Ground Source Heat Pumps - best tariff for 3 Phase supply

Posiden · 2 February at 9:44PM

Hello,

Ive had a Ground Source heat pump for over 15 years when we swapped from oil as it was getting very expensive.

Sadly the Electricity bill is now approx £550 a month and Im doing everything I can to keep the bill down.

I am with Octopus Energy and discussed with them today the possibility of a better rate because Im on the Heat Pump and was told I was on the current cheapest tariff. The only way I could get my electricity cheaper was if I got a Smart Meter and switched to their 'Cosy' tariff. This could save me up to 50% on my bill.

Unfortunately my electricity is supplied via 3 Phase and there is a waiting list of up to six months to get someone to fit the Smart Meter to a 3 Phase system.

I could be saving quite a bit on my electricity bill, if I could get the smart meter fitted.

Is anyone having a similar issue.

Newbie_John · 3 February at 8:06AM

How much is your current kWh rate? Are you maybe on E7 tariffs?

There is no chance Cosy will save you that much unless you avoid heating during the peak 16-19 and heat more during certain other periods.

Try a tarriff with cheapest kWh rate out there:

https://www.homeenergy.co.uk/

gpman · 3 February at 9:47AM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81867600#Comment_81867600

I don't think Home Energy will be able to assist the OP. The OP has a 3 phase, 400v supply.

Home Energy supply, …well… homes, with traditional 230v supplies. Home Energy will not even totalise/provide a flat rate to residential customers with an E7 meter.

gpman · 3 February at 10:06AM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6653480/ground-source-heat-pumps-best-tariff-for-3-phase-supply

So presumably you do not have a smart meter at the moment?

Have you seen this recent MSE article?

MSE News: Smart meter problems? You could be automatically compensated under new rules

… but I don't know if that applies to 3 phase supplies.

ETA:

Here is the Ofgem press release:

Ofgem to roll out tougher smart meter rules from February | Ofgem

It doesn't seem to preclude 3 phase supplies, rather it seems to apply to all domestic customers.

Strummer22 · 3 February at 12:43PM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6653480/ground-source-heat-pumps-best-tariff-for-3-phase-supply

I'm in almost exactly the same situation, although my heat pump is only about 4 years old. I also will be getting Octopus to fit a smart meter for our three phase supply later this year. However, I don't expect to find a better deal than just the cheapest kWh fix out there. I don't want cosy because I don't think we'll be able to avoid the expensive peak rate use. We're a multigenerational family and it'd be too restrictive to everyone's lifestyle.

Given my experience running my heat pump, I'd like to focus on your comment that you're doing everything you can to keep your bills down. What are the steps you've taken to keep usage to a minimum?

Newbie_John · 3 February at 1:01PM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81867731#Comment_81867731

my main point was that Cosy is not that good for heat pumps - you should go after tariff that offers cheapest average rate

Home Energy was just example

gpman · 3 February at 2:36PM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81868045#Comment_81868045

I'm sorry, I misunderstood where you were coming from. The OP seemed to me to be asking about the 6m timeframe to get a smart meter installed that they were quoted by Octopus.
So I thought you were suggesting the OP should switch to a different supplier & tariff in the hope of improving the time to obtain a smart meter.

The OP asked their current supplier, Octopus, for the best tariff but of course Octopus would only recommend one of their own tariffs. They suggested Cosy, as that is a tariff they specifically invented for customers with heat pumps.

https://octopus.energy/smart/cosy-octopus/

The advantage Cosy has over say a conventional E7 tariff for those with a heat pump is the 3 hours of low rate electricity between 13:00h & 16:00h. Similarly, it offers 8 hours a day low rate in total so possibly better than most single rate tariffs if the OP ban make good use of the 8 hours low rate. You were correct though in warning about the high, peak rate applicable between 16:00h and 19:00h on Cosy. Octopus told the OP they would save 50% by switching to Cosy. Personally I would want that claim in writing with an explanation of how that could be achieved. But I don't think the OP could save 50% by switching supplier to a 'normal' tariff either, only if that supplier offered a special heat pump tariff too (or something similar) which would undoubtedly need a smart meter.

Also the OP never said they had an E7 type meter, so if they wanted that type of tariff they would need a new meter anyway, which would almost certainly need to be a smart meter. I'm not sure E7 is a good choice for heat pumps; night storage heaters is the best form of heating to use in conjunction with E7.

If your point was that Octopus generally just do not offer cheap tariffs any more, I would not disagree with you. The smart people (all puns intended) have already ditched & switched, but the options available to the OP may be more limited because of their 3 phase supply. Their requirements/usage of the OP also differs to most people because they have a heat pump.

But I'm not prepared to go further down the rabbit hole of the cost of Octopus here. Not only would it be unfair to the OP and off topic for this thread, the last time someone attempted to drag me down that particular rabbit hole, they ended up boasting about how they buy all their electricity from Octopus for just 7p/kWh, and which other supplier could beat that?

Even if Octopus would supply the OP with electricity for 7p/kWh, which I very much doubt, the OP would still need a smart meter ... and that is their issue at the moment, I believe; Octopus is quoting at least 6m to provide the OP with a smart meter. (but then they may not need their heat pump anymore)

Newbie_John · 3 February at 5:56PM

i think you've over interpreted my message - generally agree with you but my main point is that:

heat pumps are recommended to run at the same temperature all day long
cosy is expensive, sure the 8h are cheaper but the remaining 16h are more expensive, especially 16-19 is almost double
putting numbers in place last time I checked I got 19p with Home energy same rate through theougthe day, with Cosy 14p during 8h cheap hours, 30p rest reaof the day and peak 45p

im with octopus Agile, but that's another story - there are other providers without Peak Penalty like Good Energy etc.

Once OP gets smart meter - then all these options would be available to them - right now I suggest switching supplier to cheapest available day rate.. and then wait for meter update.