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

[extra dry]

not air-to-air heat pump with pipe going out of a window (with conversion kit)? Besides wood costs there's £60 a year chimney sweep costs remember. Worth costing out I'd have thought. I'm going to look at 3-year repayment times.

I think

an open fire place burner built in? Or open fire then you could cook, well toast stuff, or pan fry so you know options.

 

[prunus]

How many kWh per year?

Erm, I'm a bit concerned at all the consternation at a 7MWh annual usage - just checked my account and we used 22MWh of gas plus 6MWh of electricity in the past 12 months. Unless I've read it wrong. I mean it has been an usual year, with the house occupied all the time by wfh and so on, but even so.

e2change: 6MWh not 13 of electricity.

 

[High Voltage]

. . . plus 13MWh of electricity in the past 12 months. Unless I've read it wrong. I mean it has been an usual year, with the house occupied all the time by wfh and so on, but even so.

I really hope you have, 13 MEGA WATTS hours is a fuck of a lot of electricity

 

[prunus]

I really hope you have, 13 MEGA WATTS hours is a fuck of a lot of electricity

I had - that was 2 years. Was 6MWh last 12 months

 

[prunus]

I had - that was 2 years. Was 6MWh last 12 months

The year before those 2 it was 1.21 Gigawatts. But that was when we had my eccentric uncle Emmett staying. Wonder where he disappeared to?

 

[Leafster]

Erm, I'm a bit concerned at all the consternation at a 7MWh annual usage - just checked my account and we used 22MWh of gas plus 13MWh of electricity in the past 12 months. Unless I've read it wrong. I mean it has been an usual year, with the house occupied all the time by wfh and so on, but even so.

I seem to use about 2700kWh of electricity and just under 15,000 kWh of gas.

It's a 2 bedroom, 2 reception room detached bungalow. I also work from home.

I think my electricity usage isn't bad but I need to do something about the gas. I've had zoned heating installed so I'm hoping that's going to help reduce unnecessary use but I need to look at the loft insulation.

 

[Chz]

Hell, I thought we were high on the 'leccy usage - 3.9MWh for 2021. Plus 5.4MWh of gas.

 

[two sheds]

an open fire place burner built in? Or open fire then you could cook, well toast stuff, or pan fry so you know options.

Believe me, I've considered it. I was tempted by a trivet for boiling things over the open fire, and I have a wood burner that I have cooked over even though the top was a tad cramped. It's the particulates that are discouraging me though.

 

[High Voltage]

I reckon we use, for a small 2 bed detached solid wall cottage with minimal insulation:-

5200KWh electricity
1000 Ltr LPG
2 cubic metres (stacked) wood
10 x 25kg bags smokeless briquettes

 

[cybershot]

E.on have just tripled my Direct Debit!!

 

[Elpenor]

Starting to wonder if I can afford solar panels

 

[two sheds]

would be interested to know how much a system costs now. Really pleased with mine, free cooking with induction hob and air fryer in the summer plus the controller that diverts the excess to power the immersion. I'm thinking if I get a heat pump for next winter I might be able to power some of that from the panels during the day. I'd have liked larger panels tbh but small roof.

 

[Elpenor]

I’ve done a bit of Googling - seems cheaper than a wind turbine but not much change from 10k. Stopped before I got too depressed at the future cost of electricity. Depends what direction the roof of whatever place I buy is I suppose.

 

[two sheds]

yep mine is SSW which is ideal. What wattage is that? Mine is 2 kW as I say small roof I'd have preferred more. I'd have actually gone for a battery system which is good for summer evenings sat at computer - not so useful in cloudy winter days. I'm presuming deep-cycle batteries will hold their performance even though discharged in winter.

 

[Elpenor]

I can’t remember. Need to take a look on the laptop and write some notes. Battery is something else I need to research but the elephant in the room is how easy this is to fit into a small house. So many of the greener options seem to be designed for those with bigger properties and pockets than ordinary people!

 

[two sheds]

My house is quite small, hence the small roof. It's worked very well for me but that was when you got grants for doing it. Panel prices have dropped since then though.

As you say though big house large roof makes it really worthwhile.

 

[20Bees]

I've been contemplating getting our hot water tank a jacket.
Before anyone yells at me !
This would be in addition to the fixed foam insulation ...

But we don't use the immersion heater very often, the tank is fed heat as if it a radiator with one of those 3-way diverting valves ...
[just after we moved here, the CH system ate three diverter valves in quick succession - as in less than a year. It's now on the fourth, and 'touch wood', that one has lasted well].

I store my jumpers and sweatshirts directly on top of the hot water tank in the airing cupboard. Not sure how effective it is but they don't seem to get all that warm.

I have all the sleeping bags and old single duvets draped over mine, also split foam pipe insulation on all the accessible pipes.

 

[two sheds]

keeps them all warm

 

[Elpenor]

Good idea, I’ve got some old pillows that I’ve kept as they’ll come in handy

 

[two sheds]

I'm assuming that most of the heat will be lost out of the top, where the thermostat goes in - perhaps check whether the insulation is warm.

 

[cybershot]

Starting to wonder if I can afford solar panels

I looked into this, and unless you're in your 'forever home' it's probably not worth it. On average 9 years to break even.

 

[two sheds]

When did you check? With prices as they're going that might be shortening considerably.

 

[Elpenor]

I looked into this, and unless you're in your 'forever home' it's probably not worth it. On average 9 years to break even.

I doubt I’ll be moving again.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

how heavy are solar panels?

mum-tat has had something about them (some sort of scheme that lewisham council are doing) but she's not convinced it would be a good idea - house is 1930s and she is concerned it might lead to damage of roof.

 

[two sheds]

Plus factor in using the excess energy to heat immersion if you have immersion heater.

 

[cybershot]

When did you check? With prices as they're going that might be shortening considerably.

A few weeks ago, it was part of some 'energy saving' article. I can't remember where it was published.

 

[cybershot]

how heavy are solar panels?

mum-tat has had something about them (some sort of scheme that lewisham council are doing) but she's not convinced it would be a good idea - house is 1930s and she is concerned it might lead to damage of roof.

The problem with these schemes, and the main reason most people never went with them in the first place when the Govt and energy companies were shoving them down our throats, is that there ends up being tons of dodgy companies that set up exclusively to take the govt cash, and then vanish. Your warranty goes goes down the pan and then there was all this 'you might not be able to sell your house' crap.

Everything set up by Govt/Councils just ends up being a fucking nightmare with red tape bullshit that lingers for years. Solar Panels should be affordable and easy to install with proper warranties regardless of who installs them these days. But, no.

 

[platinumsage]

If you have an unsuitable roof but space in the garden you can mount the solar panels on the ground. Cheaper to install and maintain and less grass to cut, but it still provides a habitat underneath for creepy crawlies, blackbirds, hedgehogs etc.

 

[DJWrongspeed]

Just read this in the Independent from Martin Lewis, makes sense:

For those paying by direct debit, he suggested taking a meter reading now and again the day before the price cap increases to ensure that as much energy as possible can be charged at the lower rate.

So make sure you give a reading just before end of March.

 

[Chilli.s]

Just read this in the Independent from Martin Lewis, makes sense:

So make sure you give a reading just before end of March.

This is how having to do meter readings and supplying them yourself wins out. Accidentally miss read the meter and pay in advance at the old price.