Living alone, is a £150 annual heating budget possible?

Legacy_user

I know this is low... but could it be done?

I'm thinking of not using any gas, only electrical heaters. 2 rooms a day in winter, 500w heating, 8 hours, = 8kw - around a £1.

£30 a month for November - March. Heating not really needed for the other months as can wear jumpers etc, doesn't really bother me!


Am I dreaming?

tizerbelle

Have you considered the standing charges? Do you have a gas supply but just won't be using it? If so, unless the supply is disconnected you'll still have to pay standing charge for both fuels.

Any where between 18 and 28p a day each - thats £65 to £100 per year for just having an electric supply. Double if you have a gas supply

Richie-from-the-Boro

SSE supply Ebico. Ebico charge one unit price for electricity [and gas] with zero standing charges, no tie-ins and no exits fees, regardless of your payment method. £150pa would require zero heating at all, no TV, frugal use of a low rated on-demand electric shower for hygiene, washing would have to be done elsewhere etc - can't see it myself.

System

Thanks:)...I'm quite a frugal but don't want to sacrifice quality of life

I checked Ebico and them seem to charge 17p per kwh elec.. no other costs.

My daily use would be:
TV and PC = 500W
8kw power shower, 4 minutes = 533W
Oven for cooking, 1kw at 30 mins = 500W

Say 1500W per day, =550kw per year




Yearly costs:
Fridge/Freezer - 200kw
Washing machine - 1 wash a week, 50kw
Dishwasher - 1 wash a week, 50kw

Heating 8kw (see first post), x 150 days needed = 1200kw

That brings the yearly total electricity cost to 850kw.


Total electricity usage is 2000kw. At the 17p rate, it works out at a yearly cost of £340

System

Have just found an npower no standing charge tariff at 14p, bringing the yearly cost to £280..

tizerbelle

Npower! Not sure if that's brave or foolish.

Not trying to put you off reducing your energy usage but don't forget other electricals/water heating:

Hot water for washing face/hands (other than shower)
Those items that don't go in the dishwasher?
Hand-washing any clothes?
Kettle
Hair Dryer / Tongs
Iron
Mobile phone charger
Microwave
Radio / CD Player
Landline answerphone
Electric toothbrush
Cooker Extraction Hood
Lamps and ceiling lights
Alarm clocks
Any sky/tivo/freeview boxes or dvd players
Do you have a digital camera with rechargeable battery
etc etc

[Deleted User]

berbastrike wrote: »

I know this is low... but could it be done?

I'm thinking of not using any gas, only electrical heaters. 2 rooms a day in winter, 500w heating, 8 hours, = 8kw - around a £1.

£30 a month for November - March. Heating not really needed for the other months as can wear jumpers etc, doesn't really bother me!


Am I dreaming?

Yes you are dreaming, maybe last winter, the mildest on record you could ve got away with such low heating but the winter before it was absolutely freezing cold from November to April. I use those cheap Halogen electric fires with 3 x 800 watt bars and I ended up with 5 bars going and was still pretty cold. The only way you would get away with a lousy 500 watts heating was to sit huddled up in a warm sleeping bag with hot water bottles for company. Your 500 watts of heating would just taking the edge off the cold air nothing more.
I dont have gas central heating and spend most of my time either at work or at other peoples nice warm houses. My gas bill is no more than £80 a year. electric is approx £400

PasturesNew

I live alone - but in the south where it's a bit warmer. Last year I had a brand new gas meter fitted and 14 months later I moved out - over that 14 months I used 135 units of gas.... not sure how much that equates to without digging the bills out. I was on a standard British Gas tariff with a standing charge, which seemed to be about half the bill, but I didn't want to change and get locked into something as I thought I'd be moving "soon".

I was at home all day, every day, but it was well insulated.

daveyjp

500w will not heat a room quickly. You will barely feel it.

System

a small room? wearing a jumper, would I still feel cold?

will 1kw heat a room?

Andy_WSM

If you have a gas supply, use it!

It's a third of the cost of electricity per kWh.

If you have central heating, turn it off in the rooms you are not using. Even at just 80% boiler efficiency (poor!) you will save money over electricity costs.