My electricity bill has just tripled: how about yours? Alternative suppliers?

[High Voltage]

something like this but with uk socket on it

View attachment 312427

Just ordered a twin pack - watch this space

 

[two sheds]

I've got a dessicant dehumidifier (300W) which blows out warm air and is really good for taking chill off a room. Also makes the place feel warmer because there's less humidity and the air's easier to heat up.

 

[High Voltage]

The cooking I mean. Anything that heats, even kettles and washing machines/dishwashers use quite a lot of power

Kettle is, from memory, a 3KWh kettle BUT we don't over fill it and it gets used maybe 3 times a day, say for 15-20 minutes, so, yes, that's 1KW but it's not over filled and that's about a minimum usage - Washing machine hasn't been on today at all - dishwasher is currently on and the meter is hardly "spinning like a top" so I'll live with that consumption

It's not so much how much we use . . . well, it is . . . but more the "average" consumption being so much lower than where we are, that's what'd doing my head - It'd be easy to get below that, we had zero consumption this morning, but everything was switched off, so we can control our usage just life would be shit. And I don't feel that we are profligate in our usage either

 

[High Voltage]

I've got a dessicant dehumidifier (300W) which blows out warm air and is really good for taking chill off a room. Also makes the place feel warmer because there's less humidity and the air's easier to heat up.

Been there, done that. We had a dehumidifier as the house was, and still is, damp - but we're built into the side of the Mendips and there's no way you can dehumidify the Mendips . . . not gonna happen

And we no longer have it any way

 

[SpookyFrank]

I'm looking at my Owl meter which was at zero as of 10:00am - we had everything, and I mean everything switched off for 15 minutes, we used zero electricity then gradually switched things on. I've spoken with the chap who services our LPG boiler and he knows our heating system and he's told me that it's OK to turn off the immersion heater (it's more of a back up for the main boiler rather than to be used daily), so that's now off.

I've cooked using the small electric oven (cooker has a twin oven), which was only on for 30 minutes. I've used a microwave for 5 minutes. Pretty much everything else is what I call "background usage" - stuff that CAN'T be switched off. And the meter is reading after 8 hours 4.280 KWh - so factor that up x 3 for 24 hours and we're at nearly 13KWh / day so for a year that's 4,686KWh which is still 1,400KWh OVER the average for a 3 bed house - and I'm barely using any of the high consumption items

How the fuck is that right - that average can't be right

We've got newish dishwasher, fridge freezer, washing machine and newish cooker. Are there more energy efficient ones out there? possibly, but these are not cheap and cheerful items, they are all "quality" brands with decent energy ratings (read: I believe the ratings)

Where is the electricity going?

The 8 hours from 10pm til 6am don't usually involve much cooking in our house.

 

[two sheds]

Been there, done that. We had a dehumidifier as the house was, and still is, damp - but we're built into the side of the Mendips and there's no way you can dehumidify the Mendips . . . not gonna happen

And we no longer have it any way

tell me about it -[ I was about to come on and say other things I've found really useful are the small digital thermometers/humidity meters. Ideal for houses is supposedly 19C & 60% - fat chance in Cornwall though where RH normally seem to be 95%. It does make a difference in the rooms though, when I've had the dehumidifier on for a couple of days the reading does drop.

 

[petee]

I've got a dessicant dehumidifier

how can there be a "desiccant humidifier"?

 

[UnderOpenSky]

My last bill was £280. Not even that big a house, although not that well insulated. It was an almost even split between gas and electric that surprised me. I'd expect that gas to be high, but I really need to work out what we're doing to use so much electric.

Solar panels are looking more desirable if you can stomach the upfront cost.

 

[two sheds]

To process air that enters the unit, it is slowly moved across the desiccant wheel. This desiccant wheel will extract the moisture content from the air. The desiccant wheel is nothing but silica gel. This silica gel integrated to make the desiccant wheel will absorb all the excess moisture content to process air. Once the excess moisture is removed from the air, the air is pushed back into the space or area.

While compressor dehumidifiers collect water as the water condenses on the cold surface and comes down; desiccant dehumidifiers have reactivation air. From the air that enters the unit, a small amount of it is sent back as reactivation air to the desiccant wheel. The reactivation air is warmed and pushed across the desiccant wheel since warm air holds more moisture.

The reactivation air on the desiccant wheel continues to process air by absorbing the moisture from it and pushing it out of the unit.

There's a chamber at the bottom to collect the water.

They are one of the cleverest pieces of equipment

 

[Elpenor]

I’m definitely minded when I buy a house this year (hopefully) to not buy more house than I need given the heating costs. Not that I have it on anyway except on cold nights

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I’m definitely minded when I buy a house this year (hopefully) to not buy more house than I need given the heating costs. Not that I have it on anyway except on cold nights

Does it work that way though? We've moving soon to somewhere bigger, but I'm pretty sure that's it's actually going to cost less to heat.

 

[Artaxerxes]

I've used 3597 since this time last year - I'm retired and basically live in one room and use a fan heater for heating.

I use roughly 8 units a day all year - plus 4 units during the winter... it's been like that for years - but only have hot water for baths - once a week when I was working, rather less frequently since - and I do my laundry in the used water.

Try and get something other than a fan heater, those use a lot of juice.

 

[two sheds]

a lot determined by height of rooms I think. Mine are quite low. Victorian rooms are lovely but a bugger to heat because it all goes to the top of the room.

 

[MickiQ]

thermostatic valves are worthwhile if you don't already have them fitted. Now that this household has dropped from 5 to 2 we have three rooms that are effectively not used (1 doesn't even have furniture in it), I've turned the valves in the two empty bedrooms and the old dining room down to 1 on the valves and leave the doors shut permanently.

 

[Petcha]

Kettle is, from memory, a 3KWh kettle BUT we don't over fill it and it gets used maybe 3 times a day, say for 15-20 minutes, so, yes, that's 1KW but it's not over filled and that's about a minimum usage - Washing machine hasn't been on today at all - dishwasher is currently on and the meter is hardly "spinning like a top" so I'll live with that consumption

It's not so much how much we use . . . well, it is . . . but more the "average" consumption being so much lower than where we are, that's what'd doing my head - It'd be easy to get below that, we had zero consumption this morning, but everything was switched off, so we can control our usage just life would be shit. And I don't feel that we are profligate in our usage either

Leaving aside the fucking amazing irony of your username (apols for being flippant), I'm blown over by this a bit. But then I think back to last winter when I wasn't in such a comfortable flat, got pneumonia and I guess just tried to brush that off as bad luck. When in actual fact the landlady wasn't letting me put on the heating.

At least I suppose in London it's been a very mild winter.

 

[two sheds]

It's damp in cornwall and I don't heat all the rooms. Fairly lucky that I don't (touch wood) suffer from the damp in rooms though. One thing I've discovered that works incredibly well when I do get damp is a foam that you can put on mould on walls. I'd used Dettol Mould & Mildew which I have to say is very good, but the foam is wonderful. I had a bit of wall which was black and I thought I was going to have to repaint the whole room but I used this foam on it and the black disappeared magical it were magical

 

[two sheds]

Kettle is, from memory, a 3KWh kettle BUT we don't over fill it and it gets used maybe 3 times a day, say for 15-20 minutes, so, yes, that's 1KW but it's not over filled and that's about a minimum usage - Washing machine hasn't been on today at all - dishwasher is currently on and the meter is hardly "spinning like a top" so I'll live with that consumption

It's not so much how much we use . . . well, it is . . . but more the "average" consumption being so much lower than where we are, that's what'd doing my head - It'd be easy to get below that, we had zero consumption this morning, but everything was switched off, so we can control our usage just life would be shit. And I don't feel that we are profligate in our usage either

I've made a kettle cosy out of an old pillow case and a zip-up pillowcase protector and some small expanded polystyrene balls. Only filling it to what you're going to use would be favourite admittedly but I always forget.

 

[WouldBe]

a lot determined by height of rooms I think. Mine are quite low. Victorian rooms are lovely but a bugger to heat because it all goes to the top of the room.

I've lowered my ceilings by 6" and stuck 7" of insulation in the space above.

 

[two sheds]

that's highly sensible - I've seen people suspending fabric from the ceiling but that's much better idea.

Interested how you've lowered ceilings by 6" and added 7" of insulation above though

 

[WouldBe]

that's highly sensible - I've seen people suspending fabric from the ceiling but that's much better idea.

Interested how you've lowered ceilings by 6" and added 7" of insulation above though

Ceiling joists were only 6" to start with and not really big enough for the span nevermind having chunks hacked out over the years for gas lighting, plumbing, electrics and central heating. So joists were removed and 9" joists fitted with 3x2" at right angles over the top. This leaves space for pipes and cables without having to cut into joists and leaves a 9" gap to put 7" insulation in without it causing problems to cables overheating.

You could just put 3x2" on joist hangers under the ceiling and stick the insulation in there and plasterboard underneath.

No point heating floor voids.

 

[two sheds]

When I had my place done up they wanted to add insulation to the downstairs ceilings but as they were only floorboards I said no because any heat going upwards would go upstairs which I had no objection to.

 

[Elpenor]

Does it work that way though? We've moving soon to somewhere bigger, but I'm pretty sure that's it's actually going to cost less to heat.

you’re probably right, I’ll be avoiding anything Victorian due to the reasons others have said. Where I am now is quite old but has thick solid walls and according to the landlord was well insulated after the floods a few years ago.

 

[WouldBe]

Bulb have us on an "estimate" annual usage of 5200KWh per year - which meant nothing to me, until a quick Google later informs me that the average annual consumption for a family of 3 is 3200KWh per year . . . Gulp!

My electric usage is 1776KWh over the last 13 months (that's what my smart meter provides instead of for a year!!!!). That's for just me in a 4 bed house and includes using an electric immersion heater for hot water (1 day a week) in the summer months.

From 1st Apr my estimated annual bills are £581 for electric, £115 for gas (only used for gas fire) and around £400 for firewood. That's with utility warehouse.

 

[two sheds]

I've estimated mine at £810 for electricity (no gas, no wood) in 1850s house with stone/clay/stone walls but with insulating wallpaper, secondary glazing and draughtproofing. That's about £400 py for electrical heating. But again that's with pv powering computer and most of cooking during the summer.

 

[gentlegreen]

Try and get something other than a fan heater, those use a lot of juice.

 

[two sheds]

I'm using a fan heater right up close to me which seems to work well - 1 kW for a few hours when it's bloody cold. Only heats me, mind, rather than heating the house.

 

[gentlegreen]

Yes - apart from the annoyance of the noise, in my situation it works very well sat under my desk..
I reckon 4 units a day is reasonable for heating.
It's been a milder winter and I'm better insulated, but I haven't felt the need to fire up my radiator this winter so am using a lot less electricity.

At some point in the future I'm definitely going to have heated clothing.

 

[two sheds]

I've added another layer of top clothing today.

I will next year study an air-air heat pump downstairs hopefully heating the air to come upstairs if I can seal any holes in the house fabric.

 

[Badgers]

Because privatisation = customer choice = choose freely between freezing or starving.

Are the shareholders OK?

 

[Badgers]

Yeah, I mean I'm not sure what answer you were hoping for there to justify it all Sasaferrato or what other point you are making yourself?
It's really scary.

#ToryScum