Gas and electric help please

comeandgo

I don’t think TVs are the main culprit in anyones high usage.  The items that use heat like cookers, kettles, heating, water heaters, tumble driers are the main high users.  My daughter recently got a smart meter and was horrified by the amount her electric cooker uses.

QrizB

Bounty1 said:

QrizB said:

You also had high usage problems in 2017, when you were using 20000kWh/yr of gas and 12000kWh/yr of electricity; did you manage to reduce these amounts?
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5739542/british-gas-huge-bills

On the current standard variable tariff that amount of energy would cost £3500/yr, almost £300/month.

Come April's new cap it could rise to £5800/yr, almost £500/month.

No we didn’t sort much out from before, we had just got used to paying £280 per month. What has changed  is that my children were home schooled so were home all day and now one is living with girlfriend and other is at college all day so no one is in during the day now. We are very careful and try to keep tv, washing machine etc to minimum so really struggling now.

Back in 2017 you had conventional meters. By any chance do you have a smart meter now? It might help you (and us) work out where all your energy is going.

And if you think your bills now are high, wait until the April increase. You've got two months to find out just how you're using so much energy and then stop it.

Bounty1

QrizB said:

Bounty1 said:

MWT said:

It sounds like you may have moved onto an expensive fixed tariff recently.

Can you give us a few facts to work with please?

Who is your supplier?

Which tariff are you on?

What is your estimated annual consumption? (will be on a recent bill)

Supplier is British gas
tariff is standard variable 
estimated consumption for gas £997
 electric is £2700. 

OK, if those numbers are accurate you've still got crazy high electricity use to go with higher-than-usual gas use; that works out as something like 12,500kWh/yr of electricity and 22,000kWh/yr of gas.

Put another way, you're using as much electricity as four average households and as much gas as two.

Your bill is huge because you are using a lot of energy. To reduce your bill, use less.

We have gas central heating and everything else is electric, I’ve explained above what we use, I’ve tried lots to reduce it but it just seems to go up! I’m sure we are paying for next door too! 😂.

seriously though, something must be wrong as going from being home all day every day to the house being empty until 6pm and it’s gone up not down. 

QrizB

Bounty1 said:

We have gas central heating and everything else is electric, I’ve explained above what we use, I’ve tried lots to reduce it but it just seems to go up! I’m sure we are paying for next door too! 😂.
seriously though, something must be wrong as going from being home all day every day to the house being empty until 6pm and it’s gone up not down. 

Apologies if I sounded a bit rude, I'm just gobsmacked.

Here's a thought. If you don't have a smart meter, can you read your electricity meter 3-4 times a day? Say first thing in the morning, then before you go to work, whn you get home from work and last thing at night?

This might give us some clues as to where it's all going. But 1000kWh/month can't just vanish into thin air, something must be using it and (probably) getting hot while doing so!

Robin9

Lets see if we can help you on the electric .   

Energy hungry electrical items - old fridges/freezers, american style fridge, showers, fish tanks , blocked pond pumps,  electric aga's , lots of halogen spot lights

I haven't read all the old thread but you were then on a standard (ie expensive tariff) . It looks like you didn't as you are still on a standard tariff ? That has cost you a lot of money.

QrizB

Oh, and while I'm asking for the moon on a stick, could we have a photo of your electricity meter and your fusebox(es)?

Bounty1

Robin9 said:

Lets see if we can help you on the electric .   

Energy hungry electrical items - old fridges/freezers, american style fridge, showers, fish tanks , blocked pond pumps,  electric aga's , lots of halogen spot lights

I haven't read all the old thread but you were then on a standard (ie expensive tariff) . It looks like you didn't as you are still on a standard tariff ? That has cost you a lot of money.

We do have an American style fridge freezer that’s approximately 16 years old, we had an old chest freezer back when I posted here before and we dumped that in case it was costing a lot. We also have electric shower but no fish tanks etc. 

when I Spoke to British Gas changing tariff didn’t make any difference 

FreeBear

Robin9 said: Energy hungry electrical items - old fridges/freezers, american style fridge, showers, fish tanks , blocked pond pumps,  electric aga's , lots of halogen spot lights

Air conditioner units running full blast during the summer month(s) ?

Gerry1

Bounty1 said:

» show previous quotes

We have gas central heating and everything else is electric, I’ve explained above what we use, I’ve tried lots to reduce it but it just seems to go up! I’m sure we are paying for next door too! 😂.

Many a true word... do the Meter Sanity Test.
Make sure the immersion heater(s) are switched off, and get rid of the electric shower.

Robin9

Bounty1 said:

................

We do have an American style fridge freezer that’s approximately 16 years old, ......................

Disaster. I bet that's costing you £'s a day  Can you empty it by transferring to a standard fridge and freezer - then read your meter and a second reading a week later.