Massive Electric Bills

shemwhistler

macman wrote: »

I was suggesting that you go around yourself and check circuit by circuit. Turn everything off and see if the meter stops.

Aye, to be honest that had been crossing my mind, I've actually got a bit of free time on Friday morning, think I might give that a go.

Thanks
Matt

HappyMJ

And...on your way around there get an energy monitor from somewhere and plug it in when you get there.

shemwhistler

Thanks, will do.

I was looking at something like this;

EDIT: can't post with links. B&Q, OWL Wireless Electricity Monitor, £35.

would that do the job?

Are they pretty easy to install does anyone know?

Getting a bit redundant now, but thanks again.
Matt

Cambridge32

My 2p:
That is indeed a lot of electricity. Usual culprits-
Essentials: fridge, freezer;
Non-esentials: Chargers left switched on when not in use: mobile phone, electric toothbrush, laptop, ipod, mp3 player, cordless drill, cordless screwdriver, etc.
Devices on standby: tv, vcr, dvd player, stereo, games console, clock radio alarm, internet router, etc.
Other: High energy bulbs, extractor fans left running, tv aerial boosters (often left on 24 hours a day), immersion heater, kettle with "keep water hot" facility, clock on oven (can be switched off at wall), electric fires, hair dryer, deep fat fryer, sandwich toaster, bread maker, etc.

Some extension leads even have a little LED on them. Sadly even tiny usage adds up in the end. Go around and check every plug socket to see what is plugged in, as this should help you to ascertain what is getting left on unnecessarily.

HappyMJ

Cambridge32 wrote: »

kettle with "keep water hot" facility

According to many posters here they are cheaper then reheating the kettle when required. Replace the word kettle with central heating and replace the word water with house. Only kidding....some of the others you have mentioned are so small it's not worth calulating. The LED on the power board uses about 0.1W per hour. About 10 pence per year.

shemwhistler

Thanks for that, a good list to consider.

Does anybody have a sound methodology for testing?

I'm guessing it would be hard to calculate the usage per appliance using just the electric meter, I take it this is easier with an energy monitor.

So assuming the monitor I 'linked' is dead on, and I can get it installed what's the most efficient routine to employ.

Thanks
Matt

HappyMJ

shemwhistler wrote: »

Thanks for that, a good list to consider.

Does anybody have a sound methodology for testing?

I'm guessing it would be hard to calculate the usage per appliance using just the electric meter, I take it this is easier with an energy monitor.

So assuming the monitor I 'linked' is dead on, and I can get it installed what's the most efficient routine to employ.

Thanks
Matt

The method I use is connect it up and write down the reading you get. Now turn everything off at the consumer unit it should now read 0.00...yay. Now turn it on again and go around the house and turn everything you can find off at the wall until the energy monitor reads 0.00. Then only turn things on one at a time and show her what difference it makes having the oven on or having a long shower (if it's electric) or putting the heater on. Then as you leave turn the fridge and freezer back on (they should have warmed up a bit and should both now be running) and write down the reading again and tell her to shout at the kids if it's any higher than that figure. I bet it's Xboxes and such not actually being turned to the standby setting and running at 100W plus...

victor2

shemwhistler wrote: »

Thanks for that, a good list to consider.

Does anybody have a sound methodology for testing?

I'm guessing it would be hard to calculate the usage per appliance using just the electric meter, I take it this is easier with an energy monitor.

So assuming the monitor I 'linked' is dead on, and I can get it installed what's the most efficient routine to employ.

Thanks
Matt

The monitors you can buy are highly inaccurate, due in no small part to the way they monitor the energy flow. Your meter is by far the most accurate device and very unlikely to be faulty.
As already suggested, switch all the circuits off and make sure the meter is registering nothing. Meters differ, but look at the smallest unit it can measure and see what it records as you switch circuits back on. Ideally, get someone to read the meter at the same time each day for a week or so, to give you an idea of what is being used.
It is difficult to establish what many individual items use over time as anything which is thermostatically controlled, like a fridge and heating devices, cut in and out as required.
If you get a monitor which plugs into a socket, something like this, you can check a device which runs off a 13 amp plug over a period of time. Won't help with hard wired devices like cookers and showers though.

Bit of work involved, especially as it's not your house, but it will help you identify what is using so much energy.

shemwhistler

Thanks, seems simple enough.

Lets see what we can see