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Original poster

Can't believe how many kwh of energy we are actually using

64 replies

TattiePants · 25/08/2022 17:09

Stupidly, I've never paid any attention to how many kwh of energy we use in a year. I read the meter every month, know how much our monthly DD is and make sure that's enough to cover our bills and that's it. For most of 2020/2021 we paid £121 a month for gas & electric which for 4 people at home a lot during lock down, in a bigger that average house didn't seem unreasonable.

With the price cap rising yet again and after reading many threads on MN I decided to calculate our actual usage. Oh My Fucking God! In the last 45 weeks we have used 28,500 kwh of gas, with a current annual estimate of 31,500 kwh. The average usage is 12,000 kwh so how the hell have we been racking up so much!! Our electricity usage is pretty average. We have gas central heating / hot water but this last winter I was much more careful and didn't heat the house during the day when I was home alone. I just can't believe how much gas we've used despite me working under a blanket with a hot water bottle most of last winter. I guess on a positive, we've got LOTS of room for improvement!

Anyone else been completely shocked at how much energy they're using?

OP posts:
LittleLlama · 25/08/2022 19:48

We moved to Shell, with the collapse of Green energy. I eventually got a SMART meter and in January was shocked to find we had used just under 3000kwh in gas.

Since then we have really cut down. February was 1500kwh and July 197kwh. I know we need to do more and would like to thank people for all the tips.

We are currently £500 in credit but I know that will not last long with the price increase.

pinkpantsrock · 25/08/2022 19:51

TattiePants · 25/08/2022 17:09

Stupidly, I've never paid any attention to how many kwh of energy we use in a year. I read the meter every month, know how much our monthly DD is and make sure that's enough to cover our bills and that's it. For most of 2020/2021 we paid £121 a month for gas & electric which for 4 people at home a lot during lock down, in a bigger that average house didn't seem unreasonable.

With the price cap rising yet again and after reading many threads on MN I decided to calculate our actual usage. Oh My Fucking God! In the last 45 weeks we have used 28,500 kwh of gas, with a current annual estimate of 31,500 kwh. The average usage is 12,000 kwh so how the hell have we been racking up so much!! Our electricity usage is pretty average. We have gas central heating / hot water but this last winter I was much more careful and didn't heat the house during the day when I was home alone. I just can't believe how much gas we've used despite me working under a blanket with a hot water bottle most of last winter. I guess on a positive, we've got LOTS of room for improvement!

Anyone else been completely shocked at how much energy they're using?

Are you sure your calculating the gas usage correctly? you can't take one read away from
another like electric.

On the back of your invoice it will tell the maths needed to convert the units into kWh

dementedpixie · 25/08/2022 19:56

TattiePants · 25/08/2022 17:09

Stupidly, I've never paid any attention to how many kwh of energy we use in a year. I read the meter every month, know how much our monthly DD is and make sure that's enough to cover our bills and that's it. For most of 2020/2021 we paid £121 a month for gas & electric which for 4 people at home a lot during lock down, in a bigger that average house didn't seem unreasonable.

With the price cap rising yet again and after reading many threads on MN I decided to calculate our actual usage. Oh My Fucking God! In the last 45 weeks we have used 28,500 kwh of gas, with a current annual estimate of 31,500 kwh. The average usage is 12,000 kwh so how the hell have we been racking up so much!! Our electricity usage is pretty average. We have gas central heating / hot water but this last winter I was much more careful and didn't heat the house during the day when I was home alone. I just can't believe how much gas we've used despite me working under a blanket with a hot water bottle most of last winter. I guess on a positive, we've got LOTS of room for improvement!

Anyone else been completely shocked at how much energy they're using?

Your bill should give an estimate of your annual consumption of gas and electricity. I have a feeling you are calculating your gas wrongly as it can't be worked out just from your readings as there is a calculation that needs to be done to convert from m³ or ft³ to get the kwh

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Cost of living
Original poster
TattiePants · 25/08/2022 19:57

@Cynderella between 2/5 and 29/7 we used 1,507 kwh. There was no heating on so for showers / baths only that seems reasonable for a quarter's invoice over summer. The problem seems to be the winter months when the heating is on and we can use more than 4,000 kwh in a month!

@HairyKitty I've calculated from the bills I'm using the readings that I submit each month so I know they're accurate.

@MinervaTerrathorn yes the thermostat is downstairs although it's in the west facing hall so does get a lot of afternoon sun. We do have radiators turned off in rooms that we don't use often and keep doors closed.

OP posts:
Original poster
TattiePants · 25/08/2022 20:00

Definitely calculating the bill correctly. Taking the difference in meter readings 45 weeks apart to get cubic meters. Then adjusting for the correction charge and calorific factor. Predicted annual usage is 31,500 (this time last year it was 42,500 so I guess I should be happy I've reduced it by a quarter!!).

OP posts:
LizzieSiddal · 25/08/2022 20:02

Are you sure you haven’t accidentally added an extra zero?!

Dissimilitude · 25/08/2022 20:03

Is your 31k figure actually cubic meters of gas?

Dont you have to convert that to kWH?

Cynderella · 25/08/2022 20:06

TattiePants · 25/08/2022 19:57

@Cynderella between 2/5 and 29/7 we used 1,507 kwh. There was no heating on so for showers / baths only that seems reasonable for a quarter's invoice over summer. The problem seems to be the winter months when the heating is on and we can use more than 4,000 kwh in a month!

@HairyKitty I've calculated from the bills I'm using the readings that I submit each month so I know they're accurate.

@MinervaTerrathorn yes the thermostat is downstairs although it's in the west facing hall so does get a lot of afternoon sun. We do have radiators turned off in rooms that we don't use often and keep doors closed.

For May - July, we used about 1200kwh, so in line with you, really. In March, we used 2,300kwh - that was our highest since getting the smart meter in Feb.

bellac11 · 25/08/2022 20:07

Ive just had to find a thread of mine to find my post where I put my figures in, 4788 kwh for gas and about 5088 for electric

There are 2 of us in a semi

(by the way how do I find my previous posts on this site?)

bellac11 · 25/08/2022 20:08

Ive done it wrong again, thats the wrong way round, its 4677 for electric and 5088 for gas

Original poster
TattiePants · 25/08/2022 20:10

28,500 kWh for 45 weeks is definitely calculated correctly and ties in with the predicted annual usage of 31,500 on my latest bill (although I’ll be making sure I don’t use another 3,000 kWh in the next 7 weeks!). I’m an accountant so pretty confident in my calculations (we’ll gloss over the fact I’ve never checked my usage in, well, ever).

Can't believe how many kwh of energy we are actually using
OP posts:
DiDonk · 25/08/2022 20:12

We used 34,537 khw in 2020. 5 bed large 70s house, insulated but 2 WFH + covid kids at home so heating on three times a day. New boiler and windows too so no excuses there.

Have installed smart valves this summer so hopefully will reduce heating empty rooms come winter.

bellac11 · 25/08/2022 20:13

ThisisCollie2022 · 25/08/2022 17:29

Electricity for our home is less than 1500KwH for last year.

That's WFH, washing, tumble drying, cooking, TV, Xbox and an 8 year old leaving the light on.

Scottish Power app is surprisingly useful :)

How?

Hugasauras · 25/08/2022 20:14

Hijacking a bit but @DiDonk what smart valves did you get? Were they easy to set up? Think we are going to do the same.

Kezzie200 · 25/08/2022 20:16

How do you work out kwh for gas?

We used 650 units but you have to x by a multiplier for gas and I'm not sure by what?

DiDonk · 25/08/2022 20:19

Got netatmo ones on offer with a new wireless thermostat. Actually very easy except for one old radiator. Was a bit worried opening the boiler but videos on YouTube surprisingly good.

I think you can get cheaper ones but the app is nice unlike our cheapo cameras.

Original poster
TattiePants · 25/08/2022 20:22

@Kezzie200 assuming that's 650 m3 then I multiply by 1.02264 correction factor then x by 40.2 calorific value then / by 3.6 to get the kwh. Using my rates that would give you 7,422 kwh. It should be detailed on your bill.

@bellac11 click on 'threads I'm on' to see other threads you've commented on.

@DiDonk I'm actually relieved that someone else has a similar usage as me!

OP posts:
Kez200 · 25/08/2022 20:25

Thanks @TattiePants

It was easier to look at a bill!

They say just under 3500 electric and 10000 gas.

We try and be very careful (weve dropped from 4000/11000 two years ago) and we luckily have a woodburner too.

trilbydoll · 25/08/2022 20:27

I've just checked ours. 4 bed detached 1970s house with fairly low ceilings, 2 adults 2 primary aged dc. I have a bath every morning and DH likes it warm, our heating is set to 22° all year round. It is never turned 'off'.

Bulb estimates 23,000 kWh of gas per year. It wasn't immediately obvious if I could see the actuals to check how good this estimate is.

Beecham · 25/08/2022 20:29

We had a similar holy fuck moment - our annual useage is even higher than yours op (40,000!!), but we do have an old and drafty 5-bed.

Massive massive economy drive going on right now

Original poster
TattiePants · 25/08/2022 20:34

Beecham · 25/08/2022 20:29

We had a similar holy fuck moment - our annual useage is even higher than yours op (40,000!!), but we do have an old and drafty 5-bed.

Massive massive economy drive going on right now

This time last year our estimated usage was 42,500 (not that I realised till now) so I guess getting it down to around 30,000 is an achievement! A long way still to go.....

OP posts:
whatsthestory123 · 25/08/2022 20:44

3692.9 kWh elec
7685 kWh gas

so is that 7,685 for gas seems low
as im with eon next mine says estimated yearly use im always up to date weekly reading but as ive not had a full year with them its why its estimated

ThisisCollie2022 · 26/08/2022 08:58

@HairyKitty it was a bit crap for about a week so I reinstalled the app and its been great since.

@bellac11 I honestly don't know how, we have a small house. I use the smart meter and Scottish Power app everyday to keep an eye on usage but we don't go without comfort either.

Cooking is what costs us the most. My air fryer has made a huge difference to our usage. It's amazing.

Adversity · 26/08/2022 09:41

What sort of shower do you have? We have one of those Amazon rainfall ones. If you have a longish shower it uses as much power as it takes to heat a bath. We have short showers.

@trilbydoll is it even set to 22 overnight ?

When DH is at work the heating can be switched off as DS and I are naturally hot people if that makes sense, DH however feels the cold. It’s marked how different we both feel regarding temperatures,

Whatthetrolley · 26/08/2022 11:34

I use this website to work out the gas calculation. Remember to swap to metric if need be (mine is still an imperial measurement for gas) then can multiply by your gas rate and hope its easier than the complications above 🤣

www.theenergyshop.com/guides/how-to-convert-gas-units-to-kwh