Faulty Boiler?

daynaxrose

I am privately renting and the gas and electric are PAYG smart meters. I've not long had the smart meters installed due to my gas costing me £50 a week and my provider flagged it as a fault with the meter so installed new smart meters.

I have set my heating to a timer, to come on 3 times a day and only if the house reaches under 20 degrees, so very reasonable and I'm not using an excessive amount of gas.

I'm still using £5 a day and 105kwh a day! I rang my provider and they said because they've replaced the meters it is probably the boiler that is faulty.

Has anybody else been in this situation? I'm not sure what step to take next?

CashStrapped

What is the make and model of your boiler?

Other than the timer, what boiler controls are you using?

Temperature controls on the boiler? house thermostat?

Also, what is your actual tariff. What is the cost of gas per KWH and the standing charge.

Robin9

Any other gas appliances - lounge fire, cooker ?

Does your boiler also supply the hot water - long showers ?

System

105kwhs/day is not a lot of energy to use in Winter if the boiler is high output and low efficiency. The other question is 'how well insulated is the property'?

My boiler is 24kW and my home is well insulated; that said, I would expect to use 16kWhs of gas in the first hour of heating if the outside air temperature is low. The internal temperature will only stabilise once the heat being put into a building matches the heat that the building is losing through doors, walls, windows and the the roof.

molerat

105 kWh a day is not excessive ....... but I would pay just over £2 for that use. What are your unit prices ? Is there debt on the meter ?

D_M_E

£5 and 105Kwh per day?

1. Is the 105 an actual meter reading - if it is then your ACTUAL gas used is about 1180Kwh and you are paying about 0.45p per Kwh since the 105 would be cubic meters - I wish my gas cost as little as this.

2. If you have calculated a consumption of 105Kwh from your meter reading then you have used approximately 9.5 cubic meters at a cost of approximately 4.9p per Kwh and I think this is around the supplier's standard or prepay tariff.

The boiler could be working fine particularly if it's 2 above - how big is the property?

daynaxrose

Thanks for the replies.

Only my gas heating and hot water use my gas. I got the 105kwh from the device given, however when taking a reading from the meter previously and calculating it to KWH it was still roughly the same. My tariff is 5p per kWh.

The energy effiency of my propert is an E. The tempsture before the heating comes on is 18 degrees and it's set to heat it up to 20.

CashStrapped

Again: What is the make and model of your boiler?

105kwh may be normal use, but it depends on a lot of variables. The boiler age being one of them.

You then need to clarify your daily, weekly, monthly use in KWH.

The smart meter should make this very easy (on-line account monitoring). But you have to be sure you are reading the correct figure.

The next thing I would do is get off pay as you go/prepay (if this is an option). EDF do not do credit checks if that would be an issue. The landlord shouldhave no objection. You would have to get the smart prepay meters swapped out. But a smart meter (especially a prepay one) does not affect the cost of electricity. They are just more accurate in charging you. In this case, more accurate in charging an extortionate rate.

If you are paying 5p per KWH in gas, then that is ludicrous. Even with prices going up there are tariffs half that cost.

What is your exact tariff name and pence per kwh/standing charge?

daynaxrose

My boiler I think (the handwriting on the gas safety certificate is near impossible to read), is a Worcester 24i Junior. No idea how old it is but it doesnt look 'new'.

When I did a meter reading by myself, in a day it used 13 units. On my Smart Meter little device its saying I'm using between 100-120kwh a day. I've tried everything possible to cut it down but I can't without my house ending up too cold!

I've looked at getting out the prepay but I'm getting around £180 a month quotes because of the Kwh usage a day. I'm feeling so stuck!

I'm not even sure what tariff I am on but when I do it as a quote through my suppliers website it says this:

Unit Rate 1* (pence per kWh) 5.046 p/kWh
Unit Rate 2* (pence per kWh) 3.440 p/kWh

for gas.
And I have no standing charge thankfully

CashStrapped

According to efficiency listings, that boiler is estimated to be around 78% efficient (rated D).

It is a non-condensing combi boiler. While 78% is not the highest, it is not bad at all. Most condensing boilers will not operate at peak efficiency so most boilers will probably operate in the 80% range, or similar to yours.

Your boiler efficiency in of itself is not something to be concerned about. It is actually pretty good, and it is a fairly modern boiler, 2003.

When did it last have a proper service? If it is a rental it should legally be serviced every year.

13 gas units per day could be considered high. It depends on many things.

1) what temperature to the radiators get to? Do they get burning hot?
2) How often is it on during the day? Do you use a timer/programmer?
3)Do you use the thermostat? What is it set to? Where is it?
4)Do the radiators have TRV valves? What are they set to?
5) how insulated is the property? Windows, roof/loft etc.

The tariff you are on however is an issue. That is causing the issue in my mind.

First you need to check how much you are actually using in KWH annually. Do you have a history of meter readings (ignoring estimates)?

Then use those figures to compare with other prepay and non-prepay tariffs. If credit checks are an issue then EDF are one company who do not do them.

You can switch to EDF on a non fixed tariff, change the meter, then switch to another supplier. You should check with your landlord first however.

If you do an accurate comparison first though. You will be able to demonstrate the potential savings to the landlord. The landlord would effectively be costing you xxx amount if they said no.

With regard to using direct debits. Because it is winter, the direct debit may have to be high to cover initial winter bills. But, on a non-prepay tariff you will be paying sooo much less.

You should get into the habit of giving a meter reading fortnightly so you can keep close tabs on the account balance.

daynaxrose

Thank you for the reply

It was serviced today while he came to check the boiler!

My radiators have thermostats set to 3. I have an electric thermostat in my living room (middle of the house), I used to have it set to manually come on when temp dropped below 20 but then set it to a timer to come on 3 times a day for an hour, saves me about £2 a day lol.

I know there is loft insulation, 300mm I think the energy rating results said. Double glazed windows and no cavity wall insulation if I remember correctly.

Unfortunately this is my first home so have no previous readings to refer to. However when living with my ex partner we used £20 a week in gas and thats all I know really!

I'm not sure if my credits a problem, it's fair so I suppose it depends how strict the suppliers are!