# Pricey Electricity - any suggestions?



## Leccie Bill (13 Jan 2009)

Hi,

I'm going nuts about my electricity bill - I'd love to hear any tips on reducing it!

I've tried to use more Night Units, e.g. using the washing machine, heaters at night but my bill is as high as ever! Over 300 Euro!

Please can anyone help? I'm so frustrated about this, especially as I've been actively trying to do something about it,

Thanks!

Helen


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## mercman (13 Jan 2009)

Are you living in an Apartment or House ?? What type of heating are you using ?? What size is your home ??


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## j26 (13 Jan 2009)

Are you using energy saving lights?
Do you turn off lights in rooms you don't use?
Do you have heating on all day?
Do you have the immersion on all day?


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## Smashbox (13 Jan 2009)

Keep items OFF standby ie. TV, Sky Box, DVD Player

Cooker main switch is kept off

Microwave/kettle/toaster plugged out until needed

Using lights only when necessary, switch off when leaving the room

Air dry clothes, don't use a dryer

Only do full loads of washing

Switch TV/Radio off when not in the room


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## Leccie Bill (13 Jan 2009)

mercman said:


> Are you living in an Apartment or House ?? What type of heating are you using ?? What size is your home ??



hi,

use storage heating...

in a 2 bed apartment, only use one bedroom so keep heating off in 2nd room.

just a regular sized apartment really!


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## Leccie Bill (13 Jan 2009)

j26 said:


> Are you using energy saving lights?
> Do you turn off lights in rooms you don't use?
> Do you have heating on all day?
> Do you have the immersion on all day?



i could use more energy saving lights...

i def turn off lights when not in room...

heating is storage, so turn on at night then am heated well all day...

don't have the immersion on all day... it come on in the morning automatically for hot water...and it's just used for showers...rarely boost it...


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## Leccie Bill (13 Jan 2009)

Thanks for the tips! Excellent!


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## Celtwytch (14 Jan 2009)

Also, if you have a mobile, don't leave it charging overnight.  It only takes a couple of hours to fully charge a phone, but it will keep drawing power if left plugged in afterwards.


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## extopia (14 Jan 2009)

Can anyone suggest a good target electricity usage per square metre of living space?


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## alaskaonline (14 Jan 2009)

i used to live in an apartment and found that when using the nightsaver, the bill was higher. i monitored the meter with the actual electricity time used and for every hour water heating during the day - it was 1 unit while the same hour during the night was 2 Units. the actual price for the night "saver" is a wee bit lower but i found that because more Units (even though they were the same times) were used during the night, i ended up paying more.
ESB's reply to it was: get an expert - prove to us we're overcharging you and then we will refund you.

i've seen the uk watchdog the other day where they covered a story of too high gas bills. they said, that the problem is across the board and includes electricity suppliers also. now, this programm was uk related but i wouldn't be surprised if it's the same in this country.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/watchdog/2009/01/are_you_paying_too_much_for_ga.html


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## Smashbox (14 Jan 2009)

Do you work somewhere where you could charge up things like phones, mp3's, etc?

I have storage heaters too... hate them personally... if you have them on timer they obviously use electricity all day and night long, because they are switched on at the wall...

Make sure if you have a freezer that its stocked well... if it isn't, use cardboard boxes to bulk it up. An empty freezer uses more electricity than a full one...

Use battery power when you can, like for radios and stuff..


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## sulo (14 Jan 2009)

Check out this Calculator... it might pin point some of the appliances which are contributing to your bill...

[broken link removed]


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## extopia (14 Jan 2009)

alaskaonline said:


> i used to live in an apartment and found that when using the nightsaver, the bill was higher. i monitored the meter with the actual electricity time used and for every hour water heating during the day - it was 1 unit while the same hour during the night was 2 Units.



Extraordinary - so the meter was actually running twice as fast at night. This could only happen if ESB were conspiring against you (and possibly other nightrate customers).

What did you do when they asked you to prove it? It would be simple to prove your allegation.


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## eggerb (14 Jan 2009)

Consider one of these to help you monitor your electricty usage. It is essentially a bit of a gadget but the [broken link removed] seem pretty good. You'll get one on eBay for £29 incl delivery.


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## car (14 Jan 2009)

can log in to your esb bill now and view bi monthly usage in the history, can also add in your own readings  to add to the data.  
Combined with their calculator, now very easy to track usage.


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## alaskaonline (14 Jan 2009)

extopia said:


> Extraordinary - so the meter was actually running twice as fast at night. This could only happen if ESB were conspiring against you (and possibly other nightrate customers).
> 
> What did you do when they asked you to prove it? It would be simple to prove your allegation.


 
Nobody says anything about "conspiring" - I have no doubts that errors on Meters can happen, especially in new apartment blocks. And errors in general happening on the ESB's side is nothing new 
My choice was to get an expert, get him to check the meter box, get a report off him, pay him, send the report to ESB and hoping to get a refund for the extra charge of the bills. The money I would have had to pay to the expert, of course, wouldn't have been refunded. OR
Instead, I just moved out and I am living now in a house where Meter is working fine and bills are acceptable  (still using the same times by the way).


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## shaking (14 Jan 2009)

How many storage heaters do you use? My bother lives in a 2 bed apartment with storage heating and his monthly bill is about €70, €300 seems really high (is this for 2 months?)


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

Celtwytch said:


> Also, if you have a mobile, don't leave it charging overnight.  It only takes a couple of hours to fully charge a phone, but it will keep drawing power if left plugged in afterwards.




That's a great one, thanks. That would be something I'm guilty of. Thanks!


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

alaskaonline said:


> i used to live in an apartment and found that when using the nightsaver, the bill was higher. i monitored the meter with the actual electricity time used and for every hour water heating during the day - it was 1 unit while the same hour during the night was 2 Units. the actual price for the night "saver" is a wee bit lower but i found that because more Units (even though they were the same times) were used during the night, i ended up paying more.
> ESB's reply to it was: get an expert - prove to us we're overcharging you and then we will refund you.
> 
> i've seen the uk watchdog the other day where they covered a story of too high gas bills. they said, that the problem is across the board and includes electricity suppliers also. now, this programm was uk related but i wouldn't be surprised if it's the same in this country.
> ...



Wow! This is fabulous! Thanks!


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

Smashbox said:


> Do you work somewhere where you could charge up things like phones, mp3's, etc?
> 
> I have storage heaters too... hate them personally... if you have them on timer they obviously use electricity all day and night long, because they are switched on at the wall...
> 
> ...



Thanks! very much. Just got an Ipod Dock with a rechargeable battery, so hoping that helps too!


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

sulo said:


> Check out this Calculator... it might pin point some of the appliances which are contributing to your bill...
> 
> [broken link removed]



WOW! Thanks!


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## mercman (14 Jan 2009)

Leccie, the points which have alerted you i.e. mobile phone, ipod etc, use only a trickle of electricity. The main concern is that in an apartment the bill is coming in around €300. There must be something else eating the electricity. Have you tried turning off all appliances (everything) and then check if the meter is running. This should give an indication of what is actually happening.


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

mercman said:


> Leccie, the points which have alerted you i.e. mobile phone, ipod etc, use only a trickle of electricity. The main concern is that in an apartment the bill is coming in around €300. There must be something else eating the electricity. Have you tried turning off all appliances (everything) and then check if the meter is running. This should give an indication of what is actually happening.




I haven't tried that no... Might get someone to help me do that.

Thanks.


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## mathepac (14 Jan 2009)

OP this might be a bit obvious, but are you paying bills based on *actual* or estimated readings?

Look for the telltale "E" after the current reading units on your bill.


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## sandrat (14 Jan 2009)

300euro? This post will be deleted if not edited immediately our last electricity bill was 80 something and we have a 3 bed house, though we have gas heating but thats usually less than 100 too both are bi monthly bills


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

mathepac said:


> OP this might be a bit obvious, but are you paying bills based on *actual* or estimated readings?
> 
> Look for the telltale "E" after the current reading units on your bill.



No, I called and asked about that. Sadly it's not an estimate!


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## Leccie Bill (14 Jan 2009)

sandrat said:


> 300euro? This post will be deleted if not edited immediately our last electricity bill was 80 something and we have a 3 bed house, though we have gas heating but thats usually less than 100 too both are bi monthly bills



right?! it's a massive bill! i'm determined to crack it though!


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## extopia (15 Jan 2009)

The previous bills could have been estimated and the current one might be catching you up.


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## Celtwytch (15 Jan 2009)

I reckon your storage heaters are the biggest culprit.  I've just remembered that I too had storage heaters in an apartment I rented, and my bills were quite high to begin with (nowhere near €300, mind you!)  I saved a fortune by switching off the storage heaters.  Luckily, the bedrooms had electric heaters, and it didn't cost too much to switch those on for an hour or two before bedtime.  There was also a combination storage/electric heater in the living room, which warmed up the place nicely when switched on for a short while.  Would you consider investing in an electric heater of some sort that you could use instead of the storage heaters?


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## mcaul (16 Jan 2009)

My wife (then gf) had similar problem a few years ago when she lived in rathmines - her bill for a one room bedsit was over £150 per 2 months. (1998/1999)

The problem was the timer for the nightsaver was out of sinc with the storage heater settings by about 5 hours. This meant the storage heater was heating the room at the wrong time, was charging up at full rate & then because it was cold, additional heating was used.

Finally got ESB to come out and correct the situation and bill reduced to under £70 for 2 months.


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## ConorP (4 Feb 2009)

Hi L,

Here's my bill for the last 12 months. We live in a 4 bed detached house. It's empty all day so I don;t use the stotrage heaters 'cos the heat is gone from them by the time we get home in the evening. I guess you could say we use glorified convector units.

We use the kitchen , living room and only 1 of the bedrooms. The other 3 beds are unlived in.

Feb 2009 376.00
Dec 2008 350.00
Sept 2008 83.00
Jul 2008 107.00
Jun 2008 167.00
Apr 2008 369.00

Grand total of 1452.00

So that's heating , cooking , washing , dryer , lighting. One bill for the complete hiuse hold.

Does'nt seem so bad now that I look at it this way.

I'm open to commenets and suggestions. Gas has always been a consideration for upgrade.

By the way. The house is 10 years old. Timber framed construction.


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## Eblanoid (4 Feb 2009)

Their domestic supply rates are up to 10% cheaper than ESB.  In the process of switching to them myself.


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## Chocks away (4 Feb 2009)

Energy Minister Ryan has just said that he expects a double digit reduction in electricity rates this year.


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## sandrat (4 Feb 2009)

Chocks away said:


> Energy Minister Ryan has just said that he expects a double digit reduction in electricity rates this year.


so 10 euro in a year?


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## sandrat (4 Feb 2009)

Eblanoid said:


> Their domestic supply rates are up to 10% cheaper than ESB. In the process of switching to them myself.


 
what's to stop them upping their prices to whatever they like though, I don't think their prices are controlled. I can't find their prices on their website


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## Eblanoid (4 Feb 2009)

sandrat said:


> what's to stop them upping their prices to whatever they like though.  I don't think their prices are controlled.



It's called "competition". It's up to the consumer to choose which companies' prices/services they like the best.  This is not North Korea.
All electricity suppliers are regulated by the Commission for Energy Regulation:
http://www.cer.ie




sandrat said:


> I can't find their prices on their website



Um:


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## SillyBilly (4 Feb 2009)

Just wanted to add that I too had big ESB bills when I lived in a 2-bed apartment with storage heating.  Never quite figured out what it was but 'night-saver' definitely wasn't saving me any money.


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## Chocks away (4 Feb 2009)

sandrat said:


> so 10 euro in a year?


Sandrat, calm down. Double digit %


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## chris20051 (4 Feb 2009)

Hi,

Is your bill estimated??? got a bill at 300euros before but in fact I only owed the ESB 105euros...!! big difference


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## RSMike (6 Feb 2009)

Send Airtricity an e-mail and they will send you back their rates, Eblanoid is right 10% Cheaper than ESB.

It just amazes me that everyone gripes about ESB prices, but would not consider switching their source to a supplier who is 10% cheaper, there is no risk, ESB networks are still obliged to deliver the Electricity to your house, maintain the network, read your meter etc.


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## nmesisca (12 Feb 2009)

RSMike said:


> Send Airtricity an e-mail and they will send you back their rates, Eblanoid is right 10% Cheaper than ESB.
> 
> It just amazes me that everyone gripes about ESB prices, but would not consider switching their source to a supplier who is 10% cheaper, there is no risk, ESB networks are still obliged to deliver the Electricity to your house, maintain the network, read your meter etc.


 

The saving is about 10% only if you:
- pay by Direct Debit
- agree to receive an e-bill (no paper bill)
- use their Level Plan which averages the bills of the past year 
However I have emailed Airtricity and asked them how exactly this is calculated, and what would happen if my consumption goes up or down significantly. They have not replied to this moment.
My guess is that they are using a moving average to calculate the bill, which does not mean the bill stays exactly the same but only that fluctuations are relatively smoothed.
Has anyone actually asked them about this??

thanks
N


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## Eblanoid (12 Feb 2009)

nmesisca said:


> However I have emailed Airtricity and asked them how exactly this is calculated, and what would happen if my consumption goes up or down significantly. They have not replied to this moment.
> My guess is that they are using a moving average to calculate the bill, which does not mean the bill stays exactly the same but only that fluctuations are relatively smoothed.
> Has anyone actually asked them about this??



I don't think it's too earth-shattering. For the last 6 years I've been on ESB's Equalizer plan, which does the same thing (monthly debits).  ESB don't seem to advertise this facility any more.


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## jamieb (12 Feb 2009)

Hi i just posted on another thread that very shorty you will be receiving cold callers to your door selling Bord Gais electricity,  much cheaper seemingly. An agency is taking on lots of staff field sales to knock on your door and sign you up.  Being paid 25000 grand a year with 85per cent commission.  so watch this space


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## nmesisca (13 Feb 2009)

Eblanoid said:


> I don't think it's too earth-shattering. For the last 6 years I've been on ESB's Equalizer plan, which does the same thing (monthly debits). ESB don't seem to advertise this facility any more.


 
I see. I didnt know they had something similar. So, if you dont mind me asking, how does that exactly work?


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## RSMike (16 Feb 2009)

nmesisca said:


> The saving is about 10% only if you:
> - pay by Direct Debit
> - agree to receive an e-bill (no paper bill)
> - use their Level Plan which averages the bills of the past year
> ...



So If you do not like the level plan just go for e-bill and DD and save 9%, at least Airtricity give you the option, if you sign up to see your account online with ESB it seems they automatically switch you to e-bill.

And if you don't like DD you can opt out of this and still save over ESB (think it might be about 5%), and if you have to have a paper bill you can have this also and still save about 3% over ESB



jamieb said:


> Hi i just posted on another thread that very shorty you will be receiving cold callers to your door selling Bord Gais electricity, much cheaper seemingly. An agency is taking on lots of staff field sales to knock on your door and sign you up. Being paid 25000 grand a year with 85per cent commission. so watch this space



Apparently you will be able to get a 12% discount with BG ( with Direct Debit) and even 14% if you are an existing BG customer, the "gotcha" is the saving drops to 5% in year 2.


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## nmesisca (16 Feb 2009)

RSMike said:


> So If you do not like the level plan just go for e-bill and DD and save 9%, at least Airtricity give you the option, if you sign up to see your account online with ESB it seems they automatically switch you to e-bill.
> 
> And if you don't like DD you can opt out of this and still save over ESB (think it might be about 5%), and if you have to have a paper bill you can have this also and still save about 3% over ESB
> 
> ...


 

Well, seeing I have asked to be explained how it works, I have never said I dont like the level plan..
Anyone could please enlighten me on how the level plan works?
Well Airtricity said the saving is around 10%.. on my calculations is more 8% when DD and level plan + ebill..
They havent come back to me to answer my query either. Might be better to wait for other provider..

thanks
N



N


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## jaykayphd (16 Feb 2009)

Leccie Bill said:


> hi,
> 
> use storage heating...
> 
> ...


 
I too live in a two bed apartment, using one bedroom and unfortunately storage heaters.

My dec-feb bill was a massive €350 and not estimated.  The storage heaters seem to consume a huge amount of electricity and I also need to use the convector top up heater in the evenings to keep the room warm which is also consuming a lot of electricity Id imagine. 

I live on the top floor of the block which doesnt help for heat retention.

I wonder has anyone investigated applying for the energy savings grants to have their apartment insulation upgraded?  

How easy/difficult do people think these upgrades may be? Ie having to deal with management companies and gaining access to the attic space above my apartment?


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## sandrat (16 Feb 2009)

top floor apartment should be warmer than most because the heat from others rises up to it, we found that when we were living in one


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## thesimpsons (16 Feb 2009)

4 bd detached house with 5 adults - fairly good at turning off lights etc but still  use tv, computer, charging phones, laptops all the time and Dec/Feb bill was only 187.  When you register and log on to ESB.ie you can see your usage in graph form as well as viewing the bill.  The graph makes interesting reading actually.   

Don't use storage heating - have gas, and don't use the immersion at all.  Guy on the radio other day was saying that this year with the colder spell of weather, the storage heaters are using more energy (ie more electricity) to achieve same heat therefore, its going to cost more.


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