Gas bills!

_chris_3

Hi all,

I have joined the forum to ask you all a question. My gas bill for the past 3 months have been far more than anyone else I know and wondered whether I might have the wrong tarif/wrong boiler/simply using too much energy?

Here is a breakdown of what I've been paying:

Feb - Total £328.15 (Gas £268.33, Elec £61.32)
Gas units used 510, kilowatt-hours used 5655, pence per kwh 4.425

Jan - £251.61 (Gas £189, Elec £61.11)
Gas units used 359, kilowatt-hours used 3983, pence per kwh 4.425 (4.347 for some)

Dec - £218.40 (Gas £150.68, Elec £50.18)
Gas units used 310, kilowatt-hours used 3434, pence per kwh 4.347

I am with Utility Warehouse on the standard user gas and electricity tarifs. I have called them to question the bills a couple of times - they say the bills are correct for the energy I am using.

The house is a 4 bed terraced. The CH/HW has been going on for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening, with the occasional extra hour or 2 in the day (though I have recently started having the heating on all the time and keeping the thermostat down as a test - keeping the house around 18 degrees - also turning right down at night).

We have got an old boiler but before getting a new one, I'd like to know from people whether these figures seem correct to them or whether I'd be better off switching. Other options are to increase the insulation in the house and get thicker curtains.

Thanks!

victor2

Your usage does seem very high for the hours you say you have the heating on. Particularly for February, which has been very mild. Utility Warehouse are not the cheapest either, but that isn't your main problem.
Are the readings used for the bills all actual readings, or are there some estimates in there? Your bills should indicate what they are.
Having your heating on all the time at 18 will dramatically increase your usage, so maybe that is what you have seen for February.
Unless your boiler has some sort of fault, replacing it is unlikely to make enough of a reduction in cost to justify it. Making sure you have good insulation where possible could reduce costs and may not be too expensive to achieve.

penrhyn

You seem to be using 200 Kwh of gas a day!!
Is your boiler firing continuously ?
What temperature is your room stat set to?
What sort of building is it? Solid or cavity walls, how many inches of loft insulation, drafts, double glazing?

FWIW my 3 bed terrace fairly well insulated uses around 50Kwh of gas, heating to around 19 in the evening, 17 during the day and off at night.

That does not include hot water for washing bathing showers or cooking etc.

_chris_3

Thanks for the replies.

@victor2 - The Feb bill is actually for heating used the Jan. I have not yet seen the bill for the period that I've had the CH turned on constantly (though looking at the meter it doesn't seem to have made much difference).

The readings are estimates but are quite accurate (my actual readings are a bit higher).

@penrhyn - The boiler shouldn't be firing continuously but it is very old (20 year ish old Potterton II Kingfisher which I am told is not very efficient at all).

When the heating was going on for around 4 hours a day the thermostat was set to around 21. Now it's on constantly I set it to less than 15.

The building is a Victorian terraced, It has wooden sash windows at the front, double glazing at the back. Not sure about the insulation but I think that is going to be the first thing I get sorted.

The house isn't even that warm most of the time, either the heat is escaping through drafty places or the boiler is just a load of rubbish!

penrhyn

Agreed, I'd start by looking at insulation, you may be able to get it done free by your energy supplier as its an older property.
Thick curtains drawn when it gets dark are a good idea.
You could fit temporary double glazing film on the front windows, and get a roll of draft excluding tape, sausages under draughty doors, and fit a thick jacket to the hot water tank.
Boiler wise, if it aint broke don't change it, it would take many years to get your money back.

victor2

Loft insulation (and lots of it) isn't usually that difficult or expensive to do and will make the biggest difference. Secondary glazing or at least very heavy curtains over the sash windows should help too.
Do you have TRVs on the radiators, or just a central thermostat control? 21 is pretty high for the main thermostat, particularly if it is the only control you have and is in a draughty part of the house, such as the hallway.
Don't let them use estimated readings, even if they are coming out close to the actual. Won't have made a lot of difference so far, but estimates could line you up for a nasty shock one day.

_chris_3

Thanks for your help. Will get the insulation done and take it from there.