# Is this a normal esb bill?



## Zest (24 Jan 2011)

My roommate and I live in a 2 bedroom 2nd floor apartment and we just got our first esb bill for 42 days and it is 213.74. We don't have gas in our home, everything is run by the electricity, and apparently we are making use of night saver units (the heaters were supposedly programmed to come on only at night and "have bricks" inside them to keep them hot all day. However when I turned them off 20 minutes ago they instantly got cold......uhhhh)

We don't have tv or anything like that and we don't use the oven very often. We work a lot and when we aren't working we're sleeping or maybe watching a movie on my laptop. 

I just don't know what to do/what is going on because we are from Canada and this is our first time away from home. We can afford to pay the 213 but we would really like to avoid this happening ever again. Another point of interest: I used to work for airtricity so know about reading meters etc but our apartment doesn't seem to have a meter. Am I just blind? Where should I be looking for this? There is a gate at the end of the building that leads around back to the carpark and garbage bins and there are 2 meters in the wall there. There is no way that 2 meters can be for 20+ units, is there?!

Edit: I would have switched our electricity supply to a cheaper alternative (airtricity maybe) but since I can't find the meter, I can't read it or get a meter number.


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## Sandals (24 Jan 2011)

sounds like storage heaters, just visiting a friend who as three storage heaters and esb €340 bill,......

Another household I know €240 due to tumble dryer and electric oven only method of cooking.


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## Zest (24 Jan 2011)

We also have a tumble dryer (washer/dryer combination) and an electric oven that is our only method of cooking. I suppose that is our problem then! Our old home used gas and that would probably explain why the electricity bills are so high in this place.


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## Sue Ellen (24 Jan 2011)

Zest said:


> We also have a tumble dryer (washer/dryer combination) and an electric oven that is our only method of cooking. I suppose that is our problem then! Our old home used gas and that would probably explain why the electricity bills are so high in this place.



You may find [broken link removed] useful and get some guidance on how to save on your bills.  I regularly hear people complain about the tumble dryer using a lot of electricity but have never heard anyone mention their electric oven.  The washer/dryer combination usually only allows a smaller load to be dried so it is probably a lot more expensive because of this.


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## mercman (24 Jan 2011)

Zest said:


> I would have switched our electricity supply to a cheaper alternative (airtricity maybe) but since I can't find the meter, I can't read it or get a meter number.



If you provide Airtricity with your ESB number they will find the meter details etc You do not need to scurry around looking for the meter


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## Bronte (25 Jan 2011)

Storage heaters eat electricity as do tumble dryers.  When you do find the meter turn off everything and then turn on the tumble dryer and see the meter spin.


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## horusd (25 Jan 2011)

There are various gadgets for measuring the usage of various electrical appliances in the home.  I found reference online to one sold in the store Maplins for €15. Others are available from ebay. Google for more information on these.


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## ariidae (25 Jan 2011)

Zest said:


> However when I turned them off 20 minutes ago they instantly got cold......uhhhh)



Apartments that have storage heaters usually have only two/three that actually use the night rate.  Others are just instant heaters that you turn on and off as you need. They normally have the storage heaters in the living room and if your apartment is big enough, perhaps the hall. The instant heaters (that will turn cold as soon as you turn them off) are often in the bedrooms. The living room storage heater usually can be turned on as an instant heater to give a boost of heat in the room if you require it.

You will know the storage heaters because they round dials on them that say 'input' and 'output'. The instant heaters do not.

What can happen is that you are turning on the instant heater instead of the storage and hence eating up your electricity.


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## millieforbes (25 Jan 2011)

A friend recently had a problem with very large electricity bills caused by a problem with the timer for the night meters - I think it meant that night time units were recorded as day and vice versa. The original problem was caused by a power cut! Caused huge increases in bills. I think ESB had to visit and reset the clocks


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## alaskaonline (25 Jan 2011)

I used to live in an apartment block and at the main entrance of the block there was a long wooden wall. I never even considered it could be more than a wall but it turned out that the meters were behind it (thanks to ESB for telling me). I overlooked a small knob that helped me open it and voila I had found 20 meters. Check this out in your block. I am sure the meters are hidden somewhere there!

As for the bill, did you check if it's a reading? It might be an estimate and then you can get it corrected (once you find your meter). With the night timer, make sure you have it programmed to winter time. ESB state on their website what times apply to the Night Saver rate.


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## paddyc (25 Jan 2011)

Zest, I am in a 2 bed, 2nd floor apartment and our bi-monthly bill is in the region of €140 - €180 - again everything is electric.

If your storage heater isn't "storing" heat sounds like its just working as a fan heater. We have 3 storage heaters ( 2 of which we have never used in 5 years). In our sitting /dining room we have 2, a big one which we use which also have a fan heater function in it and a smaller just plain old storeage heater. 

On the wall next to the storeage heater we do use there are 2 switches, one is for the fan heater part which we always have turned off and the other is for the storage heater part. In essence the storage heater builds up heat over night and then granually releases it during the day. You should have an input and output dial so make sure your input is turned up so it stores the heat and the output is supposed to regulate the rate it lets the heat out.... bottom line is they are pretty crap but from the sounds of it yours aren't working right at all.


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## Beantown (28 Jan 2011)

*Beantown*

Yes, bills seem high here for some reason. I'm from the US, only here 6 months so haven't got a clue about the set-up here. I'm currently with Board Gais.Got a leaflet in the post last week from Prepaypower. Has anyone heard of them? They supply electricity using prepay electricity meters. Any feedback would be welcome.


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## pudds (28 Jan 2011)

Beantown said:


> Yes, bills seem high here for some reason. I'm from the US, only here 6 months so haven't got a clue about the set-up here. I'm currently with Board Gais.Got a leaflet in the post last week from Prepaypower. *Has anyone heard of them?* They supply electricity using prepay electricity meters. Any feedback would be welcome.



nope but handy in these troubled times for some of us.


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## Berni (28 Jan 2011)

Beantown said:


> Got a leaflet in the post last week from Prepaypower. Has anyone heard of them? They supply electricity using prepay electricity meters. Any feedback would be welcome.


The extra daily charge is a bit steep - an extra €125 per year (~€20 per bill)

You would be better off staying with Bord Gais and paying a little off the bill every week instead of waiting for the full bill to arrive.


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## horusd (28 Jan 2011)

> nope but handy in these troubled times for some of us.


 

I'm not the best at understanding rates on electricity, but a quick comparison between prepaypower  & my bill shows them to be a fair bit dearer. Their rate is 14.1 cents compared to my Airtricity at 12.27 cents. All ex vat.  Also, they charge a fixed daily charge of .30 cents for the keypad  which I think is their meter.  Over a yr, the keypad charge alone would be €109.5 extra by my reckoning.Not to mention the higher unit cost.  It seems better for the OP to switch to a cheaper provider if possible, and budget for the bill.


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## Berni (28 Jan 2011)

I find their FAQ very misleading - no mention of their extra charge in the costs section


> *2. Cost More?* Convenience doesn’t have to cost more; so while your electricity  costs the same as you already pay you’ll be able to budget much better.
> We charge the same daily standing charge as all the other electricity  companies, and, even though your prepay option is easier to manage and  our meters cost us more – we still charge the same price as everyone  else.


Technically the charge is for the keypad, but the above gives the impression you aren't paying any more with them than you would with another provider.


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## horusd (28 Jan 2011)

Agree Berni.  The standing charge may be the same, but the rate seems higher than is available by my reckoning.


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## Berni (28 Jan 2011)

Yes, they seem to be charging the full ESB rate of 14.1c

There are definitely better options out there before looking at this crowd.


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## Zest (28 Jan 2011)

We have decided to just leave the storage heaters off completely because I think paddyc is right and they are just functioning as fan heaters. We only have one switch beside each of the 2 heaters we own and it definitely isn't storing any heat. We never bothered with the instant heaters in the bedrooms because they seem to only work intermittently, so it's impossible to set a timer on them if the clock stops randomly. We've taken to being extremely cautious with the electricity use, rarely using the tumble dryer, turning off the power in the kitchen when we aren't using it. I am hoping it helps.
That and Airtricity called me the other day saying that they had noticed I had tried to switch over but had stopped (it had asked for meter readings which I didn't have - still haven't found the meter) and they switched me over right there without needing my meter info. Hopefully the combined efforts take a chunk out of the next bill.


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## horusd (29 Jan 2011)

Great Zest, as a bye the bye, you might try one of those free-standing gas heaters with the bottled gas. I haven't used one for yrs, but they might be a cost-effective way to heat the room. I had a Super Ser model, it was brilliant. Check it out and best of luck with Airtricity.


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## bluemac (28 Feb 2011)

I just checked my meter and my clock is set 1 hour out on the night time units, so instead of 11-8am I getting 10am - 7am  this would be fine except I set my heat pump to really kick in 7-8am to warm up the house for the day, we also have to use emersion for hot water which I have timed to come on 1 hour every morning yep from 7-8am so the last 3 years i have had a lot of usage through that period..

My energy supplier will send some one to fix the meter then will credit my account after that..? but with what how will they determin the usage for that 3 year period?

my units usage 11452 units last year 1000sqft new build
we have electric cooking
ground source heat pump
emersion
electric shower
well with pump for water
pump for our own sewage

NO GAS OR OIL

seems like a lot to me.. we paid €1780 in bills last year.


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## Guest125 (1 Mar 2011)

When the clocks go forward in March you'll be on 11-8.This is one of the pitfalls,I thought it was explained in the blurb before you sign up to night rate.


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## bluemac (1 Mar 2011)

no im out by an extra hour so summer time is 12-9  winter 11-8.. im an extra hour out


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## mcaul (4 Mar 2011)

This may be an option for some. 
Lucht combination radiators

I put 3 of these into office (200sq ft - 1) & showrooms (900 sq ft - 2) on 2nd Jan after seeing the mid Oct - Mid Dec bill of almost €1000 (loads of showroom lights & heat on 10 hours a day) Bill to mid feb dropped down to just over €700 (closed 3 days xmas was only difference). 

They work a similar way to storage heater but with ceramic pads rather than bricks. They use power for 20 - 25 minutes each hour but give out heat for the full hour. They also give out a greater heat value than the electricity they use.

They're not cheap - €450 - €700 depending on size, but if the heat is on for a few hours a day, it may be worth while.


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