Official MSE Economy 7 Guide discussion

pineapple

My storage heaters can be switched on or off at a wall socket - with a light to show if they are charging or not. So if they are switched on, it is easy to tell when the cheap rate starts/finishes as they go on/off automatically. Due to a teleswitch I believe. Unfortunately - till I get the plumbing sorted - this cottage doesn't have an actual water tank and my only sources of hot water (apart from the kettle!) are an electric shower and a nasty little wall heater in the kitchen. So in the morning I run round like an idiot trying to get all my electric/hot water jobs done before 8.17 - which is when I switch to the expensive day rate. I also fill two catering urns with hot water for use during the day and make full use of the top of my multifuel stove for cooking/hot water at night.

richardwilson1984

Does the seven hour cheaper electricity cover all sockets or is it just those where the NSH indicator lights come on when the hours are in play?

Apologies, it sounds so daft. I think it is all sockets but I'm not sure if a socket would need to be specifically wired.

deficit

Anyone able to advise on which companies can handle 'related MPANs' (MPAN being the reference number that identifies a single supply of electricity)? My meter has 2 channels (standard Economy 7 tariff with Utility Warehouse, though the meter actually says 'Economy 9' on it) but each of the two channels has a different reference number in the national database, which is a non-standard configuration. I have tried to switch 4 times now and 4 different companies have had to cancel their switches because they can't handle this. I could have the MPANs unrelated but Utility Warehouse are telling me that to do so would require my supply be disconnected and I would be without supply, not sure how long for. I'm currently wasting a good £400 a year by not being able to switch from Utility Warehouse so I'm keen to get this sorted but without losing my electricity supply for any length of time. When I first move in here i switched from EDF to Utility Warehouse, is it only major, expensive companies that can handle this configuration? It's rented accommodation if that makes a difference

footyguy

deficit wrote: »

Anyone able to advise on which companies can handle 'related MPANs' (MPAN being the reference number that identifies a single supply of electricity)? My meter has 2 channels (standard Economy 7 tariff with Utility Warehouse, though the meter actually says 'Economy 9' on it) but each of the two channels has a different reference number in the national database, which is a non-standard configuration. I have tried to switch 4 times now and 4 different companies have had to cancel their switches because they can't handle this. I could have the MPANs unrelated but Utility Warehouse are telling me that to do so would require my supply be disconnected and I would be without supply, not sure how long for. I'm currently wasting a good £400 a year by not being able to switch from Utility Warehouse so I'm keen to get this sorted but without losing my electricity supply for any length of time. When I first move in here i switched from EDF to Utility Warehouse, is it only major, expensive companies that can handle this configuration? It's rented accommodation if that makes a difference

This article is about Economy 7

If you have related MPANs, you do not have economy 7, but rather a legacy tariff.

Do not attempt to switch supplier with this type of metering.

Whoops too late! Thanks for confirming that those that do invariably end up in tears.

Your best bet now is to contact your legacy supplier and see if they will accept you onto the legacy tariff ... but they are under no obligation to do so.

Good luck!

Rossjp

Hello, Im on Eco 7 plan, and paying between £150-200 a month on a semi detached (depending on season) this is killing me, so wondering if I change to a "normal" plan there might be significant savings to be made? is there a calculator online to help work this out? I have just switched suppliers (another costly nightmare!!) so i wouldn't think they can help with this.

footyguy

Rossjp wrote: »

Hello, Im on Eco 7 plan, and paying between £150-200 a month on a semi detached (depending on season) this is killing me, so wondering if I change to a "normal" plan there might be significant savings to be made? is there a calculator online to help work this out? I have just switched suppliers (another costly nightmare!!) so i wouldn't think they can help with this.

Hello, and welcome to MSE :hello:

Please read the article as it details in full how to check whether you'd be better off with an Economy 7 tariff.

Good luck!

Jodie_B

Hi,
We had no experience of Economy 7 when we moved to our current home, so I chose a standard tariff as usual, from NPower online, paying monthly by direct debit. They allowed us to use this in spite of our E7 meter and didn't require us to change our meter. We were advised to report both the peak and off peak readings, and the results were simply added together to calculate our charge.


Over a year later I now find that we use only 15% of our energy at night, so I'd fortunately made the right decision! I therefore moved to Engie on an "online only" offer at a standard tariff by unclicking the auto populated button (based on my address) that said I wanted an E7 tariff.


My quote showed the total payment I was expecting, but it still showed that I wanted an E7 tariff. The numbers didn't add up, so I then rang the supplier to query this. I was told that I could have the standard tariff on offer online, but that their technical team would need to tweak my online account so I could submit my dual readings. I am told that this will take two weeks but that it shouldn't affect my bill, as long as it the work had been completed before I receive my first "bill" in 3 months time.


To date Engie haven't asked me to change my meter either.


So it seems that you can ask suppliers to give you a standard tariff in spite of having and Economy 7 meter. They don't advertise this and it appears that it's a bit of work for them, but as long as you discuss your needs immediately after signing up (within the 14 day cooling off period) so, to date, I'd say it may be worth trying this if you don't wish to change your meter but don't expect to gain from Economy 7.

huudi

Your 12' ceiling doesn't help, heat rises (if you have any) and that's 4' to 5' of the room that you never get to. On the same tack is the floor cold?, I had a similar setup long ago with only a concrete floor between my feet and the outside world, my feet were freezing. Sounds like they quoted £40 per month to get a client in, in reality its probably unfit for habitation.

huudi

2Of5 wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I'm a first time forum poster, so please bear with me as I hope to provide enough details to get some (friendly? ) help and advice.

I've recently (last 2 weeks) moved into a flat inside of a converted coach house. It's a private rental but I am liable for all of the bills, which was also the case at my previous property. My previous flat had Economy 7 so I was already aware of the peak/off-peak situation but the situation here is a bit different.

I am a fairly energy conscious single occupant who works full time (Out of the house from roughly 6:30am - 5:30pm Mon-Fri) and was previously on a monthly direct debit of £26 with OVO. I was told that my new flat is EPC Rated C and is on a pay as you go meter with Ecotricity and that the previous tenants (of which there were 2, working at differing hours) paid around £40 between them a month for the electricity.

The rate is 18.89p Day, 6.78p Night with a 20.37p standing charge.
The average split on the meter seems to be 55% Day and 45% Night.
Off peak hours are Midnight - 7am as confirmed by Ecotricity.

However, I am struggling in two ways; the first is figuring out where on Earth all of my money is going from the meter. I have topped up £40 just over a week ago and it has all but gone. All that I have had running is the built-in fridge freezer on the lowest settings (A+ rated, 0.85 kwh per day), one energy saving light bulb in the evenings when I get home and my phone on to charge for a couple of hours on the nightly rate.

I have been deliberately eating out (Oven & hob have remained off, microwave unplugged), washing at a friends (Tiny undercounter water tank, unlagged, on a timer which has remained off) and only using clothes & blankets for warmth (2 storage heaters. One which I tested for one night but other than that have remained off at the wall) as I just cannot figure out where all the money I'm topping up with is going. I called Ecotricity and they told me that there is no outstanding debt on the meter and as far as they can tell no faults which would cause this to happen.

My second issue is heating. The flat consists of one main room with a mezzanine/balcony "bedroom". For those of you who love numbers, I will provide dimensions:

Main room
(including open plan kitchen area & balcony bedroom): L: 5.1m (16' 9") W: 6m (19' 8") H: 3.6m (12")
For a total of 110 cubic metres (3884 cubic feet).

In this I have 2 storage heaters, they seem to be fairly old with only an on/off switch at the wall and Input & Output dials (1-6).
One is beneath two quite large windows (Each one 31 sq ft) and the other in a corner beneath a slightly smaller window.
I turned the storage heater on beneath the two large windows at 11pm (Input 6, Output 1) and at 7am (I was not working) cranked up the output to see how warm it would get.
Within about 15 minutes it had only gotten barely warm, I could comfortably keep both of my hands rested on the vents with no problem, despite it having charged all night and being on maximum output shortly before touching it. I don't know if the storage heaters are faulty or simply inadequate to warm a room of this size because I have to say, in the evening/night it is ABSOLUTELY FREEZING! (I'm talking hat, sweatshirt, 2 pairs of thermal socks, sleeping bag + 2 blankets and still can't feel my feet freezing!) It also cost me around £3.50 for those few hours of charging the one heater.


Anyway, in summary for those of you who are still awake

1. Does anyone know of any reason why my metered credit would be being used up so quickly despite having next to no power using appliances on?

I used MSE's Cheap Energy Club comparison which recommended me Utilita's Smart Economy 7 Tariff but if there is something seriously wrong I obviously want to remedy that before switching suppliers.

2. Does anyone have any helpful advice/ideas on how I can keep this place warm without it costing a fortune?
The storage heaters just seem to eat up credit and do very little else.


I apologise for the length of the post and thank anyone in advance who takes the time to read and respond to my woes.

"Warm" wishes,

2Of5

Your 12' ceiling doesn't help, heat rises (if you have any) and that's 4' to 5' of the room that you never get to. On the same tack is the floor cold?, I had a similar setup long ago with only a concrete floor between my feet and the outside world, my feet were freezing. Sounds like they quoted £40 per month to get a client in, in reality its probably unfit for habitation.

huudi

richardwilson1984 wrote: »

Does the seven hour cheaper electricity cover all sockets or is it just those where the NSH indicator lights come on when the hours are in play?

Apologies, it sounds so daft. I think it is all sockets but I'm not sure if a socket would need to be specifically wired.

Its trial & error for you. If you have 2 meters then its Heaters only, if one meter then it probably includes sockets unless it has a separate meter connection for Heaters. I suggest you take readings at night, plug in an Electric fire for an hour, then see which has moved.
note: my E10 includes sockets at night but not during daytime top-up hours.