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Original poster

Electricity usage spiking

24 replies

SaintJavelin · 09/03/2022 15:48

I work from home and we finally got our smart meter fixed so that our information display could get readings and show live usage etc.

Anyway I have noticed that the live electricity usage goes as low as 120w to as high as 400w without me turning anything on, all we have running is the fridge freezer, the Wi-Fi router and a Google Hub, everything else is turned off or standby (TV and soundbar etc).

We do not have an immersion heater or underfloor heating, our heating is via gas as is our oven.

Does anyone have any idea as to what could be causing the usage to spike? It will sit at the higher wattage for quite some time.

OP posts:
Alwayswithalacrity · 09/03/2022 15:53

I would assume it is to do with the running cycle of the fridge freezer. They cycle on and off, hence higher readings at certain times and less usage when it’s on the rest cycle?

Original poster
SaintJavelin · 09/03/2022 15:56

@Alwayswithalacrity

I would assume it is to do with the running cycle of the fridge freezer. They cycle on and off, hence higher readings at certain times and less usage when it’s on the rest cycle?
I did wonder that myself but I can't hear it making any noise and plus would it really use over 200w for a considerable amount of time?
OP posts:
Madre123 · 09/03/2022 16:01

Do not leave anything on stand by

Alwayswithalacrity · 09/03/2022 16:06

I’m not an expert but I suppose you could test the theory by switching the f/f off when it goes up and then if the wattage drops you will have your answer. I can always hear mine starting up and powering off so I assume there will be more power used during the 1st part.

Original poster
SaintJavelin · 09/03/2022 16:37

@Madre123

Do not leave anything on stand by
Why not? I thought electrical items on standby were legally meant to use minimal power?
OP posts:
MintJulia · 09/03/2022 16:42

Things on standby can use the same amount of power as when they are in use - especially tvs, routers, set-top boxes etc.
I've taken to switching off everything except the fridge freezer and the kitchen clock at night. It'll be interesting to see how much I save.

MintJulia · 09/03/2022 16:43

Also, some phone networks make use of your broadband when you aren't using it, which means your power as well.

EdgeOfSeventeenAndThreeQuarter · 09/03/2022 17:21

Do NOT turn your router off at night - you’ll trash your bandwidth.

Otherpeoplesteens · 09/03/2022 17:25

Obvious culprit is fridge-freezer. Irritatingly, manufacturers and retailers almost never give power figures for appliances, just energy consumption per year, but a standard fridge-freezer is 150W and up; an American style one can be 250W. They will have a base usage all the time, but when the compressor kicks in the power consumption will jump noticeably.

The less obvious culprit is your central heating boiler. It might be gas fired, but it uses an electric pump to actually circulate the hot water through your pipes. Typically around 60W, one of those.

Bagelsandbrie · 09/03/2022 17:28

Why would you leave anything on standby? I turn everything off at the plug when I’m not using it (not the fridge freezer obviously)!

Original poster
SaintJavelin · 09/03/2022 17:50

@MintJulia

Things on standby can use the same amount of power as when they are in use - especially tvs, routers, set-top boxes etc. I've taken to switching off everything except the fridge freezer and the kitchen clock at night. It'll be interesting to see how much I save.
No they don't? DH has just used a power monitor on the TV, on standby it uses 1w, turned on it uses 50w.

He's now going round checking everything Grin

OP posts:
NannyGythaOgg · 09/03/2022 19:43

I don't know but mine does it in the night. Often midnight/1 am or at 6/7 am. Way before I get up.

KleineDracheKokosnuss · 09/03/2022 19:47

Old fashioned TVs used to use loads of power on standby. Modern ones don’t.

Madcats · 09/03/2022 19:53

We temporarily had a not smart meter until we switched suppliers. They applied our standing charges to the usage at around 6am each day (but not at a regular time). Could that be the issue?

Sacada · 09/03/2022 20:04

The big users are anything that heats, or freezes. I visit an empty property where the only appliance in use is a Bosch fridge freezer (so I can see by checking the daily smart meter readings, exactly how much electricity it uses/costs. That fridge freezer, even when the door is hardly ever opened, is using 60p of electricity a day; that’s £219 a year ! After April 1st that will be £337 a year. Clearly a typical one where the door was constantly being opened and closed - and loosing energy -would use a lot more.

Original poster
SaintJavelin · 09/03/2022 20:20

It's not a massive spike in price so it's not the standing charge.

It's real time usage spiking, it goes from 2p p/h at 120w to 7p p/h at 400w and come April that price will be double so I'm trying to find out what's causing it.

OP posts:
cakeorwine · 09/03/2022 20:25

You can get a device that you can plug into a socket that measures the power being used.

It will show you the energy usage of the device it's plugged into.

It is interesting to get a house 'background' reading.

cakeorwine · 09/03/2022 20:27

I just noticed you have a power monitor.

Why not plug it into the fridge freezer and monitor it?

cakeorwine · 09/03/2022 20:29

@Bagelsandbrie

Why would you leave anything on standby? I turn everything off at the plug when I’m not using it (not the fridge freezer obviously)!
You use very little power on standby.

Something like 1 watt. So 1000 hours would use 1 unit.

LizzieMacQueen · 09/03/2022 20:30

Do you have a quooker @SaintJavelin - or similar boiling water tap?

beautifullymad · 09/03/2022 20:32

@MintJulia

Things on standby can use the same amount of power as when they are in use - especially tvs, routers, set-top boxes etc. I've taken to switching off everything except the fridge freezer and the kitchen clock at night. It'll be interesting to see how much I save.
This.

We have a home installed smart meter so I can manage usage. Our standby tick over with lots on standby is 450w. If the children are using tablets and lights it goes up to 800w. But without turning every standby off we are stuck at 450w so it must make a difference.

cakeorwine · 09/03/2022 20:35

We have a home installed smart meter so I can manage usage. Our standby tick over with lots on standby is 450w. If the children are using tablets and lights it goes up to 800w. But without turning every standby off we are stuck at 450w so it must make a difference

On standby, we use 70 watts. I have measured the power output of devices on standby and it's very low compared to when being used.

Devices on standby are supposed to have low power usage.

Franklin12 · 09/03/2022 20:35

So I am with Scottish Power and had spikes every day with a SM. I called them and they said the daily usage showing is not necessarily correct. The overall usage is for say the month and to take daily actual meter readings.

They were right but what is the point of a smart meter that doesn’t give out actual readings!!

MintJulia · 09/03/2022 21:58

Standby usage of appliances varies wildly depending on the quality and age of the appliance. The latest models should use very little power on standby but products even 3 years old use a lot more.
I started turning everything off at the wall on March 1st and I'm going to measure it over a month. Like most people, some of my kit is new, some is older. We shall see Smile

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