Energy price rises-Shocking!

[Steve509926]

Originally Posted by Oldman2

OK gas use for heating at night could be reduced by dropping the roomstat back but we no longer are used to putting a coat on to visit the bathroom, perhaps we will need to revisit those times.

Soft southerner

[The Gurnard]

Look on the bright side Old man..in my opinion you can easily save a lot more energy if you want to.

Here is yesterday’s electric usage for me. I have a fridge a freezer , computer that is always on..and other small items around the home always plugged in. It also runs the oil boiler and thermostats etc. However I switch off unnecessary lights. Im a three bedroom detached..but of modern design and it is a very efficient energy saver. Hot water is from oil and on demand so no keeping hot water tanks hot 24/7. It has two shower rooms and no bath etc.



The spike at 4.30 was my electric oven on cooking the casserole. Its reading 1.080kwh. Midnight is at 0.040 kwh compared to your 0.5kw.



My full day electric bill for yesterday was a total of £1.07. This graph shows my month of January electric usage. Most expensive day was 18th and it cost me 1.27p So far January has cost me £23.94 and I have not lacked any more.

As mentioned earlier..I live in a 3 bed detached modern home..but live alone so you will be more expensive with two. Im retired so home a lot ..however I do try to spend at least the morning out walking or boating to keep myself fit an active so no point in having heating running then.

When I worked in Kenya.. I noticed that in winter the locals wore heavy coats and balaclavas. Myself and co workers from UK wore T Shirts and shorts. Im mentioning this simply because my oil heating is on for two hours in the morning.. then four hours in the evening. At these times the house is 20 degrees. It takes quite a few hours for the temperatures to fall below 16 degrees. I get up several times druing the night and I only have boxer shorts on and certainly dont feel cold.. so ..if you think you will feel cold ..its because you have conditioned yourself to feel cold..just like the Kenyans feel the cold in their winter ..despite it being warmer than a standard Scottish summer day

I hope you don’t think Im being cheaky posting this..its only to show that people can save a lot on their bills..but they have to want to do it.

I admit a lot of my saving is the wood burner which I light if Im in the home all day and it get cold..its costs nothing. I personally don’t rate my 5 solar panels but they dont feed into a smart meter or even have batteries to charge..they are through an inverter and then onto the main ring. They came with the house or I would not have them as IMO they don’t produce much.

I realise when my tariff runs out I will have a price hike.. but as Im 66 years old, next winter I will get the winter heating allowance for the first time ..which should off set my price hikes

[beamishken]

When we bought our house almost 6 years ago it had no insulation & no double glazing despite falling out big style with the planners & being threatened with enforcement action for "destroying the character" we fully insulated under floors internal walls & all roofs & ceilings. We have a 30kw log burner in the lounge that runs water heating, underfloor heating & upstairs radiators we also have a back up gas boiler. Last year we used one 47kg bottle of gas for the boiler & the rest was done from the log burner.the house is always roasting hot as my wife loves heat. Electricity is £100pm but that includes running my workshop too. Logs come free so all in all we are kind of beating the system. If the planners had allowed us to install solar we could have probably done even better.

Sent from my SM-G950F using RIB Net mobile app

[The Gurnard]

Originally Posted by Steve509926

Watch the salt content Donny. If it's been in the sea a long time, even if its washed up and completely dried out, apparently it can really make a mess of your flue.

Sorry Steve ..I missed your post

Yup..saomeone else mentioned that Steve but I dont have too much concern. Loch Etive is a sea loch and 400ft deep.Surrounded my mountains which create rain. Rhe fresh rain water floats on top of the heavier sea water.. so I can catch cod from the bottom and trout from the surface which is mostly fresh water. Besides..the logs I collect are often wind fallen and above the high water mark. so not spent much time in the loch. The wood I collect during the winter is dried over the summer before being burned the following winter..so a yearly cycle. I perhaps should also say..its not completely free..as it costs around £50 per year for the chimney sweep

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

I hope all the anti fracking protesters are getting chilly[emoji6]

No danger....they've got thier Quorn mince ...Bean Curd...and Hair shirts ....not to mention thier self congratulatory sense of virtue signaling to keep them ....nice and Toasty thanks!

[Matt]

Next on my list is a smarter thermostat : I don't want the heating completely off overnight, it takes too long to warm back up in the mornings, but certainly a smarter thermostat would be appreciated - our old house had one and it was decent, albeit simple.

Is Hive decent enough these days?

[Steve509926]

Am I in the minority, I never have the heating on overnight, I can't sleep when it's too warm. In the colder months the heating is switched on around 5.00pm and it's usually off at around 10.00pm.

[Old seahorse]

This post has really opened a can of worms! I’ve been really hacked off by price rises, and can see I’m not alone.
My fixed tariff expired in November ( EDF), and renewing with them increased the unit price from 16.8p per KWh to 29p for another two year fixed, or 25.5 p on variable rate. I chewed over higher cost of fixed against unknown possible further rises on variable. I jumped for fixed. I now see fixed tariffs at 38 p +,
So maybe I made the right choice, but only time will tell. My wife is stressing every time she looks at smart meter, and we are trying to be more conservative with our use. Our heating is oil, and fairly efficient. I try to get buy oil at the times of lower prices, but you really need a large tank to do that effectively.The house is modern, and reasonably well insulated.
Couple of friends are installing solar, which, with battery storage and newer panels, is supposed to be reasonably effective. I’m going to look at this option, but not yet committed.
My mate , who signed up to solar when payback rates were higher, always has a smug look on his face, when I ask about it!
Moving to the Caribbean looks like a more attractive option.
I ‘ll get the sib inflated, and wait for a good weather window!

[Orwell boy]

Those smart meters are the peddlers of doom .
Personally we are trying our hardest not to get one ,but then we still pay quarterly ! we may pay a fraction more but hey ho we seem to have more control than most .
On a second note when we were farming we had a petbow diesel generator ,and i reckon athough i havnt got a clue that running that on red in the back garden (not sure the neighbours would be happy ) the lecky would probhably be cheaper than from current suppliers ..........we have led bulbs ,all hunt round currys for a washer /fridge with aaa rating so how on earth can the Bills be so high ?? progress suggests we not using high quantities

[Matt]

I feel like that about a smart meter - but I can't quite explain why I feel that way about them. I can't think of a rational reason other than British Gas annoyed me pushing them so hard and I've just dug my heels in.

[Oldman2]

I got a smart meter when they first came out, was great not having to give my meter reading every month. At the end of that year I changed suppliers and of course they and every supplier since were also unable to remote read it. Then in 2021 my supplier became able to read it, but STILL asks me to give them a reading every month!
Its been a total waste in my case, the meter may be smarter than the suppliers

[Limecc]

Originally Posted by Matt

I feel like that about a smart meter - but I can't quite explain why I feel that way about them. I can't think of a rational reason other than British Gas annoyed me pushing them so hard and I've just dug my heels in.

I had first generation smart meters and my gas bill skyrocketed despite no change of usage. After some months at my insistence they changed it for another and I should have paid £70 (at the time) to get the calibration checked. Then I would have had a basis to claim back my overpayment. Hindsight. After it was swopped the bills returned to normal. Currently £264/m dual fuel, 30yr old back boiler is the culprit and just packed up so that's being ripped out next week for a Worcester Bosch system boiler in the loft, and I'll have a log burner in the living room.
https://www.stovefitterswarehouse.co...-how-to-choose

[Pikey Dave]

We have solar PV & are very happy with it. 25 year index linked guaranteed payment. They paid for themselves after around 7 years. We currently clear about £1800/year off them which pays for our oil & electricity bill. The panels also halved our annual electricity bill, we not only get paid for what we produce, but get to use it for free, win:win. The washer/dishwasher goes on when it’s sunny. We have a log burner that heats most of the house & a strong supply of cheap/free logs. I’ve currently got about 5 year’s worth seasoning. I tied into a 3 years deal with Shell energy for our electricity supply, just before the prices shot up. We’re guaranteed to pay 7% under the ofgem price cap. Heating oil was at a 10 year low price mid-covid, so we brimmed our 2500litre tank. That will last us 2 years.

[Steve509926]

Smart meters are one of the biggest cons of the 21st century.

"Fit a smart meter and save money" so the ads say.

How exactly does a smart meter save the consumer money? It just shows how much energy is being consumed. If I need a light on - I need a light on, if I buy fresh food it has to be stored in a fridge, if my clothes are dirty they need to be washed, if it's bloody cold I'll put the heating on.

I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but the huge push for consumers to fit smart meters does have a distinct whiff!

[spartacus]

Originally Posted by Matt

Has anyone here got solar panels? I’ve never believed the hype, given the UK weather.
And it’s gas my gas usage that’s high, not so much lecky (although the boat does have heaters in right now)

We put in a 4.5Kw solar system 2-3 years ago, well after the Government had effectively pulled the pay-back incentive. Now bear in mind I'm in Scotland, so basically north of the wall, so on clear bright days the system generates electricity, but the important part is battery storage, otherwise you're using energy while you generate - which isn't always practical.

We put in 9.6Kw battery storage, so a sunny day - you could realistically expect to generate around 16Kw of electricity, so you could be using some of what you generate and the rest you can bank.

That said - my wife then plugs in her electric car and basically zaps the energy. It is what it is, and part of the reason we put it in. I just filled my own car with diesel and was shocked at the cost.

I've no idea if we've made or saved money, I think the system would need to be larger, insulation in the home is another factor.

If you were starting from scratch on say a new build, then an air-source heat pump would be the way to go, improved insulation, and importantly - use things like underfloor heating and solar too.

The market for individuals is particularly complex - and I've raised it before that the Government need to support long term, otherwise the technology prices remain high. We're seeing that to a degree with electric cars.

[Orwell boy]

Originally Posted by Limecc

I had first generation smart meters and my gas bill skyrocketed despite no change of usage. After some months at my insistence they changed it for another and I should have paid £70 (at the time) to get the calibration checked. Then I would have had a basis to claim back my overpayment. Hindsight. After it was swopped the bills returned to normal. Currently £264/m dual fuel, 30yr old back boiler is the culprit and just packed up so that's being ripped out next week for a Worcester Bosch system boiler in the loft, and I'll have a log burner in the living room.
https://www.stovefitterswarehouse.co...-how-to-choose

That just about says it all !
You were sold the idea to help the planet and your soon a few hundred pounds down ,battling to get your money back .
when i first looked into it there was even a premium unit rate to cover the cost !!,,,,,,,,,REALLY

[A1an]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

We have solar PV & are very happy with it. 25 year index linked guaranteed payment. They paid for themselves after around 7 years. We currently clear about £1800/year off them which pays for our oil & electricity bill. The panels also halved our annual electricity bill, we not only get paid for what we produce, but get to use it for free, win:win. The washer/dishwasher goes on when it’s sunny. We have a log burner that heats most of the house & a strong supply of cheap/free logs. I’ve currently got about 5 year’s worth seasoning. I tied into a 3 years deal with Shell energy for our electricity supply, just before the prices shot up. We’re guaranteed to pay 7% under the ofgem price cap. Heating oil was at a 10 year low price mid-covid, so we brimmed our 2500litre tank. That will last us 2 years.

being a Yorkshireman you must be ecstatic.

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by A1an

being a Yorkshireman you must be ecstatic.

You know that a Yorkshire man is just a Scot with all the generosity squeezed out of him[emoji6]

[lakelandterrier]

I too am resisting so-called "smart" meters. I know if I boil the kettle / use the washing machine etc I use power. I don't need a digital device to tell me that. Really don't see the value for a consumer, or how they save all the energy that the industry / government claim.

I'm with OVO with a monthly bill for gas & lecky of c.£175 - mid 80's 4 bed house, well insulated loft, double glazed but at least 25 years old. Keep thermostat on c. 17oC. I'm not in a particularly cold area though.

Looks like I have a good deal.

[Matt]

I’m starting to think my meter must be broken.