Why is my gas use so high?

LostCdn

Thanks Gerry. Please excuse my ignorance this is all new for me. So is it the meter index I need to be looking at? Do you have suspicions as to what it might sound like? The meter? The actual gas usage, which seems abnormally high to me given I'm barely using any.
All I have on gas is the hot water and the radiators, nothing else.

LostCdn

By sound like, I mean as to what the issue may be, why so much gas is being used. Seems odd for five minutes of a boiler which is connected only to radiators and hot water, to cost 9p.
Hopefully when I switch tomorrow to DD that fixes it. But I'm really starting to worry it won't and I'm already thinking of moving bc I can't stand this. I absolutely hate my flat though the idea of moving again is very very infuriating.

Gerry1

If the meter is anything like that in Post 52 it will be the figure that is permanently displayed. However, it's more likely it will be a modern battery operated meter. If so, ask for an instruction leaflet or at least get the fitter to show you how to take readings and how to switch the supply off via the lever.

Failing that, search online for the meter make and model and you should be able to find a User Guide, Instruction Manual or whatever. Make sure the opening reading in cubic metres is recorded against your account. Then number crunch the readings into kWh and make daily checks of kWh consumption (number crunch to get cost in pence) until you're happy that your usage is accurately recorded. After that, shop around for the best tariff.

[Deleted User]

Hi,

LostCdn wrote: »

Seems odd for five minutes of a boiler which is connected only to radiators and hot water, to cost 9p.

your boiler will use more when first on, a five minute test is meaningless.

LostCdn

Absolute nightmare.
SSE guy came today with a smart meter for both electric and gas but the gas lever is Hidden behind a tiny hole in the wall he can't access so he couldn't install it!!! He issued a safety notice for me to give the dodgy landlord.
Then because my cancellation to bulb hadn't yet gone through, he couldn't get the smart electric meter to work so had to uninstall and reinstall my normal electric meter.
So all this and nothing fixed. I've called SSE and now they're saying again later Feb for earliest meter installations. I am losing my mind.

Gerry1

You need to get the gas switch-off lever made accessible as a matter of urgency. You must always be able to switch off the supply if there is a leak. Take a photo before the evidence disappears and make a copy of the safety notice.

Presumably there has not been a recent gas inspection so you have a landlord who is breaking the law.

I wonder why the switch-off lever has been made inaccessible? To stop you switching off the other flat it's supplying? Time to ask for an inspection by the authorities - start by going to Citizens Advice. If the gas cannot be shut off other people will be at risk and he may be doing the same thing elsewhere if he has other properties.

victor2

It all sounds rather dodgy, especially as you can't even get at the main gas valve. Who knows where the pipework is going after the meter, apart from your boiler? I would lay it on thick with the landlord, stress the safety aspect of it and tell him you are paying for gas you are not using - may or may not br true, but he's going to struggle to argue against that, given the circumstances. The engineer would have condemned it if it was obviously dangerous, but it clearly isn't satisfactory.

LostCdn

After I sent landlord email he showed up at my flat without announcing. He said the flat was very warm so why am I complaining. I said yes I was expecting the meter to be switched and wanted to use up all the credit on it so I turned the heat up but now the meter isn't changed so I need to top it up again. It's also very very mild out and he had on a jacket.

He looked at the hole in the wall that isn't big enough and claimed that was nonsense the engineer probably just didn't want to do the work.....
I explained that the engineer came all the way with the equirement at 8am on a Saturday and I doubt that was the case.
He then told me that there is definitely nothing wrong with the boiler and that £4/day on gas is very cheap bc gas is very expensive. Even though I barely have my boiler on, it's the only thing using gas, it's never ever high.

Then he said his wife will go to all their properties on Friday - while I'm away at work - with their engineer and get all the safety checks done. I said I'd prefer to be here when that happens and he said why I told him to ask the engineer questions so he asked what I wanted to know.
I said I'd like to ask the engineer to diagnose the problem, to find out why the boiler is taking so much gas, if the fact that three radiator in the hall and the kitchen have no TRVs so are always on high when the heating is on and if that could be contributing. And perhaps there's a leak or a burst pipe. He then insisted no no no there's definitely not anything wrong like that.
He said he'd get his engineer to make the hole bigger as well. He also seemed to think a gas safety check and boiler check are the same thing, and I told him they weren't. So I sent him a text with a link explaining the difference and indicating that a gas safety check is a legal requirement then he responded he was aware of the difference. So then why do none of your flats have it?!
So I really want to be here when the engineer comes but he seems to be constantly insisting that it'll be Friday when his wife can take the engineer to all the different properties. But how will I know all the appliances have indeed been checked?
Dodgy as all hell any I'm really at my wit's end and don't know what to do.

victor2

Photograph the hole and valve now, so you'll have something to compare it with when "fixed".
I don't suppose there's much you can do about the wife bringing the engineer round on Friday. Sounds dodgy in the extreme!
This is what HSE say (https://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/domestic/faqtenant.htm):

What duties does my landlord have in relation to gas safety?

Your landlord has duties under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 to arrange maintenance by a Gas Safe registered engineer for all pipe work, appliances and flues, which they own and have provided for your use.
Your landlord must also arrange for an annual gas safety check to be carried out every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer. They must keep a record of the safety check for 2 years and issue a copy to each existing tenant within 28 days of the check being completed and issue a copy to any new tenants before they move in.

So you should get (should already have actually) a gas safety certificate. It should show the engineer's name and you should be able to check he is on the gas safe register.
You might end up looking for a new flat to live in, but could really read the riot act to the landlord if he's not complying with the law!

Gerry1

You should tell Citizens Advice that there was no gas safety certificate when you moved in and that the gas could not be turned off. If nothing else, it will be on their files if anyone has a complaint in the future, and it may turn out that it's a problem with all his properties.

If the authorities aren't made aware then they can't do anything.