Unusually high gas usage

FreeBear

prognostic said: I looked at the meter 2 hours later and it had gone up by one cubic meter suggesting there is "actual usage".

Would be worth turning the gas off (yellow lever next to the meter) and seeing if readings still increment. It is not unheard of for meters to start recording phantom usage as the internal battery goes flat.

Gerry1

FreeBear said:

prognostic said: I looked at the meter 2 hours later and it had gone up by one cubic meter suggesting there is "actual usage".

Would be worth turning the gas off (yellow lever next to the meter) and seeing if readings still increment. It is not unheard of for meters to start recording phantom usage as the internal battery goes flat.

Yes, that can certainly happen !

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80633189/#Comment_80633189

The lever may be red.

prognostic

Hi all,

**Update**
I switched off the boiler and didn't use gas for 12 hours (tried it twice over two days) - each time the gas meter reading went up by ~3 cubic meters without us using it.

So I suspect it's a meter issue? I have now contacted my supplier if they could help investigate.

Thanks for all your help again.

MP1995

prognostic said:

Hi all,

**Update**
I switched off the boiler and didn't use gas for 12 hours (tried it twice over two days) - each time the gas meter reading went up by ~3 cubic meters without us using it.

So I suspect it's a meter issue? I have now contacted my supplier if they could help investigate.

Thanks for all your help again.

Or a gas leak

FreeBear

MP1995 said:

prognostic said:

Hi all,

**Update**
I switched off the boiler and didn't use gas for 12 hours (tried it twice over two days) - each time the gas meter reading went up by ~3 cubic meters without us using it.

So I suspect it's a meter issue? I have now contacted my supplier if they could help investigate.

Thanks for all your help again.

Or a gas leak

3m³ is a lot of gas to loose over 12 hours. That sort of volume would be easy to smell, and a serious safety risk to boot.
If you suspect a gas leak, dial 0800 111 999 immediately and your gas distributor will be round in a matter of hours to check.

prognostic

We have not smelt gas in the house ever over the last few months.
Should I wait for the supplier to get it checked which could take up to a week?

Alnat1

prognostic said:

We have not smelt gas in the house ever over the last few months.
Should I wait for the supplier to get it checked which could take up to a week?

Phone the gas leak service. Explain about the high use and that the meter is still increasing with the gas turned off. Tell them you are worried there may be a leak, even though you haven't noticed a smell of gas. They should come out and check it very quickly. Better safe than sorry.

Gerry1

As previously stated, turn the supply fully off at the meter immediately using the red lever or the yellow knob.  If the reading changes overnight then it's proof that the meter is faulty.

If the meter is OK then you may have a leak where there's no smell, e.g. the gas could be going into the wall, under the floor or even up the chimney, risking a serious explosion.💥

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80146917/#Comment_80146917

If the switch off test was OK but the reading increases when the boiler's electrical supply has been switched off at the wall then you need to switch off the gas at the meter and call the emergency number  0800 111 999.

prognostic

I called the emergency number and helped identify one of the gas fireplaces to be causing the gas leaks. Explains why there was never any smell either.

All safe now, the numbers look stable over the last hour.

Thank you all for your kind advice, made it so easy! 

MattMattMattUK

prognostic said:

I called the emergency number and helped identify one of the gas fireplaces to be causing the gas leaks. Explains why there was never any smell either.

All safe now, the numbers look stable over the last hour.

Thank you all for your kind advice, made it so easy! 

Thanks for coming back with an update and glad it is now all sorted.