Huge Electricity Usage

20RA14

Hi,

I've been renting a small two-bed (200 y/o) cottage now for around 4 months. During this four months we have used (according to the meter) around 4000 kWh (@ £0.16/kWh = £640), which would equate to around 1000kWh (£1600) per year.

Being a working couple, we are only really at home at evenings and weekends. We have the (new & efficient) oil filled radiators on for around fours hours a day, the immersion heater in the loft on around three hours a day and do a couple of washes with the washing machine/dryer per week. With only the the fridge & freezer running all the time but with nothing else running on weekdays/overnight I would think we should very little power. Estimates I've found online for electricity only, two-bed households with poor insulation estimate annual usage of around 4500 kWh.

The energy supplier (EDF) have requested a week's worth of readings before sending an engineer (at possible charge) to test the meter's accuracy. The readings I have taken this last week do show usage similar to our four month usage.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should be doing?
If EDF will charge if they find no fault with the meter what are my options? How should the landlord be involved with this issue?

Thanks

jbainbridge

It's quite possibly correct. Using electricity as your sole energy source is going to be horribly expensive - especially in a poorly insulated property. You don't even have storage heaters / economy 7 so you are using peak rate all the time.

If its not working for you I would move before next winter. So far this winter has been very mild - just imagine what it would be like if it was colder!

Finally try testing the meter yourself. Turn everything off and then turn on one appliance - maybe the immersion or a heater - record the start and end meter readings. Some basic maths should prove if the meter is reading correctly.

lstar337

20RA14 wrote: »

We have the (new & efficient) oil filled radiators

Who told you that?

Every electric heater is 100% efficient. Doesn't matter if it cost £5 or £5000.

Direct electric heating is the most expensive form of heating bar none. You need storage heaters to get your bills anywhere close to sensible.

20RA14

Going by the estimates online we are looking to use almost 40% more than than a poorly insulated, 5 bed, high usage, detached house.

By efficient, I mean that the oil filled radiator quickly heat the rooms (unlike old electric radiators), have a thermostat built in and hold their heat for a considerable amount of time after being switched off.

WestonDave

So you are using around 1000kWh per month, which is roughly 33kWh per day. Your immersion heater is probably a 3kW one so running that for 3 hours per day could be up to 9kW. My guess is that your oil radiators are at least 2kW each so each of those on for 4 hours is another 8kWh - rough guess, couple downstairs plus one in the bedroom so 3 lots of 8kWh = 24kWh plus the 9 for the immersion and you are at your 33kWh already. In reality each of those won't run flat out all the time they are on - the thermostats will cut them out, but as you can see it won't take much else being on to take up the slack from them cutting out.

20RA14

Those are some pretty accurate estimates. Although I can't say about the power of the immersion heater, I'll have to take your word on that one.

20RA14

Since we don't have central heating and only have electricity, what specific thing makes our home so much worse (energy wise) than the estimates?

lstar337

My guess would be all electric heating/hot water and poor insulation.

There will be steps you can take to reduce it, but with the heaters you have I doubt it will come down by a lot.

jbainbridge

20RA14 wrote: »

Since we don't have central heating and only have electricity, what specific thing makes our home so much worse (energy wise) than the estimates?

Dave's 'estimates' seem spot on to me!!

WestonDave

An old house like that will be solid walls which tend to be relatively good at transmitting heat out unlike a more modern insulated property. Maybe old single glazed sash windows with draughts further losing your expensive heat? Not much loft insulation? (Did you get a energy certificate when you took it on - you should have but many landlords fail to provide them - that would have given a warning that a low rating (F or lower) would be expensive to heat. (you may be able to find it here - https://www.epcregister.com/home.html).


Worth also thinking about adapting your living style to how the house works. Trying to heat that draughty old lump up like a modern centrally heated house isn't going to be easy. Maybe take it back to the days when it would have had one warm room with a fire in it and the bedroom above - so maybe keep the room under the bedroom warm and leave the others without much heat on. Then as in the old days wear more stuff to bed, and have more on the bed to keep you warm - e.g. an electric blanket. One of those will be far more effective at keeping you warm at low cost than trying to keep the room warm enough to be comfortable all night. You could maybe even have another electric blanket that you put over you both whilst watching TV etc so as to cut the need for as much heating.


I can understand that that might not sound much like living but you've got a lovely old cottage not some modern rabbit hutch - just need to treat an old lady in the right way to get the best - by summer you'll be loving the fact that the thick walls keep it cool!

lstar337

WestonDave wrote: »

I can understand that that might not sound much like living but you've got a lovely old cottage not some modern rabbit hutch - just need to treat an old lady in the right way to get the best - by summer you'll be loving the fact that the thick walls keep it cool!

Modern buildings with insulation also keep cool in summer, so lets not bash modern houses too much.