It's getting tough out there. Feeling the pinch?

Rosa_Damascena

otb666 said:

I got a sneaky suspicion they wanna try and chuck me off the fix by exaggerating the DD monthly amount until i default.  As i know come october they will be outta pocket

I wish there was an instant way of capturing all this beautiful sunshine and using it to heat our homes in the winter!

Doom_and_Gloom

Floss said:

Doom_and_Gloom said:

The standing charge is horrific. For us it is approximately £13 a month (depending on the length of the month) of any bill. That figure shocked the OH. It is all well us doing what we can to reduce our usage and/or do as much on the cheap tarrif we have but that figure is the starting point of any months bill. 

Is that on a fix, or pre-31/03/2022? The majority of companies have raised standing charges and mine is going up to around 75p a day, £22 a month on average (Shell, about to move onto SVT from a fix).

No, that is the new price. It was about £8.50 a month for the standing charge before (I'm working both costs after the 5% tax too).
We've always been on the variable in this flat (nearly 8 years) and used to pay every quarter when asked but now do it monthly as they have now requested that. We did it that way due to the way I budget as a DD suddenly going up and not being able to argue it (even if it wasn't a justifiable raise) would have had a knock on effect on our whole budgeting makeup. It was a very tight budget when we first moved here as although OH had a full time job a good portion of money went on train travel into central London where he worked, the odd new suit and the like and dry cleaning. He hasn't worked there in years and it was amazing how much money got freed up even on a lower income when he left!

We have quite a low income now,  (even when you include my PIP payments) and so even these kind of price rises are noticeable. Thankfully I've been budgeting like this since I wasn't quite 17 (nearly 33 now!) so I've become rather good at budgeting with not a lot. 

otb666

we are on a budget but I am not changing my usage as i have done the sums and can afford 220 which is what we use.  I want to have 2 years of normal usage as just retired Before i go full circle and have to scrape ice from inside my windows like when i was little in the 1970s

Rosa_Damascena

otb666 said:

we are on a budget but I am not changing my usage as i have done the sums and can afford 220 which is what we use.  I want to have 2 years of normal usage as just retired Before i go full circle and have to scrape ice from inside my windows like when i was little in the 1970s

I remember those days and don't want to go back there. Maybe we are just too used to having a high standard of living?

euronorris

Floss said:

Doom_and_Gloom said:

The standing charge is horrific. For us it is approximately £13 a month (depending on the length of the month) of any bill. That figure shocked the OH. It is all well us doing what we can to reduce our usage and/or do as much on the cheap tarrif we have but that figure is the starting point of any months bill. 

Is that on a fix, or pre-31/03/2022? The majority of companies have raised standing charges and mine is going up to around 75p a day, £22 a month on average (Shell, about to move onto SVT from a fix).

75p a day seems much higher than the ofgem cap, which should be in place for their SVT. I think ours will be about 51p per day for electric, and I know there is some variation by region etc, but didn't think it would be that much of a difference?

otb666

Maybe but hope not as not extravagant in most things apart from heat and food And really in this day and age I should be able to have that otherwise why have i always worked so hard.  

C_J

One caveat re comfrey is that some people find it a skin irritant, so it’s a good idea to wear gloves when picking the leaves.

I do as others do - making comfrey tea by steeping the leaves in water in an old plastic dustbin (and yes, it does pong). I add a slosh of it to a watering can and use the dilute liquid as a plant food. I also chop or tear handfuls of the leaves and add it to my dalek compost bins and also in the hot bin. It really speeds up the composting process. 

I grew the comfrey plants from seed, and the plants were nearly destroyed a couple of times by builders trampling all over them on two separate occasions - but the plants are tough as old boots and have come back stronger than ever both times so they’re pretty indestructible.

I have also made nettle tea, and dilute that to feed tomato plants.  Still have a dozen 2 litre fizzy pop bottles of concentrated nettle tea in the shed from last year!

Floss

euronorris said:

Floss said:

Doom_and_Gloom said:

The standing charge is horrific. For us it is approximately £13 a month (depending on the length of the month) of any bill. That figure shocked the OH. It is all well us doing what we can to reduce our usage and/or do as much on the cheap tarrif we have but that figure is the starting point of any months bill. 

Is that on a fix, or pre-31/03/2022? The majority of companies have raised standing charges and mine is going up to around 75p a day, £22 a month on average (Shell, about to move onto SVT from a fix).

75p a day seems much higher than the ofgem cap, which should be in place for their SVT. I think ours will be about 51p per day for electric, and I know there is some variation by region etc, but didn't think it would be that much of a difference?

That's for gas & electricity - 45p for electricity & 27p for gas. 

Doom_and_Gloom

We are all electric so there is no gas to pay a daily connection fee for us to worry about or pay for. Alot of flats built in the last 20 years don't have a gas supply. 

-taff

@Deleted_User If you grow tomatoes in buckets, you can also chop up some comfrey leaves and add it to the compost ,it will boost the feed. Make a feed with nettles and comfrey in a bucket or a bin with a lid, of water and that should prety much cover any plant you need to feed. It smells like a plant poo sewage works, and if you get it on your hands they will reek for a while [ yep, been there, done that] You can also add any perennial weeds to the bcuket, dandelions, horse tail etc, it's all extra nutrients.

Anything lumpy in there at the end of the season can go on the compost heap/bin

If you have it in a bin or bucket without a lid you will probably get rat tailed larvae in there but don't worry, they're good for the garden and are pest eaters when they grow up.