Energy - Totally confused

Evan3020

1 hour a day Nov to Mar would only be Round 1700 kwh of gas.

The_Fat_Controller

Evan3020 said:

1 hour a day Nov to Mar would only be Round 1700 kwh of gas.

Combi boiler, so probably used for baths, showers and general hot water usage.

@Tigsmom, how do you heat your water for showers and baths ?

Is the washing machine hot or cold fill ?

Tumble dryers use a lot of power.

Tigsmom

Cold fill washer. No baths only showers.

The_Fat_Controller

@Tigsmom, once again, how is the water for the showers heated ?

Tigsmom

markin said:

If electric heaters or electric underfloor heating is being used you need to cut it off and use Gas, Gas is cheaper.

Make sure the immersion heater isn't accidentally on.

No underfloor heating or electric heating, just underfloor insulation downstairs and combi boiler/radiators minimal use in coldest months. We usually use blankets, extra clothing first. 

Tigsmom

The_Fat_Controller said:

@Tigsmom, once again, how is the water for the showers heated ?

By the gas combi boiler. 

Tigsmom

QrizB said:

Tigsmom said:

We have just been offered a fix as follows- current annual usage has £829 electric £1621, fix offered gas £1603 electric £2913 which seems ridiculously high.

On ther current SVT:

• an £829/yr gas bill would mean you're using about 10,000 kWh/yr
• a £1621/yr electric bill would mean you're using about 5,200 kWh/yr

Your gas consumption is a little lower than the average household, bot your electricity use is getting on for twice the average.

From October, using the current Cornwall Insight estimates, your SVT bills will be roughlt:

• gas: £1550/yr
• electricity: £2600/yr

You'll probably be slightly better off sticking with the SVT rather than taking the fix, but anything you can do to reduce your energy use is going to help.

9291kWh of gas and 4936kWh of electricity as far as I can ascertain from their offer.

Tigsmom

Mstty said:

Tigsmom said:

Robin9 said:

@Tigsmom   Your present annual costs of £829 and £1621  suggest you are a very high user of both electricity and gas.  There should be plenty of room to cut your costs -  details of please of your property, heating etc .

We only use heating at 17 degrees for 1 hour a day between November and March so how can we be very high usage? My parents have their heating on all day at 22 degrees most of the year! 

Hi Tigsmom,

You gas usage is actually under the average but I am concern it is roughly 10,000 kWh a year and you say you only heat for one hour a day. Even given that the first hour of heating is the most expensive the boiler will be firing full probably for that full hour (do you know the kWh rating of your boiler) even so might be worth lower the temp on your boiler and checking you are not heating your hot water to a high temp all day.

The electricity is high so do you have high energy gadgets or cook multiple meals in the ove. Wash and dry clothes a lot or have gaming desktop PC's in the house.

Also worth checking your immersion switch is not turn on unless you have no hot water tank and a combi boiler👍

Yes I’ve stopped using my dryer and have replaced my towels with quick dry ones. It’s just difficult to dry everything in a cold house in winter. I spoken to my kids about not putting stuff in the wash when it’s only been worn for an hour 🙄 My son does have an Xbox and my husband uses a laptop to work from home. We don’t have the heating, tv on, or anything except husbands laptop when kids are at school. We are a busy house with people coming and going to various sports etc during term time so the oven was used several times a night sometimes but I have just bought an air fryer to try and cut down on that. We used to turn the oven off after cooking and leave the door open to let the heat into the house. 

Tigsmom

GingerTim said:

Do you have a smart meter? If so, you can download the Bright app for free and it should pull at least twelve months' worth of hustoric usage.

No we don’t have a smart meter. We had an appointment for one, rearranged work for them to fit it and then 30 minutes after the arranged appointment time they sent a text to say it was cancelled. Since then I’ve heard they’re unreliable so not rearranged. 

The_Fat_Controller

Smart Meters are VERY reliable.

The connected In Home Display is actually very useful for identifying how much energy is being used by each appliance and device.

If you are in an area with a good signal you should never have an estimated bill again.