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Original poster

Bill free

80 replies

Summergirl5 · 16/08/2022 18:00

Has anyone managed to live bill free ,no gas ,electricity or water bill ,if so how have you done it ,like solar panels ,rainwater to flush ect
are there any houses built specifically ,for being self sufficient with no bills

we can’t pay our bills from November when it goes up ,we are going to have to take out a £3000 loan to get through the winter ,and there’s only so many years we can do this

OP posts:
Original poster
Summergirl5 · 16/08/2022 19:31

What could be wrong though
the dc are all adults except 1 child

OP posts:
Chocolatiestchocolate · 16/08/2022 19:32

@Sellie555 yes there are times when its higher but its averaged out loads. In winter ill have to tumble as the only space for airer is the conservatory but it take so long to dry it smells musty. But generally in winter unless rain i peg it out for few hours in the breeze.
Im with eon however i do worry when the rise happens with the heating so investied in ' oodies' for warmth

Sellie555 · 16/08/2022 19:33

Summergirl5 · 16/08/2022 19:31

What could be wrong though
the dc are all adults except 1 child

@Summergirl5 the problem is that we could all speculate all day long about what the problem could be, but we will never really know as we don’t live in your house or live your life

best to call Shell and tell them you think there’s a problem because your bills is way way way higher than they should be. They will be Abel to help you work out what the issue is

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Cost of living
Original poster
Summergirl5 · 16/08/2022 19:34

I’m really worried now ,that something is wrong
is there someone or an agency I could get in to check if there is a problem somewhere

OP posts:
Notjustabrunette · 16/08/2022 19:34

I had someone from a local eco scheme come round and do an assessment of our house. We ended up getting free cavity wall insulation and funding towards a new boiler. It might be worth looking into something like this.

Original poster
Summergirl5 · 16/08/2022 19:36

It’s taken shell 4 months to get back to us about the smart meter ,4 months of us ringing and email them regularly…no joke

OP posts:
Chocolatiestchocolate · 16/08/2022 19:39

Id personally just change supplier if they that useless.

Asdf12345 · 16/08/2022 19:40

Turn everything you know of off and see if the meter is still moving.

If it’s still going isolate circuits on your distribution board via the trips if fitted until the meter stops.

Either you have a significant use of
electricity that you have not disclosed or
don’t know about, likely either heating part of the house or the water, or the numbers are wrong.

QforCucumber · 16/08/2022 19:40

Who are you with for the water? There’s 4 of us, 1 bath and 2 showers a day plus a wash load and a dishwasher load and out water bill based on accurate reads is £43 a month! Ours was only as high as yours when there was a leak and it was dripping out of the pipe work coming into the house - Northumbrian water came out and sorted it and refunded all the overpaid amounts

cant really comment on gas/electric as we’re in a really efficient new build and based on current use are using £25 a month on gas and £50 a month in electric

CornishTiger · 16/08/2022 19:42

If you answer my questions I can sign post you

Dougieowner · 16/08/2022 19:55

The water usage looks way too high for it to be normal but luckily it is the easiest to check.

Locate the water meter (assuming you are on a meter?), check if it is showing usage and then shut off the supply at the internal stop-tap, if it still showing usage then you have a leak (and are paying for it) but if it is stationary then the supply pipe is ok and you ARE using a lot of water.

If there is a leak then every house gets a single repair by the water supplier so it shouldn't cost you (unless there has been an earlier repair and it is showing against the house).

Onandupw · 16/08/2022 19:58

Is it worth getting a new boiler on a payment plAn if that will be more efficient?

re shell not communicating- tell them that you want to make a formal complaint about (I) poor communication and (ii) over charging.

id they don’t give you an answer you’re happy with - which they almost certainly won’t - then ask for a deadlock letter and take it to the ombudsman. Still might not get what you want but absolutely no harm in trying. Free for you to go to the ombudsman.

katieg03 · 16/08/2022 20:06

Are the adult children contributing to the bills?

Eastangular2000 · 16/08/2022 20:13

Why are you doing 21 loads of washing a week as a household. That’s is really excessive unless the level of SN is such that you are having to deal with soiling/wetting etc

EinsteinaGogo · 16/08/2022 20:14

OP

Your water cost is very high.

1: there is possibly a leak
2: you can apply for the WaterSure tariff as you have additional water needs because of SEN.

Your energy costs:

Ours is around £275 per month, and up to approx £10 per day at the moment because we've got the fans and air conditioning on regularly. We have 4 adults working from home each day, with associated water, washing, cooking etc.

We are with OVO. They are suggesting we fix at £700 per month from now. I'm not going to. Money saving expert advised that if the fixed cost was less than 70% on top of your current payment, it's a good deal. £700 isn't (appreciate that may bite us but I anticipate our costs may double to £600).

Still lower than your costs and we are high usage.

Email your provider and keep on doing it until you get a response and a satisfactory answer.

Very good luck. It is super stressful.

BarbaraofSeville · 16/08/2022 20:23

Be very very careful about fixing right now, the prices are far more than staying on variable over winter.

Have you done a benefit check? Sounds like you should be getting the £650 cost of living payment. Also water sure as previously mentioned.

If your DC have SNs, then you might be entitled to grants towards the cost of utilities.

Have a look at:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/budgeting-debt-help/

titchy · 16/08/2022 20:25

Can't you just read your electricity meter (not the smart one just the normal meter if that is still there) now and then again in 24 hours time.

Check if your immersion is switched on - it shouldn't be if you have a gas boiler.

But you won't be paying anything like what you think - there's a mistake somewhere.

woodhill · 16/08/2022 20:27

Doesn't seem right OP

We are also with Shell on variable tarrif

FlippityFlippityFlop · 16/08/2022 20:30

Your water bill shouldn't be that high. It should only be about £60 a month. You need to get them to check for a leak. As a previous poster said - check to see if your eligible for any discounts.

Your electricity usage is very high. Over double what would be expected from what you have said. Make sure that you haven't got the emersion heater on. If you need the dryer then it is probably worth investing in a new heat pump dryer. They do take longer to dry clothes but they are a lot more economical and they are gentler on your clothes.

Turn things off at the socket - don't leave them on standby.

With your hot water - make sure that you have it on a timer so that it is only on for a couple of hours in the morning to do you for the day (you may need it on for an hour in the evening as well depending on your usage).

Cynderella · 16/08/2022 21:35

Look at the manual for your washing machine (it'll be online) - back pages, there'll be a table telling you how many kwh each programme uses. We've been moved to Shell and each kwh costs about 30p. I only ever put the machine on for full loads. All adults in this house too, but it would be too expensive for everyone to put it on for half loads. Could this be a way of cutting use?

My tumble drier is supposed to be energy efficient, but each load takes forever, and I reckon it costs about £1.50 a load at today's rates - god knows how much it will be in the winter, but I'll be using the airer more even thought it's a PITA because it'll be in the way.

EinsteinaGogo · 16/08/2022 21:37

@Cynderella

Massively boring question, I know, but if your tumble drier is taking forever, have you cleaned out the main filter recently (not the fluff filter at the front of the drum).

Cynderella · 16/08/2022 21:44

EinsteinaGogo · 16/08/2022 21:37

@Cynderella

Massively boring question, I know, but if your tumble drier is taking forever, have you cleaned out the main filter recently (not the fluff filter at the front of the drum).

Oh yes - forever doing this. My old dryer used to shrink everything and it would all be red hot at the end of the cycle. this one is a condenser and much more gentle, but takes much longer.

WhiteFire · 16/08/2022 21:47

I'm not sure if there are any tips on here that might help.

www.uswitch.com/energy-efficiency/free-energy-saving-tips/

Your water supplier will have tips too, I got sent a little widget to go in the shower and also those bag things for the cistern.

XenoBitch · 16/08/2022 21:49

I know one person who went totally off grid, and she lived in a van. Fine in the summer, but she has to hunker down in the winter. Parks up her van and lives in a house for a few months.

LondonLovie · 16/08/2022 21:51

I haven't read all the replies but our bill was massive last year and we went £2k in debt! It was a nightmare. Turns out that two things caused it to be massive, under floor heating in our kitchen, and bathroom. In fact the bathroom had underfloor heating and towel rail. It all wasnt switching off properly and is just generally extortionate. We turned the lot off now, new rad in the bathroom and things are back to normal. Well, apart from still having to pay back the £1k that's left..