Batteries and saving sessions

1961Nick

I didn't bother with the last session because I didn't have any use for energy during the the IDA period. I can't bring myself to waste energy just to game the system - batteries were full, solar was heating the DHW & the car is being fixed.

Mikeyboy01443

Comes to something when you can't even use grid electric if you wanted to lol

paul991

same  for me the solar was doing so well evan with hotwater and washing machine still used zero and no way was i going to turn a electric heater on just to waste.but had some good pv days recently so cant complain

JKenH

I don’t consider warming the house to be a waste of energy.  

I’ve not had the oil central heating on for a while now, just using my two ASHPs to heat the house. Yesterday I turned up the ASHPs and turned on some convector heaters during the IDA period and got the house warm and didn’t need any heat at all after 4.30pm. It was like summertime when went to bed with our bedroom still at 21C. I also used the immersion heaters on timers during the IDA period, rather than during my cheap Go Faster slot. 

I have been keeping good records of kWh used (which I can’t do with the oil CH) while my wife was away in Thailand for 3 weeks and comparing with when she got back. While there obviously will be more heat loss with the main rooms at 22C rather than 18C, it isn’t enough to really be noticeable above the background noise of general consumption. In some houses it might be but in ours which has solid masonry walls throughout (and extra wide cavity walls with 75mm insulation) there is significant thermal mass. As a consequence it does take longer to heat from cold but retains the heat reasonably well. Last night, downstairs the temperature dropped 2C overnight in unheated rooms and 1C upstairs. (It will lose more heat when the weather outside is colder). 

The extra 30 kWh or so of room heating yesterday wasn’t wasted here.

Having a house with high thermal mass gives me two options for heating. Either I can heat the whole house and maintain the temperature (more energy required overall) or I can just heat the rooms when I need them. With 5 hours of Octopus Go I have been able to have the ASHPs on in the lounge and kitchen for 5 hours at cheap rate (5.5p/kWh) storing heat at 1-2p/kWh and for the rest of the day at my higher rate of 13.3p offset by some of my solar PV (average 8 kWh/day in February) so probably a similar average cost. The alternative is to heat the rooms when we want to occupy them at 3-5p/kWh. Sadly this situation will end next month when my rate goes to 12-40p/kWh and I have to get my head around the higher rates which in peak hours will be a similar cost to heating with oil.

EricMears

mickyduck55 said:

 Just checked my usage from yesterday and no usage data available, the last readings were 20 Feb.  Just my luck for it all to go wrong when I do actually try to play the system

Apparently the 'explore usage' page is always late for Tuesdays !  Usually recovers by Thursday.

mickyduck55

EricMears said:

mickyduck55 said:

 Just checked my usage from yesterday and no usage data available, the last readings were 20 Feb.  Just my luck for it all to go wrong when I do actually try to play the system

Apparently the 'explore usage' page is always late for Tuesdays !  Usually recovers by Thursday.

All sorted and the points credited to my account yesterday evening.

michaels

Strange no saving session announced for tomorrow

Mikeyboy01443

Hopefully they are waiting to do one big last session!

michaels

Session tonight 6-7pm so 'switch on at 2 and off at 5'

EricMears

michaels said:

Session tonight 6-7pm so 'switch on at 2 and off at 5'

Odd !   I've not had an email so checked the Octopus webpage but still couldn't see any reference to it.