I’ve saved £1,400 on my energy bills this year – I don’t have a cold house and I haven’t turned down my heating
DAD-OF-TWO Grahame Case has saved £1,400 so far this year – and he hasn’t had to turn off his heating or endure freezing temperatures.
The 39-year-old who lives in West Lothian with his wife and two children, aged 11 and 8 has cut down his bills using a variety of energy saving tips.
First, having a smart meter means he can access cheaper energy tariffs.
He said: “We wanted to get a smart meter for a number of reasons – it fits well with our move towards using more sustainable products, but one of the main benefits has been access to cheaper – and greener – energy on a time-of-use tariff.”
Grahame has calculated that, had he been on a regular tariff, his bills for the 7540 kilowatt hours (units of energy that providers use to calculate payments) his household has used so far this year would have come to a whopping £1847.30.
This is based on the current standard variable rate of 24.5p per hour.
Instead, the Case family’s bills have been just £438.14, a saving of £1,409.16.
The picture framer chose Octopus Energy as his provider and his smart meter gives half-hourly readings to them – in return they reward him with cheap electricity between 11:30pm and 5.30am.
“It’s been a huge cost saving,” Grahame said.
“Without my smart meter, I wouldn’t have access to the tariffs.
I’d just be on a standard rate.”
He then sets his appliances, such as the dishwasher and washing machine, to run overnight on the low time-of-use tariff.
Another reason Grahame’s bills are so low is that he has invested in a home battery, which is charged overnight at a low cost.
“I use the stored energy the next day to power all the day-to-day activities in our house,” he explained.
He got his Tesla battery in 2018 thanks to an interest-free loan from the Scottish government.
It cost £6000, paid back in low monthly instalments, and Grahame says it has already paid for itself.
What energy bill help is available?
There's a number of different ways to get help paying your energy bills if you're struggling to get by.
If you fall into debt, you can always approach your supplier to see if they can put you on a repayment plan before putting you on a prepayment meter.
This involves paying off what you owe in instalments over a set period.
If your supplier offers you a repayment plan you don’t think you can afford, speak to them again to see if you can negotiate a better deal.
Several energy firms have schemes available to customers struggling to cover their bills.
But eligibility criteria vary depending on the supplier and the amount you can get depends on your financial circumstances.
For example, British Gas or Scottish Gas customers struggling to pay their energy bills can get grants worth up to £2,000.
British Gas also offers help via its British Gas Energy Trust and Individuals Family Fund.
You don’t need to be a British Gas customer to apply for the second fund.
EDF, E.ON, Octopus Energy and Scottish Power all offer grants to struggling customers too.
Thousands of vulnerable households are missing out on extra help and protections by not signing up to the Priority Services Register (PSR).
The service helps support vulnerable households, such as those who are elderly or ill.
Some of the perks include being given advance warning of blackouts, free gas safety checks and extra support if you’re struggling.
Get in touch with your energy firm to see if you can apply.
“If you want to go down the home battery route rather than using your energy at the prescribed times, it’s becoming an increasingly affordable option – you can make your money back pretty quickly through the savings on your energy bills,” he suggested.
To install a battery storage system, you need to get permission from your local Distribution Network Operator (DNO) – there are six of these across the UK.
Another piece of tech that Grahame recommends to keep an eye on energy use is Octo Aid, a third party app that displays a household’s energy data in a graph.
That and his smart meter have helped him to save money because he can keep track and see the immediate impact of small actions.
“The smart meter allows me to keep an eye on my usage.
My kids are forever leaving lights on around the house and TVs and other devices on standby, so I can go around the house and turn things off individually and, straight away, see the impact that’s making on how I’m using electricity.”
It was also thanks to his smart meter that Grahame made the decision to ditch his gas boiler in favour of a more economical heat pump – which runs on electricity and keeps the Case home toasty warm, even in a Scottish winter’s minus temperatures.
There are government grants of £7,500 available to install an air source or ground source heat pump in your property through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
“It’s a lot more efficient than a gas boiler or an oil boiler.
For every kilowatt of energy I put in, I get between three and five kilowatt hours of heat.
Heat pumps modulate and run at a variable temperature, so you just leave them running, they heat the house up gradually and it stays warm.
SHOULD YOU RUN APPLIANCES AT NIGHT?
EXPERTS have warned households to not run appliances at night due to the risk of fire.
Households should always have adequate fire alarms installed and check appliances are in working order before using.
Timed plugs may also be useful to use, to help you switch off appliances when they are not in use.
We don’t touch any of the controls now, even through summer when it just turns itself off automatically,” said Grahame.
“The gas smart meter led me to switch away from gas because I could see how much CO2 I was putting into the atmosphere.
We all want our children to live in a healthier, cleaner world, and I genuinely believe that getting a smart meter fitted is a small easy step we can all take to help achieve that.”
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