For daytime electricity usage, which meter is more cost effective: Economy 7 or a standard metre?

chris112

i recently moved into a new flat which has electricity with SSE with an Economy 7 metre

so i joined the MSE cheap energy club and 'Yorkshire energy' is quoting a saving of £150 pr year

so when getting my info from SSE i was advised to switch to a standard metre, instead of the economy 7 one.as i only use electricity from 8am-11pm

so i called SSE and they plan to change my metre to a standard one in the near future

so i called Yorkshire energy to see if hey can do this, so i can switch sooner but they told me i shouldnt switch metres, 'its called economy for a reason',

so im confused which metre would be mot cost effective for m?

mu usage is, general, from 8am - 10pm, with no overnight heating/usage.
due to disability i am unemployed

as its my first time switching, im not sure which meter is the most suitable when being told conflicting information

my k/w per year usage previously was 2300kw
my previous provider projected my usage at 57%
i live in a one bedroom flat, privately rented

any advice please?

Robin9

First - its meter - a metre is a unit of length.

If you use no electricity at night an E7 tariff is no use to you. It only becomes economic if you have a heavy night-time load like storage heaters and water heating and the breakeven figure is about 35-40 %

In practise you will use some electricity at night - fridge, freezer lights.

I don't know what your previous suppliers figure of 57% means unless there is night-store heating. Are you sure they are talking about the right flat?

When you say 2300kwh was that at your previous flat?

Just to be sure - when you moved in you contacted SSE - did you give them meter readings and were there two readings ?

A photo of your meter will help.

Have you read your meter since you moved in - could you post these readings and the moving in ones please ?

anniecave

How will you heat the property? Are there currently night storage heaters installed, or panel heaters, or what?

chris112

these are the meter readings when i moved in

Reading 1:
http://tinypic.com/r/2mfqkj/9

Reading 2:
http://tinypic.com/r/353cm5z/9

i got the meters checked a week or two ago and told sse them but no longe have these figures, i can call sse to get them,

the provider of my previous flat was n-power and they gave me the 2300 kw/per year figure i used , whilst with them

after reading your post i just remembered since being here i havent been turning off the hot water tank,
this is what i have always done in the past, and i would only turn it on 20 minute before having a shower, then turn it off after, as this is the only time i use hot water
- so as i havent been turning off the tank since being here , my readings arent going to accurate of my normalusage

thank you

Robin9

Thank you for the photo's - the readings suggest a high nighttime use - more than just water heating. That could be lifestyle - early risers.

What tariff are you on with SSE ?

macman

See post 3. We can't help you unless you tell us how the property is heated. Specifically, do you have NSH's?
If you do, then you will be using the bulk of your electricity on night rate during the heating season, and so E7 is the right tariff.

Robin9

As your consumption appears to be so low the difference between E7 and single tariff isn't great - about £400 /£460 (on an SSE tariff) I appreciate that every penny counts.

EDIT - However if you are on an E7 tariff and really dont use ANYTHING at night this rises to £530

In switching just be aware that not all suppliers offer the £140 Warm Front discount which I believe you qualify for.

[Deleted User]

Just put your estimated figures in to UK Powers comparison site and play about with various day/night v single rate figures. Use UK Power /Uswitch because its quicker than the others and they don t mess about with wanting your email
With that super low 2300 kwh annual usage the cheapest supplier in my area is Ebico which comes out at a yearly cost of £304 (no standing charge tariff ) on an Eco 7 (1000kwh day, 1300kwh night ) and the cheapest 2300 kwhs single rate was £330 a year with Outfox the Market .
You cannot use the last tenants figures to compare as he/she may only have stayed at weekends or have been away half the year.
Personally I would keep the Eco 7 meter. There are so many good Eco 7 rates around they nearly always beat single rate tariffs regardless of night time percentages.
Use the comparison sites to compare. One thing is certain though is that SSE will not be anywhere near the best deals and now that they have joined with Npower they are likely to raise prices.

macman

E7 does not 'nearly always' beat single rate tariffs regardless of night time percentages. It depends on region, percentage and usage, but typically you need to be using 30% on cheap rate to make it work.
Please point us to the E7 tariff that is cheaper for average usage if you use only 5% on night rate, which might be typical if you do not have NSH's?

[Deleted User]

OK macman, but I m not using such a low figure as 5% night rate because that is not a typical low rate usage virtually everyone will use more than that on single rate tariff. 15% is more accurate . As an example I will use 4400 kwh s total annual usage
at 10% night usage ...4000 kwh day ,400 night Yorkshire Energy are the cheapest Eco 7 and they charge £585 total costs.
the best single rate tariff in my area I can find for the same 4400 kwh s is Zapp and the annual total £601 .So even down to 10% usage Eco 7 is a cheaper meter than a single rate meter. By my figures Eco 7 meters are the cheapest option for everyone and occupiers should nt be in a rush to change them, just change the supplier not the meter.

I have the advantage of reading meters of many thousands of occupiers who are on Eco 7 meters but have GCH and can see that their cheap rate 7 hr consumption seems to average out at around 15% of total .
. Many towns and areas in the UK have Eco 7 meters installed as standard in properties which have always had gas central heating from new. They are not penalised because they do not use a certain percentage of low rate usage.
The 30% of total to make Eco 7 pay mantra is wrong. . Occupiers need to get onto comparison sites to see exactly what is available armed with day/night usage in kwh s

macman

I can't agree with your figures. Those without NSH's or storage heaters and using gas CH and DHW are not going to be using 15% on night rate unless they are nocturnal. The only things drawing power overnight would be fridges, freezers, the odd light and standby items: that will not get them anywhere near 15%.