Shit just got my electric bill!!

[2anddone]

Just got my electric bill it's gone up £200 compared to this time last year....it's going to get worse isn't it!
I have night storage heating which works on a thermostat and is set to low (17 degrees) plus a log cabin which I need to heat for my work (childcare so have to have heat!). I don't leave lights on unnecessarily, don't have my hot water heater switched on, only run my washing machine and dishwasher when they are full. The tv is on every evening but not in the daytime, don't have a tumble dryer.
I honestly can't see where I can save money on my electric bill (was over £400 this month)

@BlondeWidow Thanks. I thought about appealing it but it's the first increase in over 3 years and it's well within line with local rents, which have skyrocketed where I am. I keep an eye on the local market and there is very, very little around at the moment. A lot of it is rented out before it touches the market so the place really wouldn't be empty for long if I did move out.

@TakeSomeMoreTea
EDF Whole Amount DD allows me to only pay the amount I use IF I give monthly readings to fit in with the billing cycle (reading on 14th, billed on 17th, taken on 20th)
If I don't give a reading then the predetermined DD amount of 26 is taken.

@BlackLambAndGreyFalcon

Thank you for that clear explanation

@WhiteCatmas

Did you vote for the Conservative party in the last election? Because you have them to thank for these price rises.

It isn't really to do with the "conservative party". This is a global issue - Germany ordered the Nord Stream 2 to be turned off because USA wants Europe to buy USA gas (a lot fo which was actually bought from Russia in the first place). So if you want to blame someone, blame Germany and the current US administration. All our government can do is mitigate or start producing out own energy, which it won't do because muh - Green Agenda.

Meanwhile, British people are going to suffer like they did in 1973/74, or worse.

@Leftbutcameback thank you. I did hear on the radio (Woman’s Hour or MoneyBox… one of those) that suppliers are meant to be offering people in my situation the chance to lock in prices but they’re not. Ofgem apparently investigating it…

Just as an illustration, last year we made some changes:

• put all TV, computers and charging cables/points (e.g. phone chargers) on smart plugs/schedulled shut downs overnight when not in use. Most are off at least between midnight and 9am, as an eg.
• we cook from scratch and in the oven quite a bit and haven't stopped that but have been making an effort to 'double up' where we can. e.g. if cooking some chicken for our very old and frail dog, we now make sure it goes in whenever we are cooking for ourselves
• cut out 1-2 laundry cycles a week
• cut down on the tumble dryer usage so now almost everything gets air dried, except full loads of pants/socks which do still get a tumble
• use the shortest and/or coolest settings on the washing machine and dishwasher that are effective for what we are cleaning. e.g. previously the dishwasher would have been on a high temp for everything but now we query what is actually loaded in there and whether it warrants this. Things that have been in contact with a dog or raw meat still get higher temps but other things get lower ones.

It's not felt like a massive change but the total saving is approximately 2000kwh a year. At the 'new rates' that's a saving of £560 a year!!

More recently, we've reviewed how frequently things are getting washed, especially laundry. Covid had resulted in us increasing washing which then became habit but this has been reviewed and knocked back down again.

Other tips I've picked up over th years...

• always keep a full freezer as it lowers the impact that opening the door has on the internal temps.
• anything that heats or cools is always the best place to start cutting as both of these take a lot of energy to perform
• with the above in mind, it's a perfect excuse to give up ironing
• as someone said above, dust/clean filters regularly on things like extractors, vacuums, fans etc. This reduces the energey they need to work.

Our electricity bill was almost exactly the same this January as it was last January, however we had used 400kw of electricity less this year than last year!

Thanks @ButterMeTimbers those are great ideas and it's a good idea to think in terms of heat/ cooling. I'm going to look into the plug timer, and the temp of the fridge and freezer. Our filters on hoovers definitely need cleaning again too.

I'm fully onboard with nearly-zero ironing!

I’m worried about how this will affect my business - it involves a lot of laundry that can’t be avoided and needs to be on fairly high temperatures. The service I sell is also often seen as a bit of a luxury so I’m concerned people will be cutting back on it. I was planning on investing in some new assets this year which would have used local businesses to supply and build - but I can’t see it making economic sense to do that now. So then the local economy loses out. I can’t be the only one in that position either.

The credit from our peoples energy account which went bust has today been finally paid into our british gas account. That will help the next bill at least and give us a bit of breathing space before the price rise. It's taken them from Sept to sort it out!

@Weaverspin, just read meters and put in numbers. My electric is £680 used since last day of October and gas £345. I am going to increase dd again. I will have to get kids to cut back.

13:30FourTeaFallOut

£7.75 in standing charges and £6.89 in electricity usage for Dec- Jan Lois? Just over a kWh per day?

Sorry. It was 4th Jan - 2nd Feb electricity bill.
Units used: 59
Cost of electricity: 10.33
Standing charge: 3.62
VAT: 0.70p
Total: 14.64.

I only pay half the standing charge.
Live in flat on 1st and 2nd floors above shop on ground floor. Nothing to do with shop, no communal areas, front door on different road. Both premises owned by same person and let to shop and me separately. Owner used to live here and run shop hence meters are in shop. Monthly readings given by shop tenant to owner and each of us billed separately but both bills show all use and costs of both shop and flat.
Landlord pays bill as it's in their name. Shop and I pay owner/landlord when we receive itemised bill. That's why I only pay half the standing charge.
Tariff ends April 2024.
Works well. I've lived here 11.5 years and very happy.

Should say, tumble drier is only in the winter. I hang out as much as possible. I did try hanging washing out yesterday but after 5 hours it was still as wet as when I hung it out.

Our washing was almost dry after being out yesterday. It was out for about 8 hours; it was really windy here. Our washing should also get dry today, as it's sunny and windy!

put all TV, computers and charging cables/points (e.g. phone chargers) on smart plugs/schedulled shut downs overnight when not in use. Most are off at least between midnight and 9am, as an eg.

I'm considering that.

We don't have a tumble dryer, I already use the washing machine as little as possible and on a cold wash whenever possible. Don't have a dishwasher, and largely hand wash in cold/luke warm water as the immersion heater only goes on once a week. I've cut down on showers. Trying to batch cook more - veggie pasta bakes are cheap and easy, or something in the slow cooker. We've cut back on how much we have the heating on.

It's making some difference compared to last year we're using on average 1KWh less per day for electricity and about 12KWh less for gas. I suspect it's using the shower less that's making the biggest different compared to a year ago, as I'd already cut down on washing as I've been WFH for the last two years.

Feel so sorry for small hairdressing salons they use a ton of energy between hairdryers, straighteners, sterilisers etc, water with all the washing hair, laundering towels etc & now this is a luxury many people will have to pass on. My local salon has put up prices just so they can pay their staff.. So sad

@Spudlet I agree the knock-on effects are worrying. I had my horse euthanised last year. It was mainly a decision to do with his welfare but being blunt there was a financial element to it. I could see things were getting more expensive and were going to get worse and I couldn't afford to get him through another winter knowing it would wipe me out financially at the worst time.

I can't afford another horse now which I know is a first world problem. But, by having him, I paid out money to a livery yard owner, vets, equine physiotherapists, saddlers, feed merchants, bedding manufacturers, instructors and competition venues. They all have staff themselves and I won't be the only one cutting back so they'll all be impacted too, and so it goes on.

My local hairdresser hasn’t put up their prices for ages. I’d be happy to pay a few more pounds knowing that they may not survive otherwise. I’ll cut down on chocolate/ wine instead if necessary. Probably do me good anyway!

@BertramLacey that’s sad to hear, you must miss riding. I’m lucky to be able to ride once a week at a local school. It’s expensive but my last one closed down, and there is a real lack of them in my area, so I hope they can keep going. It’s my favourite hour of the week.

13:30FourTeaFallOut

£7.75 in standing charges and £6.89 in electricity usage for Dec- Jan Lois? Just over a kWh per day?

For clarity. 2nd Dec - 4th Jan.
72 units
33 days
Total 17.85

@Heidi451
This is a global issue - Germany ordered the Nord Stream 2 to be turned off because USA wants Europe to buy USA gas (a lot fo which was actually bought from Russia in the first place). So if you want to blame someone, blame Germany and the current US administration.

Germany didn't order Nord Stream 2 to be turned off. It has not yet been turned on - Germany suspended its approval last November. The US doesn't supply a lot of gas to Europe - less than 5%.
The US - and the EU - are concerned about the influence Russia has over Europe though its gas supplies. Nord Stream 1 supplies about 35% of Europes gas - Nord 2 would double this (the EU on average gets 30% of its gas from Russia; Germany gets 40%).
The EU and the US are concerned that leaves Europe open to blackmail from Russia. I think they are probably right. But turning on Nord Stream 2 would reduce energy prices.

For those asking about kettle usage

We got one of these (Christmas present from in-laws)
caso-design.de/en/p/hw660-turbo/

It’s really good. You only heat the amount you use at a time, therefore saving energy. They sell smaller/ large options as well

My nearest two hairdressers have put up their prices to levels where I won't pay. 52 for just a cut, no blow dry.
I colour it myself and only have it cut once a year now. Even cut it myself sometimes as it's only collar length but letting it grow this year so I can have a half updo. Colouring your own hair is easy and cheap nowadays and I even do hi-lights with foil.

Both the electricity and gas bills are the highest we've ever got here. I got 2 days warning of 1 direct debit, over €100 more than I expected, and 4 days warning of the other, just under €100 more than I expected. Both bills were officially sent with 14 days notice ...but just arrived yesterday.

And we got collar panels that are doing well in generating power so had expected a (slight) reduction in the electricity bill - not a massive increase!

It seems some people still have money to burn if my local fb is anything to go by. Someone complained about. pizza 🍕 delivery they paid £18 for and someone advertising micro blading down from £180 to £100.
I have also been watching a foodie guy doing the challenges of buying what the customer in front buys. The drive throughs are always busy and orders expensive.

@BiddyPop

Both the electricity and gas bills are the highest we've ever got here. I got 2 days warning of 1 direct debit, over €100 more than I expected, and 4 days warning of the other, just under €100 more than I expected. Both bills were officially sent with 14 days notice ...but just arrived yesterday.

And we got collar panels that are doing well in generating power so had expected a (slight) reduction in the electricity bill - not a massive increase!

Have you just come off a fixed rate?

Is this for a house? and if so how many bedrooms? If you don't mind me asking.

I've been on the phone to EDF trying to find out why mine is much higher than people's in the same size house and she said the gaming computer could be one of my big users.