Energy bill increases

[fossyant]

Wowsers.

Sure you didn't have a farm in the cellar?

Feckin hot tub on 24/7 ! Think about it, 2-3KW heater, say it's on a third of the time, say averaging 1KW per hour, soon mounts up to maybe 600 plus KW in a month - about £100 in old money, over £200 now if left on. Switching it off saved most of that, and I think I worked out it cost about £5 to heat up for a use. Great for a bad back, but massively in-efficient if you don't switch them off.

It's currently drained down for winter and won't be filled until March. We just left it running. We NOW switch it off, and just leave the filter ticking over using less than 50w. If we decide to use it, we switch the heating on in the morning ! I've also put additional Kingspan insulation on the lid.

We've also stopped using the dryer - only goes on in an emergency, all clothing on an airer with a dehumdifier. It's criminal the energy we wasted.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

T


They don’t normally pay for the electric.

The neighbour does though

 

[Jody]

I was talking to a friend last weekend about hot tub costs as they treat themselves to one during lock down. Apparently sold as only using 1kw per day but the actual cost ran into hundreds per month.

I knew they used a bit of electric but didn't realise quite how much.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I was talking to a friend last weekend about hot tub costs as they treat themselves to one during lock down. Apparently sold as only using 1kw per day but the actual cost ran into hundreds per month.

I knew they used a bit of electric but didn't realise quite how much.

I pressure you mean 1 KWh per day. That’s still only around 36p per day at the current cap. Thus about £10 a month. I suspect they don’t know how much their hot tub is using.

 

[Jody]

I pressure you mean 1 KWh per day. That’s still only around 36p per day at the current cap. Thus about £10 a month. I suspect they don’t know how much their hot tub is using.

They do now. Its was sold as 1kwh per day but consumed way more.

It's now been scrapped

 

[fossyant]

I was talking to a friend last weekend about hot tub costs as they treat themselves to one during lock down. Apparently sold as only using 1kw per day but the actual cost ran into hundreds per month.

I knew they used a bit of electric but didn't realise quite how much.

You are heating 1000 litres of water. During heating it will probably pull 2KWh. That can take 24 hours to heat from cold to say 38-40c, or about 2 degrees per hour. So that's 50 KWh - £15. It's then much less to maintain a temperature but it's still maybe using 10-20 KWh a day to maintain the heat, switching the heater on and off. They aren't well insulated, so adding insulation to the top helps massively. I started switching the water temperature to the minimum, which was 20c, and that kept the filter pump circulating, and it would take a good week to drop to 20c, so basically no heat needed to maintain the 20c, and only using 50w. As it got cold, I drained the tub down, and took the pump unit inside where it can dry.

TBH it's good for my back and any aches and pains, but it's a mad luxury if you leave on, just in case. You ideally need to say, OK long week, let's stick it on for Friday evening after work. You then actually use it ! They just aren't affordable with the current rates just to leave 'ticking over'.

 

[Jody]

The neighbour does though

Nah, you just bypass the meter.

 

[fossyant]

I pressure you mean 1 KWh per day. That’s still only around 36p per day at the current cap. Thus about £10 a month. I suspect they don’t know how much their hot tub is using.

I think they get mis-sold. The heaters use 2Kwh when on, and add in the bubble blower part that uses another 1KWh. If the heater is only heating half the time to maintain temperature, then it averages out to 1Kwh, but it's 24Kwh in a day !

My niece bought one during lockdown for the kids, but I do wish she'd asked me about costs before - she couldn't afford to run it. It's now punctured and a waste of £400.

 

[tom73]

Nah, you just bypass the meter.

Or nearby lamppost i've seen all sorts of mad connections and work arounds.

 

[MrGrumpy]

Feckin hot tub on 24/7 ! Think about it, 2-3KW heater, say it's on a third of the time, say averaging 1KW per hour, soon mounts up to maybe 600 plus KW in a month - about £100 in old money, over £200 now if left on. Switching it off saved most of that, and I think I worked out it cost about £5 to heat up for a use. Great for a bad back, but massively in-efficient if you don't switch them off.

It's currently drained down for winter and won't be filled until March. We just left it running. We NOW switch it off, and just leave the filter ticking over using less than 50w. If we decide to use it, we switch the heating on in the morning ! I've also put additional Kingspan insulation on the lid.

We've also stopped using the dryer - only goes on in an emergency, all clothing on an airer with a dehumdifier. It's criminal the energy we wasted.

Yep no tumble for us neither , that’s a big change from last year . Hot tub got chucked away over a year ago . Not sure if I’ll get it back out again ? Might with solar ? Interesting that it cost more to keep running rather than heating only when you needed to ? I could maybe live with that ?

 

[fossyant]

Yep no tumble for us neither , that’s a big change from last year . Hot tub got chucked away over a year ago . Not sure if I’ll get it back out again ? Might with solar ? Interesting that it cost more to keep running rather than heating only when you needed to ? I could maybe live with that ?

I've popped a Smart Plug on it since Autumn, but didn't have the detailed data before. If you are to use one, I'd definitely recommend turning the heat to the minimum and then turning on when you want to use it - they aren't thermally efficient enough to keep on. I'll be monitoring the cost once we refill, but I'm not doing that until were into double figures for air temperature overnight !

 

[Alex321]

I was talking to a friend last weekend about hot tub costs as they treat themselves to one during lock down. Apparently sold as only using 1kw per day but the actual cost ran into hundreds per month.

I knew they used a bit of electric but didn't realise quite how much.

If they were sold as using only 1kWh per day, than that was blatant mis-selling.

Even the most energy-efficient ones on the market are going to use more than that.

 

[MrGrumpy]

I've popped a Smart Plug on it since Autumn, but didn't have the detailed data before. If you are to use one, I'd definitely recommend turning the heat to the minimum and then turning on when you want to use it - they aren't thermally efficient enough to keep on. I'll be monitoring the cost once we refill, but I'm not doing that until were into double figures for air temperature overnight !

Actually thought one of those wood burning ones would do me !

 

[Ming the Merciless]

It’s funny that there was a big push for central heating in the 70s. But now it’s heat just the rooms you are in. Which is how it was done since time immortal before central heating.

 

[mjr]

since time immortal

immemorial

Heating only the rooms you're in only works well if those rooms are together and doors and walls are thick, else you lose lots of heat to the unheated rooms, possibly more than radiators in the heated rooms can emit. It will be cheaper but less efficient. Doesn't work well with the layout of my home so just as well we have efficient central heat!