Hilariously bad energy advice from Shell

Gerry1

Even the big boys can get it hopelessly wrong: this hilariously bad advice from Shell contains so many schoolboy howlers that it's difficult to know where to start...

 

• They can't even show costs correctly: '£0.20p' is ambiguous, it could be 20p or £20.
• They think a typical lightbulb is 600W (yes, six hundred watts !) and costs 6p per hour to run.
• They think a lightbulb uses 100 times as much power as a TV.
• They think a typical microwave is rated at 9.6kW because it uses 0.8kWh in only five minutes.
• They think most washing machines are washer dryers.
• They assume that all appliances are A+++ rated, but they don't realise that energy labels have changed because a new scale is now in force.  You'd find it hard to find a new fridge freezer with a rating better than F.
• They think 'D' is the worst energy rating but it's always been G.

When energy companies are so badly informed, what chance does the ordinary consumer have?

grumbler

This page was written by some incredible idiot!

In fact it says "a typical 0.6kWh bulb", not 0.6kW or 600W.

Some other pearls

• "electricity measurements are in kilowatts (kWh) per hour" [kilowatts are kW, not kWh]
• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense), but then (below) 2p/min (more plausible)
• PC - 22p/3h=6p/h

QrizB

grumbler said:

• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense)
  

In Shell's defence, that article was written in 2020 and seems based on electricity at 12p/kWh. If that's the case then 10p/hr is about 800W, which is the right ballpark for a 9-12000 BTU/hr aircon, either portable or mini split.

Chris_English

grumbler said:

This page was written by some incredible idiot!

In fact it says "a typical 0.6kWh bulb", not 0.6kW or 600W.

Some other pearls

• "electricity measurements are in kilowatts (kWh) per hour" [kilowatts are kW, not kWh]
• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense), but then (below) 2p/min (more plausible)
• PC - 22p/3h=6p/h

Kilowatts per hour makes no sense. A kilowatt is a measure of power. A kilowatt-hour is a unit of energy.

grumbler

QrizB said:

grumbler said:

• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense)
  

In Shell's defence, that article was written in 2020 and seems based on electricity at 12p/kWh. If that's the case then 10p/hr is about 800W, which is the right ballpark for a 9-12000 BTU/hr aircon, either portable or mini split.

Well, I am no expert, but for 10000 BTU I see about 2.5-3kW, not 800W. This is ignoring the fact that it possibly doesn't run continuously.

Gerry1

QrizB said:

grumbler said:

• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense)
  

In Shell's defence, that article was written in 2020 and seems based on electricity at 12p/kWh. If that's the case then 10p/hr is about 800W, which is the right ballpark for a 9-12000 BTU/hr aircon, either portable or mini split.

By definition, Shell Energy are well aware of the rise in energy prices and should have updated or removed the article to prevent it becoming even more misleading and confusing.

They've assumed 16.28p/kWh for the fridge freezer.  That price means their new A+++ light bulb that costs 0.1p/minute to run is drawing 368W.

elsien

Ref your first point, can’t see how £0.20p would  be interpreted as £20 given the placing  of the decimal point. 

Gerry1

elsien said:

Ref your first point, can’t see how £0.20p would  be interpreted as £20 given the placing  of the decimal point. 

A price in decimal currency should use either the £ sign or the p letter, but not both.

http://teach.files.bbci.co.uk/skillswise/ma26mone-e3-f-money-pounds-and-pence.pdf

grumbler

Gerry1 said:

'£0.20p' is ambiguous, it could be 20p or £20.

I'd say it's illiterate, not ambiguous. It has to be either 20p or £0.20

Qew

Gerry1 said:

elsien said:

Ref your first point, can’t see how £0.20p would  be interpreted as £20 given the placing  of the decimal point. 

A price in decimal currency should use either the £ sign or the p letter, but not both.

http://teach.files.bbci.co.uk/skillswise/ma26mone-e3-f-money-pounds-and-pence.pdf

Nevertheless, that doesn't explain why £0.20p would equate to £20 in any shape or form. It's not ambiguous as such, it's just that the "p" is redundant when using £x.yy as a monetary form. It's wrong, but it's not ambiguous.

QrizB

grumbler said:

QrizB said:

grumbler said:

• air conditioning - 10p per hour (nonsense)
  

In Shell's defence, that article was written in 2020 and seems based on electricity at 12p/kWh. If that's the case then 10p/hr is about 800W, which is the right ballpark for a 9-12000 BTU/hr aircon, either portable or mini split.

Well, I am no expert, but for 10000 BTU I see about 2.5-3kW, not 800W. This is ignoring the fact that it possibly doesn't run continuously.

Air conditioners are heat pumps and commonly claim a COP of 3-4 so 3kW of cooling might only need 750W of input. Which is why 800W is about right.