Scottish Power Smart Meter

Gerry1

Is it a real boiler (probably gas) or just a hot tank with immersion heaters on a multi-rate tariff such as Economy 7 or Economy 10?  If there's a Boost button that suggests it's one of the latter two.

Regular use of the Boost button should be strictly avoided because it's likely to use peak rate electricity that's even more expensive than single rate.  It's only for emergency use such as returning after an absence and needing hot water before the early hours of the next morning.

If there's a 'real' gas boiler then an immersion heater should be seldom used unless the boiler breaks down.

Bolt1234

There isn’t any gas.  Electricity only.  I can take some pictures when I am next there. I have shown her how to use the boost and she will only use when she is going to have a shower.  Also the manager mentioned sometimes the water is OK and nice and hot and then it becomes lukewarm.

Thank you all for responding so quickly. At least Mum has the option of using boost.  This other women just wants it sorted.  Do you all think it’s actually relating to the SM?  It’s a massive coincidence if it’s not as it’s happened to a number of residents.  

Gerry1

So is there a hot tank with an immersion heater at the bottom and another halfway up?

Is it a multi-rate electricity tariff?

How is the property heated?

QrizB

Bolt1234 said:

Do you all think it’s actually relating to the SM?  It’s a massive coincidence if it’s not as it’s happened to a number of residents.  

It seems likely that your mum and the other residents have split-rate electricity, Economy 7 or similar.

With the hear systems there is a permanently-live supply plus a timed supply. The timed supply is switched by the meter (either directly using a fifth terminal on the meter or indirectly by a separate contactor) to only be live during a cheap rate period, usually overnight.

Heating appliances like the immersion and storage heaters are connected to the switched cheap rate supply.

What can happen during a meter swap is that the cheap rate supply isn't correctly wired in. What happens then is that the immersion doesn't heat the water and the storage heaters don't heat up.

For hot water, you can make do by using the boost button. This powers a separate immersion heater using peak rate electricity. Unfortunately there's not any equivalent way to heat up storage heaters, and you'll end up resorting to expensive plugin heaters instead.

This is why we've asked for a photo of the meter and is what an electrician would check if asked to do so.

Edit: there's a photo of a five-port meter (the grey box, centre-left, next to the yellow postcard) in this post:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/79565943/#Comment_79565943

And you can see a four-port meter with an external contactor in this post:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/79545501/#Comment_79545501

If your mum has Economy 7 or a similar split-rate tariff, she should have one of these two arrangements.

Bolt1234

So Mum has wall heaters.  They are not storage heaters. Mum turns them on at the wall when needed.  Not on a timer.  No gas. 

QrizB

Bolt1234 said:

So Mum has wall heaters.  They are not storage heaters. Mum turns them on at the wall when needed.  Not on a timer.  No gas. 

Expensive to run, but should still work. That's one less thing to worry about.
Do you have a copy of a recent electricity bill? Does it have two different tariffs, or only one? Are there separate "day" and "night" meter readings shown, or just a total?

Gerry1

Third time of asking...

* Is there a hot tank with an immersion heater at the bottom and another halfway up?

* Is it a multi-rate electricity tariff?  If so, she's probably wasting money.  It might just make sense in the summer if wired correctly and the Boost is never used, but it's likely to be needlessly expensive in winter.

Presumably it once had old style storage heaters which were replaced by panel heaters, but the tariff was not changed accordingly?  If so, two big mistakes.☹️

Bolt1234

Looks like it’s single rate electricity on her bill.  The wall heaters were put in when the development was built so it never had storage heaters. It’s a Mccarthy and Stone complex. Mum rents.

Not sure it’s immersion and will need to check.

Gerry1

Bolt1234 said:

The wall heaters were put in when the development was built so it never had storage heaters. It’s a Mccarthy and Stone complex.

Well, that's a very good reason for anyone never to consider a McCarthy Stone property !

Cheap for the builders to buy and install, but very expensive for the occupiers to run.

Bolt1234

TBH Gerry- it’s not expensive. Her bills are not large. Just over £100 per month and that was during the winter price rises. It’s really not helpful to make snide comments about M and S.  Moving there was transformed Mums health and well being.  She was struggling living on her own 100’s of miles away from me.