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Is your emersion heater switched on by mistake? This is only meant to be used to heat your water tank if the boiler packs up
Hopefully, that will help you locate the source of your high usage. If you switch everything off and look at the meter you will be able to see if anything else is still running! In my small bungalow I use around 2000 KWh per year. At night I switch off almost everything and double check my monitor for good measure!
2 Bedroom house and electric oven and shower,and a hell of a lot of appliances (3 xbox 360's,2 pc's 42inch and 32 inch LCD's and also load's of other little thing's) lol
I had put the under floor heating on in the conservatory and I have an old back boiler that as its been cold has been on all day to keep the house warm its gas but obviously needs elec pump to circulate the water to the radiators.I have since last night turned the underfloor heating off and am struggling to think what else to do to cut back .My home isn't even a boiling hot house as you'd think but I do work from home as a childminder .I have it insulated and double glazed .
WE live in a mid terrace 3 bed (old and draughty). It's rented and just has storage heaters which we hardly use. We are on a key meter but it is currently costing 30-40 per week. Surely this is too much????
We have a wood burner which heats downstairs, 2 fridges and a chest freezer, no gas. Our hot water is only from an immersion heater - could this be the culprit?
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On the crumbtrail click gas and electricity then the New Thread button.
Home » Forums > Home & Play > Utilities > Gas & Electricity ...
I live in a rented maisonette, large lounge and hallway, small kitchen. Upstairs: 3 beds and a bathroom. I have double glazing upstairs (poor quality as you can see daylight through the frames etc), single glazing downstairs, some windows sealed shut, one window that doesn't close at all. Lounge faces south and gets lots of sun and is very hot in summer. Winter is a different story. The only heating that comes with the place is a night storage heater on the upstairs landing and a wall heater in the main bedroom. I use a portable gas heater in the lounge and have 2 halogen heaters which I try not to use much. I have a fridge freezer, TV, electric cooker (halogen hobs), and a PC, these see the most use apart from the heaters. I'm out at work during the daytime, home at weekends. I'm finding it really hard to stay warm. Wish I had some gas appliances but there is only a gas heater under the sink which comes on when I turn on the hot taps. Gas end Electricity are both with British gas and there are prepayment meters for both. Gas is usually around £ 25 per month all year round (which makes sense). Electricity is horrendous, currently well over £ 100 per month. At the moment I'm putting in £ 10.00 via a key every other day or so. It gets harder to pay every few weeks as I get paid monthly and money runs down. After looking at these Forums, I'm going to email British Gas and ask them if they can check if my meter is working properly (wonder if I'll have to pay for that?), I'll also ask them for a paper breakdown of costs/usage/tariff etc. Gas costs seem fair enough but the electricity seems ridiculously high. I'll post and let you know how I get on.
By the way, the landlord won't make any improvements to the place, one large window is cracked (and was before I moved in), there is a large pantry sized cupboard that used to house a gas air pump heating system in the 70's which is lined with what appears to be asbestos, the same material lines part of the cupboard under the sink where the gas heater is. Most of the downstairs windows have hardly any beading around the edges and the sills are missing or have rotted away. Rain comes down through the inside of the back door due to the poor glazing. The landlord rents the shop downstairs and the maisonette above (mine) comes with it. He's not happy with the shop premises so won't make any improvements to my place and is considering a move. My best answer is to move I know but that costs money too so am stuck here for a while until and unless I can manage to save enough money to move.
I drifting away from the main point though, which is the crippling cost of my electricity. I'll post and let you know what response I get from British Gas.
Given the poor insulation etc, do any of you think my meter may be faulty? In Summer by the way, I still have to put about £ 45 per month into the electricity meter.
Any advice will be helpful! Thanks.
Switch off the underfloor heating and see what the Owl monitor reads. I don't see the point in having it on all the time - seems like a waste of money.