Why are we paying for energy we don't need?

Richie-from-the-Boro

suzannebridges wrote: »

It isn't a survey!!
The evidence is being presented at EMEX (at ExCel in London) this week.
Presumably those involved in the energy business will be there.

Will they discuss the 'street lights' and CIPD project yourself and other shills promoted and are paid to promote ?

NeverInDebt

You need one of these Clive will sell you one its at end of video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKasA4HxaGY

Its just a empty box with two led's may as well get one i save loads

Cardew

suzannebridges wrote: »

It isn't a survey!!
The evidence is being presented at EMEX (at ExCel in London) this week.
Presumably those involved in the energy business will be there.

Presumably??


http://www.emexlondon.com/emex-exhibitors-list/


Unless you represent one of the companies listed how did you come to hear about this stupid claim for voltage reduction?


Also why join MSE to bring the matter to people's attention?


I appreciate you are new to MSE, however several people have tried to promote 'voltage optimisers' for domestic applications in the past - and been shot down. Also by this article in the Telegraph.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/advice/9153868/Jeff-Howells-DIY-advice-home-voltage-optimisers.html


Waste of money
Q I recently became aware of the existence of a device called a home voltage optimiser. It seems to be easy to fit, costs under £300 for the unit and allegedly saves about 17 per cent of one’s electricity consumption.

Can you explain exactly how it saves electricity, and if there are any drawbacks? And why is the public not being encouraged to fit these devices, as they seem a lot more cost effective than the vast cost of renewable energy technologies?

RB, Northampton

AThe drawback of domestic voltage optimisers is that they are a waste of money. These gadgets are advertised using the false logic that because 240-volt electrical appliances are able to operate within a range of voltages – from 216V to 253V – then if you reduce the supply voltage, the appliances will use less electricity.





For fittings such as incandescent lamps (aka traditional “light bulbs”), there is a grain of truth in this. If you lower the voltage, your lamps will not use as much electrical power. But this is because they will be giving off less light – an effect which you could achieve much more cheaply by fitting dimmer switches.
When boiling the kettle or cooking the Sunday roast, however, the significant factor is not voltage, but energy (voltage x current x time, measured in kilowatt-hours or “units” of electricity). If you lower the voltage, your kettle will simply take longer to boil, and the total energy consumption will remain the same. It costs the same amount of money to boil a kettle at 216V as it does at 253V.
Equally, any device with a thermostat, such as a room heater or refrigerator, will cost exactly the same to run regardless of the voltage.
And many modern electronic devices use switched mode power supplies, so if the voltage is lower, they just draw more current to compensate.
These devices are being widely marketed, promising large percentage savings on customers’ electricity bills, but I am not aware of any independent published research that supports the advertisers’ claims. As with all alleged “energy saving” gadgets, just remember, they can’t change the rules of physics.

Richie-from-the-Boro

B2B Marketing, Comms, PR Professional | Award-winning Campaigns | Hands-On | Brand + Business Development | Creative & The Chartered Institute Of Public Relations (CIPR) Sutton Coldfield Grammar School For Girls & The Chartered Institute Of Marketing (CIM). To include the 'Blinded by the Light' Campaign for Dark Skies campaign by the Creative Media Company.