Electricity Meter - Load Test

Katie-Kat-Kins

Npower want to do a load test, this involves me taking a number of readings at set times throughout the day. They have requested this due to a query I raised regarding billing. I am not querying the accuracy of the meter but I am querying whether peak rates are being applied to the correct registries on the meter.


So what will the load test prove?


As far as I can see all it will show is my normal day time usage increasing through the day. The timings are not during economy 7 hours, and my storage heaters will be turned off (what with it being August and pretty warm) so my off peak registries will not change.


I'm confused!?

molerat

It will show which register is increasing at various times during day hours which is what you / they need to know.

Katie-Kat-Kins

But all it will show is my main peak rate usage increasing as the times they have requested are not during economy 7 hours. They do include the economy ten afternoon period but they won't increase as my storage heaters are turned off. I know and accept which rate my peak rate is for my non-heating usage, it is my heating usage which I have a query over.


I believe that they are charging peak rate for part of my economy 10 heating usage and have asked them to check this.


I have a 5 rate meter, the first two rates relate to general usage on economy 7 so peak and off peak. This is all fine.


The next three relate to my heating only. There is a boost rate which I accept should be charged at peak rate then two additional rates and the dispute is whether these should both be off peak or one peak and the other off peak.

House_Martin

OP, take a good look at the timer switch which controls which rate is active..If the timer switch is out of synch , the switch over times will be out.
As a meter reader for many years I see the night rate in operation at all hours of the day with a faulty timer switch, and these can now be old digital meters as well as the old analogue meters..
Also watch out for meter reading companies such as G4S, now MDS who routinely transpose customers day/night readings constantly.They do not work for Npower at the moment.

nPower

Katie-Kat-Kins wrote: »

Npower want to do a load test, this involves me taking a number of readings at set times throughout the day. They have requested this due to a query I raised regarding billing. I am not querying the accuracy of the meter but I am querying whether peak rates are being applied to the correct registries on the meter.


So what will the load test prove?


As far as I can see all it will show is my normal day time usage increasing through the day. The timings are not during economy 7 hours, and my storage heaters will be turned off (what with it being August and pretty warm) so my off peak registries will not change.


I'm confused!?

Hi Katie-Kat-Kins

Thanks for your post.

By completing the load test it will show which rates are operational at set times - to make sure everything's working correctly, it might be worth turning your storage heaters back on for 1 day to show what's switching on and when, but the previous post is correct in advising you shouldn't need to if you can check the timeswitch and what time it's set at. Don't forget that this is set to GMT not BST so may be an hour out March - October with the summer months.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to get in touch with us using the details on our profile page, putting MSE in the subject header.

Kind regards

Jess

Katie-Kat-Kins

Thanks, unfortunately the person I was dealing with didn't say anything about checking the time switch just to provide the meter readings, which of course are all the same bar a couple of units increase on register 1.


How do I check the time switch? Sounds as though I am going to have another wasted day of checking the meter regularly. Although my concern isn't really the times that anything is operating. I just want to work out whether it is correct that two of my heat registers should be at peak rate as per my bill or whether only the boost (register three) should be at peak rate. I know register three is boost as it doesn't change as we don't have any heaters that have a boost facility anymore.

House_Martin

Katie-Kat-Kins wrote: »

Thanks, unfortunately the person I was dealing with didn't say anything about checking the time switch just to provide the meter readings, which of course are all the same bar a couple of units increase on register 1.


How do I check the time switch? Sounds as though I am going to have another wasted day of checking the meter regularly. Although my concern isn't really the times that anything is operating. I just want to work out whether it is correct that two of my heat registers should be at peak rate as per my bill or whether only the boost (register three) should be at peak rate. I know register three is boost as it doesn't change as we don't have any heaters that have a boost facility anymore.

There are three types of timer switches used.
digital meters will have the timers built into the meter. They usually show three rates..rate 1, rate 2, and a T for the total of the two (some meters do not show "T" for total
Radio teleswitch timers can control both digital meters and the old analogue meters.They are very accurate and do not go wrong.
old meters can be controlled by a circular 24 timer switch with a pointer to the time it thinks it is when you view it.These old timers are mostly out of synch and the cheap 7 hours could be anywhere in the 24 hours.
Npower are trying to get you to establish when the cheap 7 hours starts and finishes.It sounds like you are on Eco 10 , with a three hour boost.That is more complex to pin down both the cheap 7 hrs and the 3 hours boost time.. Npower and Eon run eco 10, and EDF do an E10 heatwise and a 2 mpan E10 but only in the Eastern region and East Midlands
You can only do that by observing yourself when the night rate comes into operation and ends 7 hrs later, and the extra 3 hrs boost on and off.
All timer switches stay in GMT, even Radio Teleswitch, so even if the meters timer was spot on it will still be an hour out ( 12.30 am start on night will be 1.30 am until BST ends ).
All suppliers have a habit of getting rates 1 and 2 mixed up for billing purposes and that is known as a transposed reading.

Katie-Kat-Kins

It is heatwise, so we have a total of five rates and two MPANs.

EachPenny

House_Martin wrote: »

...old meters can be controlled by a circular 24 timer switch with a pointer to the time it thinks it is when you view it.These old timers are mostly out of synch and the cheap 7 hours could be anywhere in the 24 hours.

If you do have an old-style mechanical timer you should be able to see a 24 hour clockface behind a clear window. If so, you can normally get an approximate idea of the switching times just by looking at the clock - assuming it is working and hasn't failed completely.

You'd still need to check the registers to work out what consumption is being recorded where, but at least you'd have a better idea of what times of day were best to do the checks.

Feel free to post a picture of your timer (a clear in-focus close up) to see if we can help any more (p.s. tell us what time you took the photo too!)

stewie_griffin

As it's a HeatWise meter then it will be a digital meter controlled by a radio teleswitch. This means the off peak hours will be the same all year round.

Katie-Kat-Kins

I've submitted my readings and will let you all know what happens.


Depending upon the outcome I might be posting some photos of the meter for further help.


The issue isn't really the times, although having a more accurate idea of when they are would be useful, it is whether I should be paying peak rate for my heat rates.