Paying for communal Electricity (2 flats in the house)

mrjake_2

i moved into a new house recently, and subsequently learnt that my flat's electricity meter pays for all electricity in the communal areas, including a washing machine and dryer in the basement

to compensate me, there is a coin meter down stairs that controls the basement electricity, which i have the key for and take the money from

my flat is a one bed, the other flat in the house is a 3 bed, so they use more electricity than me, and use a LOT of washing/drying.

in november i took a fair bit of money from the meter, but since mid december i've only taken £1 ...

my question is this:

how much should it cost ( about) to run an [old] washing machine per load, and how much for the [old] dryer.

they are not commercial or energy savings, just bog standard old machines

i pay 13.124p per kwh as shown in supply area 20: http://www.scottishpower.co.uk/pricing_pdfs/ole/olesaver4.pdf

the problem is, i think that the coin meter is not set up correctly or is faulty, and is allowing electricity through itself at a cheap rate - the little dial showing how many units left currently shows about 4 units.. and hasnt really moved after 2 loads of washing / drying

thanks

Jake