Can someone explain please

sparklewing

I moved into my flat last year and since then I have had the water heater switch in kitchen switched on permanently. I have storage heaters and 2 meters for electricity one for general and one for water and heating no gas. If I switch off this switch will it reduce my bills?

I dont really use the hot water in the tank for anything but washing up I have an electric shower but that heats up cold water I think, maybe the washing machine? Dont really know how these things work.

So will switching off this hot water heating switch save me money or because I dont use hot water is the water not being heated anyway. Also if I do switch it off when do I turn it on if i need hot water as the switch is not lit up(heating) all the time it flicks on and off over the day. So confused and not sure I explained that at all well but any help appreciated.
xxx

littlereddevil

It would seem that maybe your water and storage heaters are on off peak which means they are not really on all the time.If this is the case probably best to leave switched on.

fairylights_2

To my knowledge (and I may be wrong) leaving that switch on 24/7 means you are heating that full tank of water all the time. The reason the light switches on and off is because when the water reaches the right temperature it'll switch off until the water needs warming again. To check whether the washing machine uses hot or heats its own, pull it out and check the back of the machine. Our washer only feeds cold, not hot - there's only one water pipe rather than two feeding in. I'm pretty sure that if there's a hot water feed the pipe will be red, the cold water being blue.

Honestly, if you're only using hot water from the tank to wash up, I'd suggest switching it off completely. Boil up a full kettle when you need hot, then add enough cold to make it bearable. Seems like a big tank of water to heat if you only need a bowlful!

sparklewing

thanks for the info.

I just phoned my supplier(scottish hydro) and I am on their heating control tarriff which means my heating and water are off peak. I cant use the price comparison websites as it doesnt give this as an option so i dont know if i am paying the cheapest i could.

My bill for the last 10 weeks(heating has been off)

Heating and water: 1700kwh £70.72 (4.16p per unit)
Other electric: 126kwh £9.45 (7.50p per unit)
Standing charge: £17.81 (25.45p per day)

Does this seem expensive, cheap,normal? To me the heating and water seems excessive since the heating has been off. I dont really use it in winter either as it doesnt make much difference(storage heating).

Any tips for reducing costs?
I have a real fire in the sitting room and a very small flat. I have never used it and dont really know how to but if i did and i switched off the hot water and heating would the fire stop the pipes freezing or would i need to keep turning it on occasionally to do this and if the water and heating were turned off would this mean my bill would only be approx £30 a quarter?

littlereddevil

Seems extortionate for water and heating.
Maybe someone more knowledgible than me will be able to advise.

Woby_Tide

I'd agree with the other poster that it sounds like you are heating a full tank constantly yet you only use it for washing dishes etc. I had similar years back and had it switched off permanently and used kettle for washing dishes and any incidental hot water, teh shower just heated what it needed. Got to agree £100 purely for water for 2 1/2 months is terrible especially with no heating.

sparklewing

If i turn off the hot water would the pipes freeze?

fairylights_2

Could you drain the tank - leave the hot tap running until there is no more coming out - or would that do damage? Perhaps worth asking on the water board? Otherwise, you could always run the hot tap just for a minute or two every couple of days in freezing weather to make sure?

Woby_Tide

whereabouts in your building is your flat and likely position of the pipes that are fed from the boiler, if they tend to follow internal walls you may not be so bad

sparklewing

My flat is on the first floor of the building and the building is the central one of a 3 building terrace.

rosscobley

tbh i dont think your pipes would freeze