Smart Meters letter from Scottish Power...

[PaulR]

Good to see you've got a load of carp up in the loft as well.

 

[jeallen01]

Good to see you've got a load of carp up in the loft as well.

Oh Yeah - helps with the insulation as well (empty cardboard boxes hold a lot of air)!
BTW: another pic of the other end of the loft - might explain why I say the house is an odd shape (pentagonal floorplan & 4 outside walls). And there's an entirely internal "freestanding chimney stack just behind that post in the centre of the pic, and it was an absolute pig to insulate around

 

[PaulR]

Oh Yeah - helps with the insulation as well ...

That's the principle I work to as well...

 

[Channel Hopper]

Good to see you've got a load of carp up in the loft as well.

That, is not a load of carp.

 

[Topper]

Your right but this is

 

[jeallen01]

That looks like Total(ly!) Carp

 

[purplemarina]

I've just had the bathroom refurbished, cast iron bath removed replaced with shower. when the floor was up 4" celotex insulation was fitted between the joists i was a bit dubious about the benefits of this. But what a difference in floor temperature now !! its made the room warmer and the plastic laminate floor is warm to my feet. i've got 2 more rooms to decorate and i'm definately going to underfloor insulate both.

 

[jeallen01]

I've just had the bathroom refurbished, cast iron bath removed replaced with shower. when the floor was up 4" celotex insulation was fitted between the joists i was a bit dubious about the benefits of this. But what a difference in floor temperature now !! its made the room warmer and the plastic laminate floor is warm to my feet. i've got 2 more rooms to decorate and i'm definately going to underfloor insulate both.

Insulating under the floor is absolutely the right thing to do!:
- decades ago I had to get a ground-floor extension built on my mother's house because she was becoming disabled. An architect friend at the time recommended using breeze blocks below the top screed because that was what they did when building pigstys (!!!) in order to keep the pigs' feet warm. Did that, and the floor was always warm for my Mum to walk on (especially compared to the older kitchen which had quarry tiles over the concrete screed)!
- nearly 20 yrs ago we had the utility room and conservatory built on the side/back of this house, and I had the builder put 50mm of Jabolite below the top screed, and then there is laminate flooring on top of that. The floors are always relatively warm to walk on, even when the heating is not on in those areas!
- a bit later, we had the front and rear downstairs knocked together and I had to lay a new suspended wood floor. Unfortunately, SWMBO didn't want carpets because of her dustmite allergy, and so, to keep the floor warm and stop draughts from between the boards, I fitted 50mm of rockwool matting in netting between all the joists. The floors are always warm to walk on!

PS: and I have lived in enough properties with uninsulated floors to know that they are NOT warm to walk on

 

[Lazarus]

More joy ....


Just been on the SP Online system and came up with this:


Hello GORDON
Unfortunately we are unable to install a smart meter at this time because:

• Smart metering technology for customers with a multi-rate meter is not yet available.
• Smart meters require a strong mobile signal in order to operate and your area is not quite ready yet.

 

[Ghostleader]

Brilliant news!

 

[Lazarus]

Yup.

There are many advantages of living in medieval times the countryside

 

[jeallen01]

One of the major issues with smart meters ATM is lack of "portability of access" between energy supply providers when changing supplier - that will affect me now that I will be changing from BG to Sainsburys as the latter can't yet access BG smart meters - even though they are effectively the same provider (even though Sainsburys Energy websites are actually run by BG!). I knew that before opting to change - the rates are pretty much the same, but I will get a Sainsburys £100 Gift Card for changing, and so it should make the change worthwhile even though I will have to manually submit meter readings to Sainsburys just like I did to SP before changing to BG! OTOH, that should make me more aware of our on-going consumption.

Hopefully, the situation will change to our/everybody's advantage in the relatively near future - but "we will see"!

PS: I did consider some of the "cheaper" new small suppliers, but ruled them out because of what happened to one of them last year (went bust, and the customers were transferred automatically to Co-op Energy) and also of the variable customer feedbacks on many of those small suppliers on the Money Saving Expert site.

 

[jeallen01]

Yup.

There are many advantages of living in medieval times the countryside

Including "what" - apart from poor mobile connectivity, low temperatures, long journey's to buy some things, howling winds and lots of snow (lived in Yorkshire when at Uni!), and a long wait for the local bus to pick you up when the local authority cancels the service and the car won't start (lived in the country when I was a kid, and that happened!) or for fire brigade when the house catches fire, but then need I go on? OK, Yes, lots of fresh, clean air and "peacefulness", and so for you to then die in a placid and calm atmosphere .

 

[Lazarus]

Sorry, what's this about a bus?


Actually, what is a bus? ;)

 

[Archive-8]

Sorry, what's this about a bus?


Actually, what is a bus? ;)

I think he means a horse and cart.

 

[Ghostleader]

One of the major issues with smart meters ATM is lack of "portability of access" between energy supply providers when changing supplier - that will affect me now that I will be changing from BG to Sainsburys as the latter can't yet access BG smart meters - even though they are effectively the same provider (even though Sainsburys Energy websites are actually run by BG!). I knew that before opting to change - the rates are pretty much the same, but I will get a Sainsburys £100 Gift Card for changing, and so it should make the change worthwhile even though I will have to manually submit meter readings to Sainsburys just like I did to SP before changing to BG! OTOH, that should make me more aware of our on-going consumption.

Hopefully, the situation will change to our/everybody's advantage in the relatively near future - but "we will see"!

PS: I did consider some of the "cheaper" new small suppliers, but ruled them out because of what happened to one of them last year (went bust, and the customers were transferred automatically to Co-op Energy) and also of the variable customer feedbacks on many of those small suppliers on the Money Saving Expert site.

From what I read because British Gas were so egger to "roll out" bloody smart meters their meters predate the standards that all the big four are rolling out now. Basically early adopters were Beta testers for smart meters. That's probably why I remember seeing a piece on them on Watchdog AGES ago about some guy who I think fancied himself as some kind of property tycoon had four of his private let flats fitted with them and they gave up the ghost, some from the get go, he wasn't happy, to be be honest I just thought "that's what you get for being a tit" lol

 

[Channel Hopper]

BG have supposedly 'frozen' their pricing for the next six months


which means they have made a killing to please the shareholders already. as usual.

 

[Ghostleader]

BG have supposedly 'frozen' their pricing for the next six months


which means they have made a killing to please the shareholders already. as usual.

I think between the four of them they all meet and decide who's going to take the flak by announcing a big price hike and after that particular shower of bell ends takes all the negative publicity all be it a lame BBC report consisting of about 3 mins with lots of library shots of a pair of hands filling an electrical kettle, putting said kettle on with a lovely close up shot of the "on" latch being pushed down on the kettle and the neon light coming on etc then the others announce pretty much same size price increases give or take a percentage point or two. The mobile telecommunications market in the U.K. done same thing all through the 2000's, Vodafone & Orange being the number one market manipulators.

 

[Ghostleader]

Yes I use the gas cooker every day. The combi boiler supply's the hot water and heat.

The heating water temp is set to 42° This gives me 21.5° room temp.

My electric bill is my killer, its about £61 a month at last check.

I know I use a lot of power.

Thanks Chris, meant to say, checked my heating water temp at the boiler, was at 56C turned it down to match your 42, hopefully going forward this will be a change for the better.[emoji3]

 

[Archive-8]

Thanks Chris, meant to say, checked my heating water temp at the boiler, was at 56C turned it down to match your 42, hopefully going forward this will be a change for the better.[emoji3]

My room thermostat controls the heating on and off.

My bills dropped changing from the old bi-metallic strip type +/- 2°

To a new digital type +/- 0.5° Permanently set to 21.5°C

What stat do you have?