How much were your energy bills for the last couple of months?

December gas usage:
2023 - 1130kWh
2022 - 1973kWh

The huge variance in gas usage has a few factors. Last year we hadn't moved in and this consumption was just to keep the house above 17 or 16 degrees!

Also we had a very cold December last year. But mainly, in November 2023 we had the garage and porch converted. We went from having a draughty thin garage door and open air porch under the 1st floor (living area), to double skin insulated walls throughout.

Cost wise it was £212 last year and £76 this year!
 
Includes all standing charges, and doesn't include the £7 I had back for solar/battery exports, or any of the saving sessions we had (had £48 back for these). So offset the bills below with £55 worth of credit I've earnt in the same time.

I do have solar/battery and cheap off-peak electric, so even at the most expensive, electric shouldn't be more than about £2.50 a day. Both months were poor for actual solar generation, less than usual by far. Could have saved a bit more if there was better generation.

November 2023
Electric - 437.3 kWH | £60.2
Gas - 415.0 kWH | £30.85
Total - £87.06

December 2023
Electric - 514.6 kWH | £69.08
Gas - 705.0 kWH | £42.06
Total - £111.14
 
cuke2u said:
I've had a quote for the Octopus Tracker and the tariff is different for us, obviously cheaper in london. The quote states a standing charge of 48.6 pence a month and 28.02p kWh. So little savings really and I'd commit to paying in advance for what I use and vulnerable to what ever Octopus decide to charge me monthly. Instead of paying for what I actually have used each month, which I can budget for.
I cannot see any differences really plus I'll be charged a fee if I exit my current one early.
My January bill has just come in at £71.60, below the £110 monthly Octopus have quoted, which probably would be reassessed quite quickly and raised, so we must now be doing something right.
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The quote is usually much higher, but once you get on there and switch to tracker it's usually a 1/3rd cheaper. You still pay for what you have used with Octopus, except you pay an estimate in advance because they don't know your usage. It's adjustable after your bill where everyone I've recommended has adjusted theirs down.

I've looked at the rate you'd pay if you were on tracker (assuming you are in Lincolnshire?) and the avg rate for elec on the Dec 23 v1 tracker over the last 90 days is 18.81p/kWh and 4.61p/kWh for gas. I found that the rate they "quote" has a higher standing charge than what you get once on Tracker.

As mentioned it's worth it if you can deal with the variability but many others on here have switched and have been saving for a while now.

Last months bill has just come in and the rates were:

Dec: 454 kWh Elec @ 14.85p/kWh - Total: £77.10*
840 kWh Gas @ 4.44p/kWh - Total: £45.58*

*inc standing charge for 31 days
 
moogle said:
If you've got the Smart Meter In-Home-Display (IHD), have a look at your current electric usage. Currently using 509w, which is what it averages on most of the day. Fridges shouldn't be using too much unless the compressor is kicking in.
Definitely have a look at tracker, it'll be good if you can weather the variability of prices but overall it's been cheaper for the last year and more.
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No smart meter, just logged into Octopus and only option is a 12 month fix or what i am on now. elec unit 27.80, gas unit7.34.

I suppose I would have to get as smart meter, then get the option for tracker.

One thing that does not help us is our base electricity usage is quite linear. I think this is because of the layout of the house does not get much light in, so the MRs has the lights on a lot. (this will go down actually as she has switched to doing an extra day a week at work)
 
Manbatius said:
No smart meter, just logged into Octopus and only option is a 12 month fix or what i am on now. elec unit 27.80, gas unit7.34.

I suppose I would have to get as smart meter, then get the option for tracker.

One thing that does not help us is our base electricity usage is quite linear. I think this is because of the layout of the house does not get much light in, so the MRs has the lights on a lot. (this will go down actually as she has switched to doing an extra day a week at work)
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Yeah you'd need to get one to be on it. I had a friend switch to it (tracker) with just the electric smart meter (gas was normal dumb meter). I think it means the usage is split across the days and then charged at those day rates rather than what they actually used on those days. Octopus are quite good if you register your interest in a smart meter as they'll email you when an installer is going to be working in your area for dates.

If you see my post above yours, you'll see the average unit price my bill recently came to, which is nearly half yours for electricity anyway so you'd see a big saving even with linear usage. I'm in the London energy region though so your area would need to be checked for the average to get a rough idea but if you do some calculations (see the average rates for your area on https://gastracker.uk for whichever duration, 30d, 90d, 1y etc.), add 5% VAT on top of that you'll get a rough idea of the price you'll be paying.

So far, switching to tracker has been the biggest saving I could make, having done all the other improvements such as reducing energy usage, changing for efficient lights, turning off unused devices etc. Check the other energy thread where you'll see quite a few members who've made the switch and seen saving.
 
moogle said:
Yeah you'd need to get one to be on it. I had a friend switch to it (tracker) with just the electric smart meter (gas was normal dumb meter). I think it means the usage is split across the days and then charged at those day rates rather than what they actually used on those days. Octopus are quite good if you register your interest in a smart meter as they'll email you when an installer is going to be working in your area for dates.

If you see my post above yours, you'll see the average unit price my bill recently came to, which is nearly half yours for electricity anyway so you'd see a big saving even with linear usage. I'm in the London energy region though so your area would need to be checked for the average to get a rough idea but if you do some calculations (see the average rates for your area on https://gastracker.uk for whichever duration, 30d, 90d, 1y etc.), add 5% VAT on top of that you'll get a rough idea of the price you'll be paying.

So far, switching to tracker has been the biggest saving I could make, having done all the other improvements such as reducing energy usage, changing for efficient lights, turning off unused devices etc. Check the other energy thread where you'll see quite a few members who've made the switch and seen saving.
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Big thanks for all the info Moogle, its going to be the next thing I tackle after my sim number switch.
 
Revival of this thread after our latest water bill..

We are a family of 6, (12, 9, 5, 1 year old)

Electric: £106 p/m
Water: £70 p/m
We're on oil, so we tend to just buy 1000L every 6 months.

The water has just gone from £58 to £70....that seems mad to me; I'm almost wondering if we leak somewhere? There aren't many water bills to compare to here but how does that compare to others here?

Electricity I expect to rise by 40% soon too :(
 
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Manbatius said:
No smart meter, just logged into Octopus and only option is a 12 month fix or what i am on now. elec unit 27.80, gas unit7.34.

I suppose I would have to get as smart meter, then get the option for tracker.

One thing that does not help us is our base electricity usage is quite linear. I think this is because of the layout of the house does not get much light in, so the MRs has the lights on a lot. (this will go down actually as she has switched to doing an extra day a week at work)
Click to expand...
One of the best quality of life thing I've ever done, as odd as it seems, is fitting hue bulbs everywhere on motion sensors. Not having to reach for a switch is an absolute game changer in the WC/hall/kitchen etc. really is a great thing to invest in, and it means they switch off automatically.
 
dlockers said:
One of the best quality of life thing I've ever done, as odd as it seems, is fitting hue bulbs everywhere on motion sensors. Not having to reach for a switch is an absolute game changer in the WC/hall/kitchen etc. really is a great thing to invest in, and it means they switch off automatically.
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Same for me, I love that mine are controlled by the sensors.

The best one for me is I’ve stuck on them under the beds and they activate on night mode for middle of the night toilets. It’ll only go on when you physically get out of bed. Game changer.
 
Andybtsn said:
Yeah. I've asked some friends about what they pay and what they use, and seems to be considerably more than us (water use)
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You'll be using a fair amount with 4 kids. Only way to look into it is to start taking some readings. To see if you have a leak, don't use any water in the house for a few hours and take start and end readings, if its moved you have a leak somewhere.
 
danlightbulb said:
You'll be using a fair amount with 4 kids. Only way to look into it is to start taking some readings. To see if you have a leak, don't use any water in the house for a few hours and take start and end readings, if its moved you have a leak somewhere.
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Compared to other families we use less in comparison, from what they’ve told me, how many times they have baths/showers. I’m going to try that, only problem is the leak might only occur when the water is in use!
 
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3 bed mid terrace, thermostat set to 19c mornings & evenings, 18c overnight, off while we're out. Gas cooker/oven as well.

Gas on the Octopus tracker and I don't recall the unit price going above 5p (most of the time it's < 4p):


November: £73
December: £63
January: £64

That's including ~£8/month standing charges, so usage only is:

November: £65
December: £55
January: £56

Electric on Intelligent Octopus:

November: £128
December: £134
January: £124

That's including ~£16/month standing charges, so usage only is:

November: £112
December: £118
January: £108
 
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Interesting this has had a bump, my smart meter is getting fitted tomorrow!

One big change I have made now the little one does not try and use it as a frisbee, is move the thermostat in my oldests room, from the top of the wardrobe, onto his bedside table.
Heating is coming on during the night hardly at all, it did once or twice during the cold snap the other week. But I think this will make a difference.
 
Gas
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Electric agile, unit average.
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Includes standing charges, some export data is missing.
 
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