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Why is my gas use so high?

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  • bertiewhite
    bertiewhite Posts: 1,904 Forumite
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    LostCdn wrote: »
    There is no thermostat, well there is but it's not used as there are valves on most but not all radiators. So I wonder if possibly the radiators that are not able to be turned now may be the problem?

    In my experience, TRV's get stuck in, not out. With the boiler on and pumping hot water through the system, try winding them all to setting 1 and make sure the rad turns off (you might be able to hear the flow of water stop) and then turn them all the way out again (setting 5) - the rad should heat up again.

    There shouldn't really be TRV's fitted to radiators in the same room as the thermostat or in a bathroom, so don't worry if there aren't.
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    bertiewhite wrote: »
    In my experience, TRV's get stuck in, not out. With the boiler on and pumping hot water through the system, try winding them all to setting 1 and make sure the rad turns off (you might be able to hear the flow of water stop) and then turn them all the way out again (setting 5) - the rad should heat up again.

    There shouldn't really be TRV's fitted to radiators in the same room as the thermostat or in a bathroom, so don't worry if there aren't.
    It's an extremely badly made flat. So, the boiler in the bedroom, making noise all the damn time, because the kitchen is so small you can't fit a garbage bin let alone a boiler.
    There is a TRV on the radiator in the bedroom, and in the living room and the bathroom. But the radiator in the teeny wee kitchen and teeny wee hallway don't have TRVs and are always hot when the heating is on.
    Something is going on with the flow of gas that is going through the meter as in 20 minutes with it on, low, it took 7p off the meter. I know that's not a lot, but for half an hour with low gas, it feels quite a lot?
  • Talldave
    Talldave Posts: 2,002 Forumite
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    I'm confused, you had the boiler off for an hour and a half, but it was off from 9 to 5.30? Not that it's relevant if the meter didn't increment.

    But you said it used two units in half an hour and 7p in 20 minutes. What units are you referring to? m3 or kWh?
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    Sorry I'll explain.
    I don't know the units used during the day when it was off, what I know it's the boiler was only on between about 10 and midnight and then again 6-9 am. Then off until 540pm. It used about £2. Then I deliberately tested it to see the amount. While boiler was turned off for an hour in the evening (7-8) nothing on the meter moved. Then at 8 I turned on the boiler less than half an hour, and off again and the meter took off 7p and approx one unit M3.
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    As in it went from £5.30 credit to £5.23 in 20ish minutes
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    Just put boiler on after having it off all night. Left it on five mins..brushed my teeth and washed my face with warm water and had the radiators on as normal. Took 9p off the credit on the meter. In 5 mins....less than one unit of gas but went from 09762.176 to 09762.266m3
    In less than five minutes
  • Talldave
    Talldave Posts: 2,002 Forumite
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    edited 6 December 2019 at 11:04AM
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    That doesn't make sense, one m3 is around 11kwh, so almost 40p. Are you ignoring figures after the decimal point. Ie: from 176.815 to 177.001 is less than 0.2m3 but could be interpreted as 1m3 if you ignore some of the figures?

    EDIT: Our posts crossed, but this morning's 0.09m3 is around 1kWh so not as much as 9p but how does the meter take its standing charge??
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    No it was exactly as I wrote....
  • LostCdn
    LostCdn Posts: 43 Forumite
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    So I don't know if this is a meter or the actual gas usage that's too high.
    Last night a whole unit seemed used within 20 mins and took 7p this morning less than a unit but 9p within five mins. And the standing charge was already taken off before I put the boiler on at all.
  • Gerry1
    Gerry1 Posts: 9,946 Forumite
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    STOP thinking in terms of 'units', they are ambiguous and meaningless !

    Always think kWh derived from number crunching the consumption in cubic metres. It also makes it easier to get a feeling of amounts that are reasonable: if a 3kW fan heater or three bar electric fire would keep a room warm, then it's quite easy to see whether the gas usage for just that room is in the right order of magnitude.

    Same thinking applies when comparing neighbours' usage. Comparing DD amounts gives results that are doubly wonky: their DD may not be enough to cover their usage, and they may be on a stupidly expensive tariff.

    It's kWh and actual readings (from a fixed meter) all the way, accept no substitutes !
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