently moved into a new house - a 3 bed semi.

We have a gas central heating system with a fairly old boiler - a good 15 years old. We also have a gas fire though this isnt used too much. Currently our heating and water is set to come on for 2 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the evening - every day.

I really want some idea of what we are going to be paying in gas.

Our meter reading on Sep 11 when we moved in: 01195
Our meter reading today: 02280
= 1085 used. (It has an 'M3' unit on our meter. Does this mean cubed metres?)

Now - going on information for my postcode on the Southern Electric website (we have duel fuel - gas and elec from them), I have found a table of costs.



So please - help me understand. I have attempted a calculation.

I am assuming I am on 'Standard' charges, so

1085 x 3.4p = £36.89
+
Daily Standing Charge (approx 3 months) 90 x 14.04p = £12.62
=
£49.51 so far...

Now that to me seems completely wrong - by a long way.

Can somebody shed some light on things and bring me back down to earth with a big bump?

Thanks in anticipation of the bad news!

espresso

You have forgotten to convert the cu M to kWh e.g. times 11.2 approx.

Saver-Rob

Ahhhhhhhhhh.

So 11.2 times the £49.51 or an earlier figure?!?!?!

espresso

Saver-Rob wrote: »

Ahhhhhhhhhh.

So 11.2 times the £49.51 or an earlier figure?!?!?!

Yes, this here may help you get a more accurate cost.

Saver-Rob

Oh my good God, £424.57 in under 3 months (and not even with the heating on towards the beginning of that).

I had no idea it was costing me this much a month, its madness. I dont know what to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

macman

That's maybe around 80% higher usage than would be expected for a 3 bedroomed house. What's your insulation like-have you got decent loft insulation, double glazing and cavity wall insulation? TRV's fitted on all rads, and a room 'stat?
What else do you use gas for-cooking?
You can reduce the cost straight away by switching away from the standard tariff (whether with SE or someone else) and onto monthly direct debit-the unit cost you quote is for quarterly billing.
However, given the excessive consumption I think you need to get your boiler serviced ASAP, as it may have a fault that is causing this-possibly not modulating properly? Is it a combi or conventional boiler?

Saver-Rob

It is a regular boiler as far as I know. Its old, yes, but I cant believe this. I have turned the dial on it down to 1 (was on 3.5 out of 6). Maybe this will help.

We only use the gas for heating and hot water, twice a day morning and evening. We dont even cook with gas. Our gas fire is turned on occasionally.

The loft insulation isnt marvelous but we are double glazed. There are dials on the rads - all are up to full though there are no 'numbers' which newer ones have.

Saver-Rob

I've got to phone first thing in the morning because this is silly. It just cant be right but the meter says it is. I'm not sure what I can do now, its quite worrying. I've turned everything to off or low because if this is really what we are using then we're in trouble.

greenbee

Meters rarely go wrong, so be careful that you don't incur a charge for a meter check for no reason.

Firstly you need to make sure that your hot water and heating are working as efficiently as possible.

Do you have a hot water tank? If so, check that the cylinder thermostat is set at a sensible temperature - mine can be anywhere between 50 and 80. It's currently set just below 60, at which point I get water that's hot but not scalding (I assume that its not that accurate). If you don't have a tank, it's a combi boiler, so you're only heating the water you need.

How long do you have your heating and hot water on for? Cut back the hot water gradually until you work out how long it needs to be on for in order to provide you with what you need. If all you are using it for is quick showers, washing up and the washing machine, you should be able to get it down to about 40 minutes am and pm (I recommend showering first, then doing the washing up when working this out, and only doing hot washes in the washing machine when you aren't planning on having a shower, as it does cool the tank down quite a lot). You may also be heating a bathroom radiator or towel rail via the hot water tank, so make sure this is turned down. You may need to turn it up just before you use the bathroom, but try to remember to turn it down when you finish, leaving it warm enough to dry towels, but not heating empty space

You say that all your radiators are turned up full - this will probably result in using a lot of gas. Do you have a room thermostat to control the temperature in the house? If so, what temperature is it set to, and where is it? Do you have all the internal doors open, or are they closed, heating each room separately?

It's worth taking the time to balance your heating system (I'm sure you can find plenty of links if you search on the web, or you can check a decent DIY book). If the radiators are only warm at the bottom, then they need bleeding from the top to get the air out. If they are only warm at the top, the system may need cleaning out (you don't have to pay for a powerflush, you can do this yourself, but it's dull... and hard work on your own!).

The boiler will probably be happier if you set it high and use the radiator valves to control the temperature in the house. Once the radiators are sorted out, you can do this. If you close the doors between rooms, you can set each radiator so that it heats up an appropriate amount. Also work out when you actually need the heating to come on. If you're not in the house, you don't want to be paying for heat.

Fire_Fox

Well done for looking at this now!

Get the loft insulation sorted ASAP. Start closing all curtains to keep more heat in. Switch off the standard tariff onto a cheaper one, either with the same supplier (quick) or with another supplier. Put a fleece sweater on rather than the central heating, cuddle up under a duvet on your sofa, an electric underblanket on the bed. Do you really need two hours in the morning? How long are you up and about before work, could you manage with one hour? If you spend a lot of time in the living room, use the gas fire instead of the central heating. Work on using less hot water, shorter showers for a start, laundry at 30C.

macman

Don't turn your boiler control down to 1, that means the water temp will be far too low and the room stats and TRV's will be constantly calling for heat and firing the boiler. About half way is a good starting point, say 3 out of 6.
Do you have a hot water tank? If so, you have a conventional boiler. If no stored hot water, then it's a combi.