EON RHT 3-phase alternatives

pbh4

I have a complex metering setup and, like many others, have been told by EON that the restricted hours tariff will not be supported after September. They finally phoned me back today and after an up-to-date meter reading told me that they expect the annual bill to rise from £2800 to £4800! Sounds like a bit of a rip off!


The details are:

• Electric-only property - 3-phase supply
• Underfloor electric heating
• A single phase feeds meter-1 which then goes to a distribution board for sockets, lights etc
• All three phases feed a second, 3-phase meter (meter-2). The separate phases go to three additional distribution boards that serve single phase underfloor heating (different phases to different regions of the house) and the immersion heater.
• Three-phase for heating is switched on and off by a sealed electromechanical timer that is wired to the 3-phase meter, meter-2.

The EON Simpler Metering team called today to tell me that my only options are

1. Switch to unrestricted tariff - estimated £4800 pa
2. Switch to Economy 10 - estimated £3800 pa. However they said that this will not be compatible with underfloor heating as it will need more than 10 hours.
3. They did not offer E7 - not sure why not.

I do not have much confidence that the Simpler Metering person really knew what they were talking about:

• They were not able to tell me whether and E10 meter would switch the heating on and off as in the current setup or if it only switches the rate and I need a separate timer. If I do need a separate timer will they supply it?
• At first they said we were not eligible for a meter exchange but then conceded "I do know that the rates we are charging you are extortionate amounts" (I jest not - she actually said that) and they have offered to change the setup to either a single E10 meter or a single, unrestricted 3-phase meter that will at least make shopping around for different suppliers easier.
• They said I could not talk to anyone with any technical expertise - the Complex Metering team is back-office only, apparently - but they have offered to send an engineer out to the house to have a look and advise what is possible.

What should i do? It seems to me that a simple, single 3-phase meter arrangement would make it easier to shop around for other options. If I do that, how do I control the underfloor heating timing?


Cheers,


Paul

spiro

What is your total annual consumption in kWh? Only that will give people any idea if the costs they are quoting are reasonable.

coffeehound

How many hours does the underfloor heating take at present on E.ON RHT?

Ectophile

If you just go for a simple 3-phase, then you can turn the heating on or off whenever you like, or just leave it on low all the time. There's no peak and off-peak prices.


E10 is like E7, but with a 3-hour boost during the day, before the evening peak. It may be suitable if you can heat the house with 10 hours electricity a day. There should be some output from the meter to say it's now on off-peak rate. You would have to contact an electrician to get the heating wired to switch on when the meter says.



They probably didn't suggest E7, as you'd only have heating for seven hours at night. If E10 is doubtful, then E7 would be worse.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

pbh4 wrote: »

I have a complex metering setup and, like many others, have been told by EON that the restricted hours tariff will not be supported after September. They finally phoned me back today and after an up-to-date meter reading told me that they expect the annual bill to rise from £2800 to £4800! Sounds like a bit of a rip off!


The details are:

• Electric-only property - 3-phase supply
• Underfloor electric heating
• A single phase feeds meter-1 which then goes to a distribution board for sockets, lights etc
• All three phases feed a second, 3-phase meter (meter-2). The separate phases go to three additional distribution boards that serve single phase underfloor heating (different phases to different regions of the house) and the immersion heater.
• Three-phase for heating is switched on and off by a sealed electromechanical timer that is wired to the 3-phase meter, meter-2.

The EON Simpler Metering team called today to tell me that my only options are

1. Switch to unrestricted tariff - estimated £4800 pa
2. Switch to Economy 10 - estimated £3800 pa. However they said that this will not be compatible with underfloor heating as it will need more than 10 hours.
3. They did not offer E7 - not sure why not.

I do not have much confidence that the Simpler Metering person really knew what they were talking about:

• They were not able to tell me whether and E10 meter would switch the heating on and off as in the current setup or if it only switches the rate and I need a separate timer. If I do need a separate timer will they supply it?
• At first they said we were not eligible for a meter exchange but then conceded "I do know that the rates we are charging you are extortionate amounts" (I jest not - she actually said that) and they have offered to change the setup to either a single E10 meter or a single, unrestricted 3-phase meter that will at least make shopping around for different suppliers easier.
• They said I could not talk to anyone with any technical expertise - the Complex Metering team is back-office only, apparently - but they have offered to send an engineer out to the house to have a look and advise what is possible.

What should i do? It seems to me that a simple, single 3-phase meter arrangement would make it easier to shop around for other options. If I do that, how do I control the underfloor heating timing?


Cheers,


Paul

Hello Paul and welcome to the Forums.

You've certainly been talking to the right people. Our Simpler Metering team are looking after this project. Each property tends to have its own characteristics and there's only so much they can tell you over the phone. I would take up our offer for a technician to visit as the sort of things you're asking will need a more specialised input.

I posted quite a bit of information about our project to replace complex meters like your RHT on another thread at the following link. This includes some information about the alternatives available.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6003849/economy-10-meter-change-eon

Hope this is useful Paul.

Malc