187% increase in gas usage

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi again Dakota. Continuing with the points raised.

DAKOTA45 wrote: »

Just went on to E.on's website to get a quote… just impossible… fell at the first hurdle as it did not recognise my address despite it being there on the menu!! Then it was 'choose a tariff'… there were about 200… I just gave up… this is done to keep people on high tariffs… they know it's too confusing for most people to make a decision if there are more than about 3 options…

We only have 4 tariffs to choose from. Have a look at the 'best deal for you' page on our website. As above, phone our tariff guys if you're struggling. They'll soon sort this.

DAKOTA45 wrote: »

I can't recall anyone coming in to do any wiring…

I am confused now as someone from E.on on Twitter has said that it can take up to an hour for the wheel to stop turning after the mains is switched off…

Does that sound right?

How can you tell it's properly switched off before you do electrical work if the thing is still spinning…?!:(

The twitter advisor you've been talking to as put me in the picture. She's confirmed with our meter technicians, meters tend to run a bit behind so, when all the power is turned off, it will continue to register electricity already used for a short while. Check again after about an hour. Qualified electricians carry testers to make sure there's no current before doing any work. If it continues to move after an hour, there could be a couple of possibilities as others have pointed out in the thread.

Firstly, if the power's being drawn from elsewhere, best to ask a qualified electrician to check. If it is, this would need to be sorted out with the owners of the other property. If it turns out the power is being taken illegally, our Revenue Protection team needs to become involved. They're responsible for investigating energy theft.

Secondly, we can certainly arrange to test the meter. If it turns out the meter isn't faulty, there'll be a charge of £93. As per your post number 113 (Ed - now deleted), to be classed as faulty the difference needs to be outside the limits of +2.5% and -3.5%. Given the charge, you need to be sure the meter's outside these limits before asking for a test otherwise it'll add an unnecessary cost to your account.

Hope this is of interest Dakota and sorry if I've missed something.

Malc

geoffken

For Gods sake get an electrician in and get it checked.
If you spent less time twittering and reading abstruse items about possible faults you could have your answer in about 1 hour.
IF it is a cottage as holiday let they will soon find out when first renters arrive.


GET AN ELECTRICIAN!!!!!

macman

The only reason the supplier might 'think' that there is a meter fault is because your consumption is nearly 400% more than the average! How else could they possibly come to that that conclusion otherwise?
Faulty meters cannot be diagnosed remotely, the only way is to physically test them. But, if you want to waste another £93, then go ahead.
Malc has summed it all up very neatly for you.

DAKOTA45

macman wrote: »

There is no evidence whatsoever that your meter is faulty, and given the evidence you've now uncovered that the meter is feeding other properties than your own, that is even less likely.

I don't know if it is connected to other properties… I certainly don't have any evidence of that.

I have been told that the wheel keeps running after it is switched off in any case.

Mystery solved.

r2015

I have been told that the wheel keeps running after it is switched off in any case

I don't believe that, when my power is switched off my electricity meter stops instantly..

It takes a few minutes for my power monitor to go to zero but that is because the sending unit only transmits once every few minutes.

jamesd

E.on, would you be kind enough to provide a link to a document that explains technically which types of meter can continue to register power usage after there is no power usage, including the reasons why they do so. Please also explain why whether the meter is showing power usage or not affects whether the circuits involved are live or not, hence explaining why the description of electricians carrying testers is or isn't relevant. Please ensure that the descriptions apply to the spinning disk type of meter, not solely an electronic meter that may be doing time averaging to make the display values easier to read.

DAKOTA45, the type of power monitor that monitors all power usage going through your supply cable can be used to cross-check what the meter is saying. That's the more costly of the two I linked to earlier.

macman

DAKOTA45 wrote: »

macman wrote: »

There is no evidence whatsoever that your meter is faulty, and given the evidence you've now uncovered that the meter is feeding other properties than your own, that is even less likely.

I don't know if it is connected to other properties… I certainly don't have any evidence of that.

I have been told that the wheel keeps running after it is switched off in any case.

Mystery solved.

Fine, so get the meter tested then. You're obviously quite happy to accept the anecdotal ramblings of someone on social media. You'll then be another £93 in debt and still need to get an electrician in.

DAKOTA45

macman wrote: »

DAKOTA45 wrote: »

Fine, so get the meter tested then. You're obviously quite happy to accept the anecdotal ramblings of someone on social media. You'll then be another £93 in debt and still need to get an electrician in.

The 'anecdotal ramblings' were from an E.on representative and Malc seems to be backing this up.

DAKOTA45

jamesd wrote: »

E.on, would you be kind enough to provide a link to a document that explains technically which types of meter can continue to register power usage after there is no power usage, including the reasons why they do so. Please also explain why whether the meter is showing power usage or not affects whether the circuits involved are live or not, hence explaining why the description of electricians carrying testers is or isn't relevant. Please ensure that the descriptions apply to the spinning disk type of meter, not solely an electronic meter that may be doing time averaging to make the display values easier to read.

DAKOTA45, the type of power monitor that monitors all power usage going through your supply cable can be used to cross-check what the meter is saying. That's the more costly of the two I linked to earlier.

My meter is very old… reminds me of the thing they use in those Frankenstein films where they bring the monster to life.. I can't believe it gathers data after it has been switched off… but how can I argue if E.on has told me otherwise?:(

jamesd

I'm not aware of how a meter of that type can continue to show significant power usage when there is no power draw. That is part of why I asked E.on to explain the technical reasons why a meter can continue to show power draw when there is no power draw.

The type of meter I referred you to can be used to check that the existing meter is giving reasonably correct values as well as to help you to find out what power the various things are using, so you'll get some value out of it even if the meter turns out to be correct. Just telling us how much use is reported by each of them will let us tell you whether it's likely that the main meter is faulty or not.

When it comes to laptop computers, you might expect one to use about £56 year in electricity (about 40 watts continuously). An internet hub/router would use about £28 (20 watts continuous, both assuming 16p per kW hour including VAT).

If it was running continuously a hot water pump for a heating system could use perhaps £112 a year but this depends on the power setting of the pump and that van vary a lot, mine has three settings. And of course it isn't on all the time.

It seems that you do need to use some extra meters to track down where the power use is coming from and get it fixed.