Help me reduce my gas bill!

kelloggs36

I have just had a long discussion with my gas supplier (NPower). He was lovely! Anyway, I have been told that my usage is rather high - 37500 KWH per year on average. We live in a 4 bedroomed house (loft converted to bedroom and en-suite shower room). I know that we don't have cavity wall insulation so that should help. He told me that rather than have my gas boiler (an 8 year old Baxi combi boiler) on a timer which was off overnight and during most of the day (on between 6am and 9am and from 4pm until about 11pm at about 70 degrees F), that it would be cheaper to leave it on all the time but turn it down and up when we want it warmer. We don't cook with gas, so it is only heating and water that it is used for. There are 5 of us - so we have 5 showers per day and maybe a couple of baths per week.

Is there an optimum temperature that I should have the boiler to keep the costs down, and is there anything in what he told me about keeping it on all day? I am just so desperate to reduce costs as this latest bill along with the electricity for the last 6 months is nigh on 1k! It isn't really sustainable so any input would be gratefully welcome.
BTW I have just signed up for a slightly lower tariff for electricity and have been looking at other suppliers for gas - the annual saving is only about £45 so not worth a lot of hassle to change it when I have to pay £20 to get out of my current agreement.

HappyMJ

70 F = 21 C Turn it down...I feel really awful when it's that hot. Try getting everyone used to 65 F = 18 C. It'll take a while but that alone could save you 25% off your energy bill. Hot water should be set to around 70 C or so. Keep using the timer but turn the thermostat down whenever you can. Why do you need it to be that warm in the morning. Try 16 C for the morning as you are active getting ready it shouldn't feel too cold. Close the doors and windows.

The average is for an average house which is most probably a 3 bed house. If you are keeping a larger house warm I'd expect your usage to be higher.

diable

Programable thermostats help keep an ambient temperature in a house as sudden heating burns a lot of gas.

macman

He was talking complete rubbish. If you leave your CH on 24/7 then it will burn more gas and cost you more, end of story. This question comes up countless times and the answer is always the same.
With your extremely high level of consumption, why don't you get the cavity wall insulation done as a priority-at a couple of hundred quid you'd soon recoup that investment. Also, do you have sufficient loft insulation?

kelloggs36

we have no loft but what we do have is insulated - the loft is a bedroom and shower room.

savemoney

Thats very high, mine is 17,000kWh per annum for 3 bedroom semi and I need house kept warm at night and during weekend and school term for kids

I try and keep it as low as I can get away with turning down temperature in hallway wireless thermostat

We have a solid walls and have loft insulation up to limit even though yours is 34 bedroom its still quiet high

nPower

Hi kelloggs36

If your house is empty all day, it's more efficient generally, to time the heating to come on in the morning and in the evening. The energy you save by not having the heating on for a long period every day is more than the extra energy it takes to heat up a cold house. However, it depends on your individual circumstances.

If you're in all day and want to be warm in the house without having huge bills, try turning the thermostat setting down to 18 or 19 degrees and turn the radiators down in rooms you don’t use.

Turning down heating by just 1 degree can save up to 10% a year, and adjusting radiator controls will avoid overheating rooms that don’t need it.

Best Wishes
Sally

pibatad

if u are with british gas they give u free cavity wall insulation or loft insulation before 31st may their online websaver 11 is about the cheapest u will find . npower is a terrible company. they got fined 1.8million for mis-selling

spiro

kelloggs36 wrote: »

Ion a timer which was off overnight and during most of the day (on between 6am and 9am and from 4pm until about 11pm at about 70 degrees F)

Regarding your timings, in rhe morning you should set it to turn on an hour before you get up and turn off an hour before you leave the house for work. Again in the evening about 1/2hr before you get home and at least an hour before you go the bed (it is better to sleep in a cool not hot room).

energysavingexp

turn it off you dont need it on now. its march spring time.
my house is now 10 'c at the moment you soon get used to the temps.
many people in the 50s and 60s did not have heating at all. and they got used to it.

Ilona

energysavingexp wrote: »

turn it off you dont need it on now. its march spring time.
my house is now 10 'c at the moment you soon get used to the temps.
many people in the 50s and 60s did not have heating at all. and they got used to it.

Agree, turn it off. You don't need all that heat, get people to manage on less. Too much heat makes you vulnerable to catching every germ going, tis not healthy. And why people want a shower every day baffles me, unless they work in a filthy environment. I am a child of the 50's and the house I am living in now is the first time I have ever had central heating.

Basically if you use it you have to pay for it, harsh but that's life. You need to sit down with your family members and discuss it.
Ilona