Your average ESB bill?

jayteecork

Hi all,

Finally got an ESB bill in my own name. I've either lived at the family home or rented in student type accommodation where you just pay your share to the landlord.

Anyway I just got my first bill - €62.50 for a 2 month period.

I have no idea is this is normal amount. I guess I have a lot of computers, tvs, and video games consoles on a lot.

Is this a lot or standard?

Thanks.

wolfpawnat

I live in a 2 bed apartment with my ex and our son. Our heating is gas but to heat the water is electricity. Mine is about 125e per 2 months. I think that is quite high compared to most though. I hope ours is not an estimation and that I do not get attacked by an estimation after xmas!!!!

Firedance

mine is around €45-€65 depending on time of year etc, we have gas heating and work during the day so its the usual lights/tv/games console evening usage. €62 doesnt seem unrealistic, if you feel its high you can always turn off a few things, especially the immersion if thats what heats your water.

jayteecork

Firedance wrote: »

mine is around €45-€65 depending on time of year etc, we have gas heating and work during the day so its the usual lights/tv/games console evening usage. €62 doesnt seem unrealistic, if you feel its high you can always turn off a few things, especially the immersion if thats what heats your water.

Already have the immersion off, lol. I use elbow grease for the dishes and the shower is electric.

I hear the immersion is murder for the ESB.

kippy

jayteecork wrote: »

Hi all,

Finally got an ESB bill in my own name. I've either lived at the family home or rented in student type accommodation where you just pay your share to the landlord.

Anyway I just got my first bill - €62.50 for a 2 month period.

I have no idea is this is normal amount. I guess I have a lot of computers, tvs, and video games consoles on a lot.

Is this a lot or standard?

Thanks.

That seems pretty low actually.
Again depending on whether you have:
Electric shower,
Electric Oven
Use the washing machine a lot
Electric heaters.

It may be an estimated bill however.

egan2020

First of all OP check whether the letter E is written beside the amount of units used. This means it's estimated. E62.50 might be about right. My last bill was E95 for two months.

TouchingVirus

€190 for two months - electric oven, power shower, 4 people on shifts so it's separate cooking and that. Computers left on most of the time etc.

It's not too bad.

The_Conductor

I'd agree with Kippy- if you have lots of PCs, Consoles etc on- they can be quite demanding on electricity (my main PC has a 1.2KW power supply!!! :eek: )

Our heating and water is gas- so our running costs wouldn't include some of the main culprits- but our 2 monthly bill would normally be in the 140-160 range (depending on the time of the year- we actually use less in winter- as our freezers etc are a lot less demanding- but our gas bill soars from zero to whatever it takes to keep the place habitable!)

tara73

it's a very normal bill for two month (and I guess one person). not to high, not to low, I had kind of the same for two month with same usage of electrical devices.
yes, look for the E at the end of the used amount, it tells you if the bill is estimated.(which it is, if you didn't hand in your meter reading in the last days to the esb).
if you wrote down your meter reading when you moved in and have a look on the meter now, you can see how much you defenitely used.
Then you can as well figure out yourself the amount you have to pay, as you see the costs for 1kw/h and standing charge per day on the bill.

angel01

I moved from ESB to Bord Gais as I found ESB too high but ours is about 65 Euro every 2 months now (for two people in a 2 bed apt)

mailforkev

We have a 3 bed semi and it's about €80-90 every 2 months. Last week's ESB bill was €80.

That's me and the Mrs, cooking dinner most nights, power showers each morning, dishwasher/washing machine at least twice a week each, TV/DVD in the evenings and the immersion from time to time.

We're pretty good with things like keeping lights off in empty rooms and turning the Mac off when not in use, so that might keep it down a bit.

to8

Mine is €88.00 for 2 months.

I want your bill.

zer0c00l

Seeing this, almost makes me cry.
My first ESB bill was 49e for the first month.
My next one is estimated on something around 120e.

I'm living in a 2bed apt, but with eletrical heaters, which kills the ESB. Immersion is running on night tariff so I guess wont be much (from what I've calculated so far 6khw/day or .45 cents)

The killers are the heaters (storage and convectors) and the oven/ which are all electrical.

I just moved to Ireland, I really regret chosing an electrical heater based apt. As soon as my lease finishes I'm moving to a Gas/Oil heater based apt.

BR

AnnyHallsal

zer0c00l wrote: »

Seeing this, almost makes me cry.
My first ESB bill was 49e for the first month.
My next one is estimated on something around 120e.

I'm living in a 2bed apt, but with eletrical heaters, which kills the ESB. Immersion is running on night tariff so I guess wont be much (from what I've calculated so far 6khw/day or .45 cents)

The killers are the heaters (storage and convectors) and the oven/ which are all electrical.

I just moved to Ireland, I really regret chosing an electrical heater based apt. As soon as my lease finishes I'm moving to a Gas/Oil heater based apt.

BR

Don't turn on the heaters!

This will probably sound totally draconian, but I only turn on the heating if I'm freezing and I've lived in some really cold places. Hot drinks, hot water bottles, extra layers and blankets, but heating only if I'm perished.

Of course this probably isn't feasible for you, just my two cents.

In terms of OP, I'd say that's a pretty decent amount. It would be difficult to come in much lower.

planetX

It's low.
I keep mine down to about 85 by rarely using immersion, no dishwasher, no tumble dryer, keeping showers short. that's the lowest I can get it - I blame the ancient electric cooker
p.s. my last esb bill says there's an extra 5euros going onto every bill from now on for public service obligation.

Edgedinblue

last apt was 2 bed, washing machine, cooker, immersion needed for showers, along with myself and bf on laptop and xbox for the guts of at least 12 hours a day... bills used to be between 140-160 every two months.

In a new place now 2 bed again, washing machine, cooker, laptops and tvs still going, power shower but immersion hasnt been turned on. so im hoping there'll be a few bob taken off the bill for that.

jayteecork

Edgedinblue wrote: »

last apt was 2 bed, washing machine, cooker, immersion needed for showers, along with myself and bf on laptop and xbox for the guts of at least 12 hours a day... bills used to be between 140-160 every two months.

In a new place now 2 bed again, washing machine, cooker, laptops and tvs still going, power shower but immersion hasnt been turned on. so im hoping there'll be a few bob taken off the bill for that.

I haven't turned on the immersion in the 3 months I'm here.

Power shower. elbow grease for the dishes.

djimi

zer0c00l wrote: »

Seeing this, almost makes me cry.
My first ESB bill was 49e for the first month.
My next one is estimated on something around 120e.

I'm living in a 2bed apt, but with eletrical heaters, which kills the ESB. Immersion is running on night tariff so I guess wont be much (from what I've calculated so far 6khw/day or .45 cents)

The killers are the heaters (storage and convectors) and the oven/ which are all electrical.

I just moved to Ireland, I really regret chosing an electrical heater based apt. As soon as my lease finishes I'm moving to a Gas/Oil heater based apt.

BR

If the estimation is way off you can ring them up and give them the proper reading and they will adjust the bill for you. I had to do this in my last place; they overestimated by over €100 so I rang them up and they sent me out an ammended bill the next day.

run_Forrest_run

smccarrick wrote: »

I'd agree with Kippy- if you have lots of PCs, Consoles etc on- they can be quite demanding on electricity (my main PC has a 1.2KW power supply!!! :eek: )

what the hell are you running on that machine? Google's entire codebase?
My PC power supply is 650w.

Our average ESB bills are €140 every 2 months. In a house with wife and 2 kids. Gas is main heating source but washing machine would do one wash every day and sometimes the clothes dryer may be on for an hour every day or two, damn wet weather.

zer0c00l

My main problem are the heaters indeed. On september I had only 48 euro bill for one month. I almost do not use the dishwasher, and washing clothes are only on saturday/sunday at night for half price.

But, the damn heaters are really expensive. I'm trying to keep them as much time off as I can, but comming from a hot country is not easy to be on an place at 16C, I'm trying to keep the place at 18C, but that is only possible when turning on the heaters.

Cheers

sunflower27

Well, this has cheered me up no end. My latest bill was 75e for three months. I live on my own and use the immersion every day. Never use the tumble dryer and try not to use the heating unless I really have to. I probably don't cook that much and do a wash once or twice a week tops.

I'm a stickler for turning off lights as well.

Michael B

Ours is between 100-200 every 2 months. How it varies so much I have no idea because we don't use anything extra on the times that it's 200. Sometimes I think ESB just make up their own bills :rolleyes: Can't wait to buy our own place and switch to Bord Gais.

jayteecork

Feck. my heaters are electric.

Haven't turned them on yet as I don't mind the cold as much as some people.
I put on a hoodie and close the windows.

Plus as a person I have a very high metabolism and I tend to generate a lot of heat personally.

And it's Ireland anyways. We get the gulf stream or whatever it's called. Never really gets that cold.

sunflower27

jayteecork wrote: »

Feck. my heaters are electric. QUOTE]

So are mine. A friend of mine got stung for a huge electricity bill a few years back when she moved into a place with electric heaters. My place is all double glazed so it never gets really cold and I quite like those really fluffy soft blankets you can get. I know I sound stingy, but as someone about to be laid off in 2 weeks' time, you have to think this way....

And apparently using the drier is really, really expensive! I only use it in emergencies.

satchman

Approx. €75 for 2 months which isn't bad. Two of us in a 2 bed apartment. Electric shower (the big hitter) & oven used every day. PC, TV, Sky Box on all evening. Dishwasher and Washing Machine used about 3 times a week.

Also have a power shower but refuse to use the immersion

The_Conductor

sunflower27 wrote: »

Well, this has cheered me up no end. My latest bill was 75e for three months. I live on my own and use the immersion every day. Never use the tumble dryer and try not to use the heating unless I really have to. I probably don't cook that much and do a wash once or twice a week tops.

I'm a stickler for turning off lights as well.

Thats great to hear- goes to show that when you are conscious of your energy usage, you can make a difference. The one thing I'd be concerned about is whether this is an actual or an estimated reading (aka is there an 'E' by the meter reading on the bill)?

Shane

sunflower27

smccarrick wrote: »

Thats great to hear- goes to show that when you are conscious of your energy usage, you can make a difference. The one thing I'd be concerned about is whether this is an actual or an estimated reading (aka is there an 'E' by the meter reading on the bill)?

Shane

Hi Shane. it is estimated.... but I've never ever paid more than 80/85e for the three months. I think the main thing is that I dont use the heating unless I have to. I'm happy to snuggle up with a good blanket. And luckily my place is fairly warm anyway.

I dont use my dishwasher unless I have a dinner party or something as it's easy to wash up for one. And the drier is a no-go unless in emergencies.

Looking at some of the bills on here I'm quite shocked at how low I have kept mine. I suppose working all day (well up till now!!) meant I wasnt using any electricity through the day. That is bound to go up now I will be home a lot more. Something to be aware of

satchman

Here's a really handy tool to estimate what your bill should be. I've used it a few times and it's comes pretty close to the mark:

http://www.esb.ie/esbcustomersupply/residential/energy_efficiency/appliance_calculator.jsp

The_Conductor

satchman wrote: »

Here's a really handy tool to estimate what your bill should be. I've used it a few times and it's comes pretty close to the mark:

http://www.esb.ie/esbcustomersupply/residential/energy_efficiency/appliance_calculator.jsp

You really need to have a good idea of exact use of all appliances and their wattages (the calculator uses a lot of approximations- eg their microwave wattage is only 1/4 mine, I have no idea what my CFL wattages are- or how many I have, my immersion isn't on their list, my heating pump is connected to the gas- and while its on a timer, its also thermostat controlled etc)- I plugged in my details and it came up with EUR106 per 2 months- which in reality is less than half my last bill.......

Then again- their calculator does not take into account my desktop PC having a 1.2kw power supply, or a hell of a lot of the other misc. equipment we use.

kc66

Mines around €140 per 2 months. TV and A/V receiver on all day. Clothes dryer gets a good bit of usage. TV on 14 hours a day. Electric hob and oven. Computer always on. Power shower. Gas heating. 2 upstairs lights left on all night. 2 adults and 2 children. I dont think its too bad

satchman

smccarrick wrote: »

You really need to have a good idea of exact use of all appliances and their wattages (the calculator uses a lot of approximations- eg their microwave wattage is only 1/4 mine, I have no idea what my CFL wattages are- or how many I have, my immersion isn't on their list, my heating pump is connected to the gas- and while its on a timer, its also thermostat controlled etc)- I plugged in my details and it came up with EUR106 per 2 months- which in reality is less than half my last bill.......

Then again- their calculator does not take into account my desktop PC having a 1.2kw power supply, or a hell of a lot of the other misc. equipment we use.

The CFLs wouldn't be using much energy at all so I can't imagine these making a big dent in the price. Regarding the other stuff, i'm sure they are missing a good few appliances (or at least wattage ratings) but for me most of mine are on the list and it's generally very close.

I entered your 1.2kw PSU under the Home Office/PC Desktop field and let's assume you have the PC on around 5 hours a day for 7 days, this adds up to approx €60 alone