Electric Bill over 500 EURO - Always on is an issue?

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 11:28am #1

Would appreciate any advice on this. The last few bills have been through the roof, most recent was 525 and only for those credits that were applied I don't know what I'd be doing. I've done some digging and with the smart meter most things seem to be similar to other homes except our always on is nuts. As you can see from the shot below it's been high for quite some time. We've a few TVs that are always on standby, the kids have 2 consoles that are on standby and I've a heavy duty work computer that was always left on, now it's gone to standby mode to see what happens.

Maybe it's me? But I think something is defintely wrong here.

This is the KWH graph

Looking at the charts, September 2021 was the last time that Always on was well below 100 quid (it was 53 euro) - Any ideas on how to figure out WTF is happening? As my projected usage is heading for 522 from now until March. Is it possible the meter is faulty? Or is there something in the house that's drawing huge amounts of power? If so how could I narrow it down?

daheff · 24-01-2023 11:37am

So (and apologies if these are stupid questions you have already addressed in the background)

What happened at 7am/7pm to cause these spikes?

Are you using LED/CFL light bulbs where possible?

Is heating included in this, or just electricity?

Have you tried turning everything you can think of off and looking at the usage? turn on appliances one by one to see which causes a spike?

are you charging a car?

are your appliances A rated?

Whats your usage in kWh rather than EUR? Maybe your electricity plan is not the best deal you can get?

Also for comparison my usage over the past 12 months has been approx 4000 units (including charging a PHEV a couple of times a week).

cruizer101 · 24-01-2023 11:42am

Your usage is definitely on the high side, in the middle of the night we'd be using about 100w compare to your 300w. Standby might explain some of that but I wouldn't be strict and unplugging everything myself. Your peak usage is also pretty high, guessing the morning is an electric shower but even the evening peak seems high, my usage would rarely go over 1kwh in an hour even when cooking dinner. You've nearly 9 hours from 3 til 11 with pretty high usage, whats using all that power?

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 11:49am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149786#Comment_120149786

7am may well be a shower, everybody getting up. 7pm is probably dinner being made, tv, consoles. Majority of the lights are philips hue bulbs (looking at the smart meter charts our lights are 20 quid) - Heating is Gas, so this bill is just electric.

Not charging a car, not 100% on which appliances are a rated.

I have an Alienware PC which are reportadly heavy going but I've changed that from always on to going to sleep (I know it's using, but it's using a lot less) - Maybe this is a stupid question but, If I were to turn everything on and off, would I just rely on the daily data from the smart meter (think that makes sense)

Nov - Jan was 1146 KWH.

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 11:51am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149813#Comment_120149813

Cheers for the reply. Thing is it wasn't always like this, even with that big PC always on. I know things have gone up, but this just seems a lot. And there's nothing new has being bought for the house that be using a tonne of juice, not that I can see anyway.

Icsics · 24-01-2023 11:58am

Would you consider a smart plan? Our night usage allows us a reduced rate 2-4, we do all washing & car charging then. Reduced up to 8am, so your showers at 7 would be reduced.

cruizer101 · 24-01-2023 12:06pm

The pc whilst it might have a 800-1200w power supply wouldn't use that much, even when playing games would probably only use couple of hundred and on standby would be feck all.

Consoles maybe 200w plus a tv bring it up to 300w, how much are they playing? 300w x 2 kids x 5 hours a day x 60days x 40c unit rate could be 70quid ish, not massive but not insignificant.

Might need to get a plug in power meter and check various appliances try see what is using most power. Can also get ones that go in meter box and connect to phone so you could read how much is being used as you go around plugging stuff in and out.

cruizer101 · 24-01-2023 12:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149881#Comment_120149881

Need to be careful smart plans, only suit if you can shift a huge amount of load to the cheap period. I've a smart plan but it works because I've electric car pulling 7kW from 2-5, the day rates are more expensive and you have a peak rate too from 5-7 where OP usage is highest.

Evd-Burner · 24-01-2023 12:11pm

Cruizer is right, your standby usage is fairly high, my standby from 11pm to 2am is always less than 150w and I have a tonne of items on standby etc. You seem to be averaging 375W which over 24 hours is 9kWh alone, depending on your tariff that could be almost 5 euro a day alone.

My bi monthly usage at the moment is about 1300kWh and my bills are coming in around sub 450 and that's with an electric car charging and electric heating an office with somebody always home.

What tariff are you on?

Would you consider buying a while house ct clamp monitor, attaching in the meter box and then turning off circuits at the board to investigate and go from there down to a device level?

ongarite · 24-01-2023 12:21pm

Your standby usage is really high. I'm using 110W always on with HRV system running 24/7.

I've 2 TVs, 2 Google TV/Shield and PS5 on standby at all times. PS5 uses 3W on standby and others less than 1W.

The PC is the one to focus on. If left on 24/7 it's pulling 200W just idling on desktop.

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149926#Comment_120149926

Cheers for the reply. Really insightful. Any recommendations on plug in power meter or the ones that go in the meter box. Took a look on amazon and there seems to be a tonne. No hassles if not.

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149946#Comment_120149946

Thanks for the reply. On the Electric + tarrif (discount of 4.5%) - The clamp monitor is definitely an option.

First plan is from tonight, I'm going to plug out the alienware completely and leave it off for 24 hours and I'll take a look at the smart meter data and see what that says as this is what I suspect is the problem (but more of a guess than anything) - But the thing is, the spikes are at 7am and 7pm and it's rarely used at either of those times. So it could well be something else.

Manzoor14 · 24-01-2023 12:28pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150014#Comment_120150014

Might be worth popping into your local library, you can borrow the plug-in monitors for a few weeks.

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:28pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149997#Comment_120149997

Thanks for the reply. Wow!! My gut is telling me the PC as well, and it's only in the last 6 weeks or so I've turned on the goto sleep function, but that may not be enough?

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150034#Comment_120150034

Really? That's handy! Cheers

OwlsZat · 24-01-2023 12:35pm

Have you any of the following?

Electric Shower
Electric Oven Hob
Air conditioning
Any Storage Heaters / electric heaters?
Grow bulbs
Heated pet enclosure

Do you put on the washing machine, diswasher etc at night time if so what time?

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:41pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150065#Comment_120150065

Thanks

Yes on the electric shower - now that you mention it, the pulldown switch is always on - dunno if that makes a difference

Oven /Hob - yep. Not used every day

No Air con

One electric heater for outside that's used for an hour or two every few weeks, if that

No grow bulbs

No heated pet enclosure

Dishwasher goes on whenever it's needed, mainly when we go to work in the morning, but at night? probably after 10pm

Washing machine the same

bladespin · 24-01-2023 12:51pm

Really doubtful it's pc and consoles, really looks like something heavier is consuming as mentioned above that king of consumption is normally related to heating or cooling. Check Immersion heater setting/switch, fridge setting.

jmreire · 24-01-2023 12:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120149838#Comment_120149838

I've everything now switched off at the wall switch, but I'll have to wait until the next bill comes in to see what if any difference it will make. Last bill was €300, so its wait and see time. I've already converted all the lights to LED bulbs. I don't have a smart meter, only the old style one, so not sure if it can be interpreted like the smart meter type?

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 12:55pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150121#Comment_120150121

You could be right. Currently, the immersion element needs to be replaced as it's tripping everything for the last while, so that's not being used at all until we get it sorted. Heating is gas and no air con. As for the fridge, it's set to 2 degrees. Freezer is at 19.

smuggler.ie · 24-01-2023 12:56pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150124#Comment_120150124

If you dont , where do you get hourly graphs for kWh/T from? I want one

Sarn · 24-01-2023 1:08pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150155#Comment_120150155

That confused me as well. That was a different poster to the OP that said they didn’t have a smart meter (although the nature of their comment made it look to be from the OP). The OP has a smart meter.

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 1:13pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150155#Comment_120150155

Hey, its from the smart meter

DataDude · 24-01-2023 1:15pm

Your peak useage is extremely high and won’t be driven by an accumulation of small things like bulbs/computers.

Only things I can think of in my house that could give that sort of usage profile would be either Immersion to heat water or electric underfloor kicking in in a few bathrooms.

smuggler.ie · 24-01-2023 1:15pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150220#Comment_120150220

yep, i admit i got mixed up. 😊

And OP need smart meter to monitor "smart meter"- loving it 😊

anyway, there seem to be some unaccounted and unwanted usage

oldgamerhead · 24-01-2023 1:17pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150259#Comment_120150259

Cheers, unless it's the immersion that's causing it, but the heating element is knackered so it's always turned off

smuggler.ie · 24-01-2023 1:24pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150274#Comment_120150274

Just to ensure, switch it off at the fuseboard if not done yet. Not going to repeat - "stand by" heavy users listed in few posts above. PC runnig (without any tasks) can consume ~100W depending on hardware - prime suspect

OwlsZat · 24-01-2023 4:12pm

Is the pull cord on the shower for a pump to turn on or off or is it to heat the water? The shower could be keeping a bit of water heated the way a quooker tap does?

Dtp1979 · 24-01-2023 4:17pm

Have you allowed for the fact that the **** have pretty much doubled the price of electricity in the last year?

Stone Deaf 4evr · 24-01-2023 4:22pm

one other thing to consider once you've exhausted the above suggestions.

If your water is coming from a bored well - make sure you dont have any leaks under the footpath following the recent big freezes - the pump will keep running, and a leak might not be obvious as the water will be underground. In worst case scenario you could lead to issues with your foundations.

hello2020 · 24-01-2023 4:34pm

how do you view the smart meter readings?

my latest bill touched 500 for two months and now considering switching to smart plan as well..but they say you can not revert back to old plan once smart plan is opted.

eusap · 24-01-2023 4:50pm

I am Using an Efergy Smart meter, great tool to have to reduce excess energy usage.

Main things Discovered by us,

Halogen GU10 bulbs in kitchen had 9x45w = 400w per hour replaced with LED now,
Outdoor flood lights 2x500w switched to LED sensor lights
Electric showers/Kettle/Hob all are high users but short bursts
Washing machine at 60deg uses 3x more than at 30deg
Portable Heaters/dysons etc.... can be up to 2kw per hour

As a comparison our base load is about 300w PH, leaving tv on standby, laptops, phones, fridge, internet box etc....

OwlsZat · 24-01-2023 4:57pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120151427#Comment_120151427

Glad I made you take the plunge and sign up. Hopefully this won't be the pinnacle of your posts!

smuggler.ie · 24-01-2023 5:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120151396#Comment_120151396

Prices might and will vary per user / provider / contract.

Electricity is measured in kWh and this is what is important - that trickle usage 24/7 that is high (~200-250W per hour) if to believe that diagram, shown at low-use time 00:00-05:00, then 09:00-12:00.

OP need to review all devices including small electronics:

NAS box(if present) - ~25-30W stand-by

Talking G or Amz sniffer device 😊 per unit - ~10-15W(?)

Router - ~10-15W stand-by, but its never stand-by is it, as you have your phone/tablets/sniffers, etc constantly pinging their apps for any crap/notification...)

Mesh system/AP - ~10-15W per unit (again is it ever in stand-by)

Switch (PoE ?!) - ~10+W

permanently pluged-in chargers ~1-3W stand-by

etc. ,etc

Sum up all these little things and you potentially get your 100+W trickle. This is 100*24=2.4kWh per day/72kWh per month = 72*0.4=€28 per month (€0.4 per kWh just sample)

harmless · 24-01-2023 10:58pm

The desktop PC will only use about 100w while idle in windows once there is not much running in the background. It will use less than 1 watt in standby.

When you say freezer do you mean chest freezer? This could be the source of a large amount of your overnight usage. I have large one that seems to draw 100 - 200 watts all the time. I'll be replacing it for something much smaller soon.

TheChizler · 25-01-2023 12:01am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120151488#Comment_120151488

Sign up here: https://myaccount.esbnetworks.ie/

jmreire · 25-01-2023 1:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150155#Comment_120150155

Sorry for any confusion...my meter is the old type, black box showing the units consumed.

jmreire · 25-01-2023 1:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150308#Comment_120150308

Now that's a likely explanation for my power consumption. While the TV is permanently switched off when not in use, I spend several hours each day on the laptop. Tomorrow morning, I'll check the meter when I switch on the laptop, and again when I switch it off, and that will be a good idea of its consumption.

POBox19 · 25-01-2023 1:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150146#Comment_120150146

It could be the fridge and freezer. SEAI advise a setting of 3º to 5º for the fridge and -15º to -18 for freezers. Check around the door seals for gaps and leaks. I had a fridge/freezer that was using so much electricity that a replacement paid for itself with the saving made on electricity usage within 18 months.

Here's a link to the Codema/SEAI Home Energy Saving Work Sheets:

https://documents.pub/document/home-energy-saving-kit-worksheets-codema-tools-in-the-home-energy-saving-kit.html?page=3

beachhead · 25-01-2023 4:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150121#Comment_120150121

Would agree here - the standby power usage on most electrical items is minimal.There must be something else causing the high consumption.Personally,I wouldn't like to have so many devices in standby mode.All the posts so far have useful suggestions.

oldgamerhead · 01-02-2023 1:14pm

So a bit of an update over the last week. Started plugging things out, and really not a great deal of difference looking at the graphs. On Sunday I plugged out the Alienware beast and left it completely powered off and all the stuff plugged into it for 24 hours. Looking at the smart meter data today, I see little to no difference. However, at 8pm, there was another spike, peaking at 3.35 kwh

Turns out the shower was used around that time. But that's still not accounting for a lot of always on usage, unless that shower (pull chord) is causing some issues, but that's not going to effect the always on, unless the pull chord which powers the shower (and I presume heats it and pumps it) is nearly always left on as everyone forgets to turn it off.

But then, that aside, at 12am when everyone was asleep, there was another peak which I really can't explain. No washing machine on, no dishwasher on etc.

I've accounted that the cost of things have absolutely gone up as DTP1979 said, but the always on thing is still an issue and this weird spike at midnight.

Next plan is to start actively writing everything down and take another look at the smart meter readings in a few days.

Appreciate if anyone has any other thoughts or suggestions.

oldgamerhead · 01-02-2023 1:18pm

So a bit of an update over the last week. Started plugging things out, and really not a great deal of difference looking at the graphs. On Sunday I plugged out the Alienware beast and left it completely powered off and all the stuff plugged into it for 24 hours. Looking at the smart meter data today, I see little to no difference. However, at 8pm, there was another spike, peaking at 3.35 kwh

Turns out the shower was used around that time. But that's still not accounting for a lot of always on usage, unless that shower (pull chord) is causing some issues, but that's not going to effect the always on, unless the pull chord which powers the shower (and I presume heats it and pumps it) is nearly always left on as everyone forgets to turn it off.

But then, that aside, at 12am when everyone was asleep, there was another peak which I really can't explain. No washing machine on, no dishwasher on etc.

I've accounted that the cost of things have absolutely gone up as DTP1979 said, but the always on thing is still an issue and this weird spike at midnight.

Next plan is to start actively writing everything down and take another look at the smart meter readings in a few days.

Appreciate if anyone has any other thoughts or suggestion

oldgamerhead · 01-02-2023 2:35pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120151582#Comment_120151582

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, none of those are ringing a bell for always on stuff. That Efergy Smart Meter looks like a great idea. What does it display exactly, or were you able to narrow it down like you've outlined above?

oldgamerhead · 01-02-2023 2:37pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120155505#Comment_120155505

That's an interesting one. The fridge is one of those american fridge freezers and it's been in the house for well over 10 years. That might also be worth investigating. But all that said, the always on is the problem. And while the fridge is always on, it's not under the always on category as the smart meter can seperate out different things based off their energy pattern, so it's not the fridge....I think

01-02-2023 2:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120150038#Comment_120150038

It’s not the PC. if it is there’s something wrong with it. A PC sitting at idle will not draw that much power at all.

theteal · 01-02-2023 3:16pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120187057#Comment_120187057

I've been keeping an eye on UK MSE Energy forums of late and those american fridges are the first port of call for "unknown" useage. IFI you could find one or two of those Tapo smart plug thingies, you may get some certainty

eusap · 01-02-2023 3:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120187050#Comment_120187050

It shows current usage (update every 10 secs) and last day/month/year etc... there are battery's in there so not tied to a wall outlet and really just walked around house and switch things on/off and see the effect

POBox19 · 01-02-2023 3:28pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120187057#Comment_120187057

That's a big red flag "American Fridge Freezer, over 10 years" right there, a gas guzzler.

If you could get your hands on a plug-in meter from Amazon for about €7 you'll know for certain very quickly. Lots of them on there, just search 'plug-in power meter. Always handy to have around the house.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ARCELI-Display-Electricity-Consumption-Monitoring/dp/B0B9ML2NJ9/ref=sr_1_13?keywords=plug-in+power+meter&qid=1675260818&sr=8-13

ongarite · 02-02-2023 12:33am

Your fridge temperature is very low too at 2C I think you said. If it's absolutely stuffed full of food at that temperature & opened a lot, which can be in family setting, then the compressor could be running on near constant basis.

4C is typical temperature & for every 1C lower, it uses 10% more power.

spookwoman · 02-02-2023 12:57am

We got a few of those energy monitoring plugs and found a few items that use a lot of power. Using TAPO TP-Link 110 plugs that have an app and power monitoring.

Computers on all day and when they are doing a lot of computing like games etc they draw even more power. You could be looking at a draw of 85w + with monitor. TV's are another big draw. TV's can draw 25 watts up depending on model and size. 42" TV and Virgin box draw at least 50w +. The older sky box is a hungry sod even in standby it eats 10 or so watts. Game boxes are probably hungry with processing graphics. I don't know what the modem runs at. Standby takes up very little power.

Fridge a basic one could be 1.4kW a day, a small freezer about 1kW. A kettle runs at about 2.3kW draw. Using a kettle just filled for a few cups boiled a few times a day could run up 1.2kW.

Turning off Computers, TV's, monitors, unplug game boxes when not in use will help

oldgamerhead · 02-02-2023 12:44pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120187375#Comment_120187375

That sounds like a must purchase! Thank you

Electric Bill over 500 EURO - Always on is an issue?

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