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

[skyscraper101]

Shell have just emailed me to tell me they're lowing my direct debit. I specifically put it up to cover the inevitable price hikes. Next they'll be telling me I'm not paying enough.

 

[CH1]

Shell have just emailed me to tell me they're lowing my direct debit. I specifically put it up to cover the inevitable price hikes. Next they'll be telling me I'm not paying enough.

You can have "Variable Direct Debit" with Shell. Then they charge for what you have used.
Set up in the account part of the website.

Personally I'd rather save in the bank than with my energy supplier - up to you.

 

[skyscraper101]

You can have "Variable Direct Debit" with Shell. Then they charge for what you have used.
Set up in the account part of the website.

Personally I'd rather save in the bank than with my energy supplier - up to you.

I'd rather just pay a little over what is currently required to cushion the blow come winter. In practical terms it doesn't matter if its sat in the bank but it makes budgeting easier if it can just sit with them.

 

[platinumsage]

Don't forget to account for the £400 rebate when setting your DD.

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

that £400 rebate covers me for 10+ month as my current monthly DD is £37.5.
But then this will go up again in November so maybe just 5 months by then.

 

[Cat Fan]

that £400 rebate covers me for 10+ month as my current monthly DD is £37.5.
But then this will go up again in November so maybe just 5 months by then.

Monthly DD of £37.5 is impressively low. Do you consciously try to save energy as much as possible?

 

[MickiQ]

I'm pretty certain that when the £400 gets credited to folks accounts come October few if any people DD's will go down. The cap is going to rise again come October by roughly the same amount it rose in April .All that is likely to happen for most is that DD's will stay at what they are now and the handout covers the price rise.

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

Monthly DD of £37.5 is impressively low. Do you consciously try to save energy as much as possible?

I live in a recent build (2015) with Electricity only, hot water and heating are from a central plant and this adds another £12.50 a month; I rarely need to put the heating on so it is mostly the standing charge.
I do turn off everything at the plugs when away apart from the fridge, freezer and the cooker so I can check the clock matches when I get back.

 

[cupid_stunt]

So when OVO put up my DD to £185, and I couldn't change it back to £125, I cancelled it. My brother suggested I set-up a new DD at £125 and see if that works, and it did, so fuck their system!

But despite having not missed a payment, they now think I should be paying £210, the mad bastards.

 

[CH1]

So when OVO put up my DD to £185, and I couldn't change it back to £125, I cancelled it. My brother suggested I set-up a new DD at £125 and see if that works, and it did, so fuck their system!

But despite having not missed a payment, they now think I should be paying £210, the mad bastards.

View attachment 325131

I wonder if they abide by OFGEM recommendations about repaying surpluses?
The way they are going on they might end up Britain's second nationalised gas and electric supplier after Bulb

I work for Bulb and its fate has convinced me the energy sector should be nationalised

The fact that the company's continued operations are being paid for by the UK government shows how straightforward the process could be

inews.co.uk

 

[UnderOpenSky]

So when OVO put up my DD to £185, and I couldn't change it back to £125, I cancelled it. My brother suggested I set-up a new DD at £125 and see if that works, and it did, so fuck their system!

But despite having not missed a payment, they now think I should be paying £210, the mad bastards.

View attachment 325131

I never trust the fuckers with a direct debit and estimated billing. Best thing about a smart meter is you can just pay what you owe each month, but I used take readings.

 

[High Voltage]

I'm hoping that the lower level will be pretty much continuous from now until September / October this year - I can't see any reason why it shouldn't do so

 

[cupid_stunt]

I forgot about the usage graphs, this is my electric one, what OVO thinks I am using, whereas the red lines are my actual usage based on the meter readings I've supplied, and they continue to ignore.

 

[High Voltage]

I forgot about the usage graphs, this is my electric one, what OVO thinks I am using, whereas the red lines are my actual usage based on the meter readings I've supplied, and they continue to ignore.

View attachment 325190

In all the excitement of your over-billing saga I lost track of the actual usage - without going into too much detail that CAN'T be only for a house, can it?? or is it some business usage - or are you, generously, paying for the entire street??

 

[High Voltage]

OR

I could just do the maths and realise that your usage is "about" where ours is, just that the graphics look different and I mis read the numbers

I'll shut up now

 

[High Voltage]

cupid_stunt actually, no I won't - even your actual usage is "about" twice what ours is for the last 2-3 months, does that sound about right??

 

[cupid_stunt]

cupid_stunt actually, no I won't - even your actual usage is "about" twice what ours is for the last 2-3 months, does that sound about right??

I forget what you usage is, mine in May was 150Kwh / £42.12 + vat (not inc. standing charges), and I used £14.65 + vat in gas for hot water and a couple of mornings when the CH was used for a few minutes,

So, basically 5Kwh per day in electric, is that high?

ETA - just found this...

So far, this month, our LOWEST daily figure has been 6.2KWh and that's basically, background usage. NO hot water heating, no dishwasher, no washer/dryer, no underfloor heating, no oven usage. The fridge freezer uses 1KWh / day, a shower "may" use 1KWh, kettle/toaster used during the day .5KWh

So, I am using less than you, not "about" twice.

 

[High Voltage]

I forget what you usage is, mine in May was 150Kwh / £42.12 + vat (not inc. standing charges), and I used £14.65 + vat in gas for hot water and a couple of mornings when the CH was used for a few minutes,

So, basically 5Kwh per day in electric, is that high?

ETA - just found this...


So, I am using less than you, not "about" twice.

Not if you read YOUR usage (which is measured in KWh) as reading in £'s as ours is

So of course £60'odd for the month is HALF your 150KWh because 2 x £60 is only £120 against your 150KWh <MASSIVE face palm>

And I'm allowed to vote and shit like this

 

[cupid_stunt]

Not if you read YOUR usage (which is measured in KWh) as reading in £'s as ours is

So of course £60'odd for the month is HALF your 150KWh because 2 x £60 is only £120 against your 150KWh <MASSIVE face palm>

And I'm allowed to vote and shit like this

You had me totally confused there, I thought it was me going mad, I am relieved that its actually you that's bonkers.

izz, you need to read the last few posts, and then take the piss out of him.

 

[cybershot]

It's hardly surprising that energy companies are dealing with even longer than usual backlogs at the moment.

Yet they are still making money and don't employ more people or at least employ agency workers to help with the backlog.

 

[scifisam]

Someone has drilled the lock out so back to showering at work for the moment. A witch hunt is in progress. In the meantime I have discovered that I'm not getting the £150 council tax payment to help with energy bills since my council tax is rolled in with my rent it is going to my landlord so he is getting £750 out of our block of flats whilst we get stuck with the big energy bills. Another bastard going up against the wall come the revolution.
He owns something like 30 or so houses as well as half the flats in my block, don't know if he includes council tax in the rent in his house though, the bastard will be quids in if he does.

Are you HMOs or flats occupied by solo people/couples/families? If you're in an HMO the landlord can't get the money (legally, anyway, and they probably would notice). As the tenant you have to apply for a discretionary payment - don't know how likely it is to be paid.

 

[gentlegreen]

As a detour, I was just watching a video about Americans not using kettles because 110volt mains means kettles are underpowered, and for science I actually boiled 250ml of water in my Russel Hobbs "220-240v 2520-3000 watts" kettle and it took 50 seconds - meaning my kettle is only delivering 1680 watts ...

 

[Storm Fox]

As a detour, I was just watching a video about Americans not using kettles because 110volt mains means kettles are underpowered, and for science I actually boiled 250ml of water in my Russel Hobbs "220-240v 2520-3000 watts" kettle and it took 50 seconds - meaning my kettle is only delivering 1680 watts ...

He is a great YouTuber well worth watching.

 

[two sheds]

As a detour, I was just watching a video about Americans not using kettles because 110volt mains means kettles are underpowered, and for science I actually boiled 250ml of water in my Russel Hobbs "220-240v 2520-3000 watts" kettle and it took 50 seconds - meaning my kettle is only delivering 1680 watts ...

how are you calculating that?

 

[gentlegreen]

how are you calculating that?

0.25litres x 4200 x 80C = 84KJ / 50 seconds = 1680 watts

EDIT:-
OK my water is apparently 17 degrees - so it's 0.25 x 4200 x 83 = 87.14KJ / 50 = 1743 watts

 

[two sheds]

interesting but surprising, I checked my 3 kW kettle and it was indeed 3 kW I've now changed to using my old metal whistling kettle on the induction hob because it's only 800W and takes longer so more of it is supplied by the solar panels. I must try that calculation.

 

[gentlegreen]

The bottom line I get from that video is people have weird priorities and can't walk and chew gum simultaneously and in the main drink appealingly bad coffee and tea for the sake of speed / convenience.
The last time I timed it, it takes over a minute to hand-grind my coffee beans - but I'm usually staring at a screen and even clicking on stuff intermittently.
I also only eat home-baked bread, but that takes me all of two minutes just over once a week to weigh the ingredients into the pan.

 

[danski]

0.25litres x 4200 x 80C = 84KJ / 50 seconds = 1680 watts

EDIT:-
OK my water is apparently 17 degrees - so it's 0.25 x 4200 x 83 = 87.14KJ / 50 = 1743 watts

Surely it's based on the resistance of your element? The actual heating of the water will have variables and losses but if you have a circuit of known resistance and known voltage, you'll be able to work out the power.

 

[gentlegreen]

Surely it's based on the resistance of your element? The actual heating of the water will have variables and losses but if you have a circuit of known resistance and known voltage, you'll be able to work out the power.

Even the carefully-chosen metal of the element has resistivity - i.e its resistance will increase as it warms - so the stated figure on the base plate is probably for the switch-on surge.

The only losses will be through not putting an insulating jacket over the kettle.
The water's chemistry doesn't change - of course at 2MJ per KG , leaving it evaporating will suck up energy.

 

[two sheds]

Plus the thermal mass of the kettle which will be quite small you'd think (as opposed to my metal whistling kettle). Your figures did look right when I checked them (for what that's worth ).