Energy bills averaging £580 pm! Help!

SGray
SGray Posts: 2 Newbie
in Energy
We have recently moved in to a new 5 bedroom house which we’ve been renovating for the past 6 months and are alarmed by our energy bills which are averaging approx £290 pm for gas and £290 pm for electricity so almost £600 combined! We have gas central heating and have installed a modern condensing boiler, new heating pipes and a new water tank. We have electric underfloor heating in the main living area. All our heating is on a timer and is generally disabled during the day while we’re at work and during the night. The house has 5 bedrooms and was built in the 1930s. We moved from a house of a similar age and size with similar heating arrangements and our bills for that home averaged around £300. We have switched energy supplier via Flipper so we are already on a ompetitive tariff. We are alarmed and perplexed by the extent of the bills as our usage is not excessive. Any suggestions as to how we check that our meter readings are accurate and if so, how we can lower our bills before it bankrupts us?!!

Comments

  • kazwookie
    kazwookie Posts: 13,841 Forumite
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    Do you take meter readings on a regular basis?

    Are the meter serial numbers the same as on your bill?

    Have you turned everything off and checked to see if the meter is still going? if it is then something some where is still on.

    Were the right opening readings used when you set up the various accounts?
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  • Robin9
    Robin9 Posts: 12,100 Forumite
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    A 5 bed house from the 1930's probably has solid walls which is not good for heat loss. What about roof insulation, double glazing ?

    Are these bills estimated or actual.?
    Never pay on an estimated bill
  • SGray
    SGray Posts: 2 Newbie
    Thanks for responding! We have installed new double glazing throughout the house. Bills are based on actual readings which we’ve been submitting monthly since Nov. Serial numbers have been checked and match. Thanks for the other tips.
  • PeterGr
    PeterGr Posts: 267 Forumite
    First Anniversary First Post
    Your energy consumption (linked to heating) for November - January could be 40 - 50% of your annual consumption, So you may be over estimating your average consumption / charges. Closely tracking your consumption should see that heating element fall. (Personally I would take 2 -3 months of weekly readings)


    Electricity used for heating is going to raise the costs. You have mentioned some electric heating, and their might also be an immersion heater if you have a hot water cylinder. Make sure you have the controls set correctly. If you electricity costs remain high then an energy monitor is useful to see your profile over a week could help.
  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 116,358 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
    and are alarmed by our energy bills which are averaging approx £290 pm for gas and £290 pm for electricity so almost £600 combined!

    What is wrong with those figures?
    We run at about £350pm for oil during winter and £250 during winter for electric and thats for a 4 bedroom house. However, as has been said many times before, its not the number of bedrooms that matter but the type of house, construction, insulation and what you are actually using it on.
    Any suggestions as to how we check that our meter readings are accurate and if so, how we can lower our bills before it bankrupts us?!!

    Get an electric energy meter. About £35 on amazon. You can then use one of these to learn what is using electric. i.e turn everything off bar the fridge and timers, find your base level (usually around 2p-4p per hour) then turn things on to see how it changes.

    Learning what eats your electric is half the battle.

    Gas heating always goes up a lot during winter. Then in summer, you barely use any.
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • JohnB47
    JohnB47 Posts: 2,544 Forumite
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    Robin9 wrote: »
    A 5 bed house from the 1930's probably has solid walls which is not good for heat loss. What about roof insulation, double glazing ?

    Are these bills estimated or actual.?

    Our semi was built in 1929 and has cavity walls.
  • Mister_G
    Mister_G Posts: 1,926 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post Combo Breaker
    Robin9 wrote: »
    A 5 bed house from the 1930's probably has solid walls which is not good for heat loss. What about roof insulation, double glazing ?

    Are these bills estimated or actual.?

    Our 1910 semi has cavity walls
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,098 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary
    Forget the bills. Tell us how the property is heated and hot watered, then post your actual kWh usage on each fuel, from the opening read to the latest.
    Remember that 80% of your usage can be in the cold winter months, and that if the renovations involve lots of power tools and drying out of plaster etc, then your electricity bills will soar.
    However, discounting that, and assuming gas CH and DHW, your gas bill should be much more than your leccy, so something is awry.
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • Mr.Everready
    Mr.Everready Posts: 198 Forumite
    As macman asks...what are your actual readings ?
  • nigelbb
    nigelbb Posts: 3,790 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post
    macman wrote: »
    However, discounting that, and assuming gas CH and DHW, your gas bill should be much more than your leccy, so something is awry.
    The OP says that they have "electric underfloor heating in the main living area". Heating using electricity when you have gas central heating is madness as electricity will cost 4-5x as much for the same amount of energy.
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