Gas Query regarding bill

faolteam

Just wondering if anyone has noticed a jump in there Gas Bills lately

i have a 3 bed terraced house, 3 bedrooms, we use the gas for heating and hot water the cooking is electricity , but i have noticed its costing between 27-30 euro a week ?

i turn the hot water on around 8 am , and about 3.30 i turn on the heating and then i turn them both off at 11.00pm ,

Does this seem a bit dear ???

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

Gas prices have increased significantly - ~22% in 2011, 8.5% in Oct2012.

To give you an idea - 50/month to 66 to 71.61, don't forget to add 13.5% VAT - in this case ~3 euro. So you're looking at 75/month now.
Essentially a 50% increase. Wow - never actually realised it was that much myself. Maybe my maths are incorrect. Some other clever boardsie can correct me.

Btw, do you have your heating on 7.5 hours a day? Seems like a lot unless your home is properly zoned/controlled.

faolteam

as i say we have 2 switches one for hot water which i turn on at 8 am and one for teh heating which i turn on at 3.30pm they both go off at 11.30pm

i use electricty for cooking

is there anything i can do to rectify this bar leaving it off


its working out 27-30 euro a week

dudara

Moved to Accommodation & Property

dudara

Merch

faolteam wrote: »

Just wondering if anyone has noticed a jump in there Gas Bills lately

i have a 3 bed terraced house, 3 bedrooms, we use the gas for heating and hot water the cooking is electricity , but i have noticed its costing between 27-30 euro a week ?

i turn the hot water on around 8 am , and about 3.30 i turn on the heating and then i turn them both off at 11.00pm ,

Does this seem a bit dear ???

yup, big increase, probably using it more too though? or it stays on longer/more, to reach the same temperature set?

D3PO

given your useage seems a reasonable bill to be honest.

ct5amr2ig1nfhp

faolteam wrote: »

is there anything i can do to rectify this bar leaving it off

Here are some suggestions I've been recommended recently.

Switch Providers - some are offering "new customer" discounts
Bigger discounts are available if you both gas and electricity with the same provider.

Reduce your usage - reduce your heating by an hour a day to start. For example do you need your heating on until 11.30? Have it going off at 10.30 for a few days and see if you notice the difference. Keep reducing the time the heating is on until you get a nice comfortable balance.

Drafts - make sure you seal any source of drafts. For example under window sills is a prime example. Put your hand underneath the sill, if you feel a draft seal it yourself with some filler. Check your windows are sealing correctly when closed. If you have a draft, get some DIY draft excluder tape to seal them up.

Do NOT ever block air vents. If you do, you may introduce damp/condensation problems.

The above can be done without any/minimum additional cost to you.

Other suggestions:-

Boiler Service - make sure to have your boiler serviced regularly. If the boiler hasn't been serviced it'll reduce the efficiency of the boiler.

Plumber - depending on how old your heating system is, it might be worth while have your system/rads cleaned.

If you've some funds available for more longer term "pay back":-

Boiler - how old is the boiler? It might be worth looking at a newer more efficient boiler.

Heating Control/Zones - TRV's on rads in the rooms not used frequently, install zone controls etc.

Insulate, insulate, insulate. There are some cheap insulation options that can make a significant difference. For example insulating your attic can be done for a few hundred euro. It would probably pay for itself within a year.

Think that's about it. Maybe someone else might have further suggestions.

daver123

faolteam wrote: »

Just wondering if anyone has noticed a jump in there Gas Bills lately

i have a 3 bed terraced house, 3 bedrooms, we use the gas for heating and hot water the cooking is electricity , but i have noticed its costing between 27-30 euro a week ?

i turn the hot water on around 8 am , and about 3.30 i turn on the heating and then i turn them both off at 11.00pm ,

Does this seem a bit dear ???

Why are you heating water for 5 1/2 hours in the evening?

wmpdd3

we used to put the hot waterr on for 1/2 an hour and get a bath full of hor water. Thats with an aincent 20 yr old boiler.

The_Conductor

To be honest- given your usage patterns, your bill actually sounds quite reasonable. Why do you have the heating on for so long in the evening? 7 and a half hours? Seems ridiculously excessive to be honest. I have two very young children- and run the heating for 2 hours before we get up in the morning (5Am to 7AM) and immediately before we get home in the evening (5.30 to 7.30PM). I leave storage heaters on low settings in the children's room overnight- but don't heat the rest of the house. I can turn the water on separately- but don't tend to- as it gets heated via the central heating in any case.

30 a week- 120 a month, 240 per 2 month bill- its not excessive- given the time of year- it actually sounds very reasonable........

djimi

faolteam wrote: »

as i say we have 2 switches one for hot water which i turn on at 8 am and one for teh heating which i turn on at 3.30pm they both go off at 11.30pm

i use electricty for cooking

is there anything i can do to rectify this bar leaving it off


its working out 27-30 euro a week

Are we take it that you have the water on from 8 in the morning to 11 at night? If so then that's going to get a large contributor to your problem. As is having the heat running for 8 solid hours a day. This is very excessive usage.

Try heating the water for a few hours overnight and see how you get on. Also heat the house in smaller bursts rather than for such a long time. If the heat does not remain then look at getting your insulation sorted.