Energy crisis

[Zep]

I had similar numbers. As part of my move to use the immersion to heat my water I added a bunch of these. I use 40 kWh a month for water heating but by cutting down on everything else, consumption has gone down.

I’ve been crunching the numbers on my daytime usage using the smart meter download from Octopus (mostly for my home office) and I think I have a case for a solar setup, so investigating that now.

 

[dgmx5]

Ordered from Amazon a smart plug with energy monitoring.
Initially went around checking what certain appliances are using.
Our 10 year old 50" FHD LG plasma was a target, but actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be at 150w.
However with the media centre switched on with all the sat boxes, amazon TV, dvd players etc another 50w. Switch on the onkyo surround sound however, another 150w...
Next was our lads bedroom.
I knew this would be bad.
Xbox and our old Panasonic 40" plasma from 20 years ago. 400w.
Last, and probably the biggest shock, our old fridge freezer down in our store from our first house 25 years ago.
After 18 hours of monitoring it is bang on for 2 kwh a day, to keep some beers cold.
That is immediately getting decommissioned!

So we can immediately save 15% of our annual electricity usage by having warm beer, and another 5% by getting a newer telly. So a saving of approx £600 a year at the October cap, and probably £1,000 at the January cap, without doing anything else.

Which plug did you go for? Interesting exercise.

 

[dickygrace]

So we can immediately save 15% of our annual electricity usage by having warm beer,

There’s got to be other ways, I will happily pay £1k pa to have cold beer.

 

[D Walker]

There’s got to be other ways, I will happily pay £1k pa to have cold beer.

Exactly. And it’s more efficient to keep it topped up otherwise you are using energy to cool empty space. One out, one in. Winner winner.

 

[mjheathcote]

Which plug did you go for? Interesting exercise.

TP-Link Tapo Smart Plug with Energy Monitoring, Works with Amazon Alexa (Echo and Echo Dot) and Google Home, Wi-Fi Smart Socket, Remote Control, Device Sharing, No Hub Required(Tapo P110) https://amzn.eu/d/1jbZUv8

 

[CatmanV2]

So we can immediately save 15% of our annual electricity usage by having warm beer, and another 5% by getting a newer telly. So a saving of approx £600 a year at the October cap, and probably £1,000 at the January cap, without doing anything else.

How much will the new telly cost you?

C

 

[mjheathcote]

There’s got to be other ways, I will happily pay £1k pa to have cold beer.

Gone!

 

[Wattie]

There’s got to be other ways, I will happily pay £1k pa to have cold beer.

Allow me to assist Dicky.
Christmas sorted too!

 

[mjheathcote]

How much will the new telly cost you?

C

I know what you are getting at, he doesn't need a fancy TV so payback in 2 years.
Will probably move things around and ultimately get a new lounge telly.
Man maths.

 

[MarkMas]

Talking of conspiracies didn't Stanley Myer do something amazing in the 70's with his invention to combat high fuel prices? Got him murdered as legend has it.

Yes, that is definitely a fun conspiracy.

He claimed to have invented a fuel cell that was able to split water into hydrogen and oxygen using less energy than was released by then recombining the hydrogen and oxygen back into water again. So he managed to violate both the first and second laws of thermodynamics and create a perpetual motion machine. Said he could drive from LA to NY just by 'burning' about 80 litres of water.

He was having dinner in a restaurant with a close friend and investor when he (a) died of a cerebral aneurysm caused by well-documented high blood pressure, or (b) was murdered in public by the Illuminati to protect the oil industry.

 

[Felonious Crud]

Ordered from Amazon a smart plug with energy monitoring.
Initially went around checking what certain appliances are using.
Our 10 year old 50" FHD LG plasma was a target, but actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be at 150w.
However with the media centre switched on with all the sat boxes, amazon TV, dvd players etc another 50w. Switch on the onkyo surround sound however, another 150w...
Next was our lads bedroom.
I knew this would be bad.
Xbox and our old Panasonic 40" plasma from 20 years ago. 400w.
Last, and probably the biggest shock, our old fridge freezer down in our store from our first house 25 years ago.
After 18 hours of monitoring it is bang on for 2 kwh a day, to keep some beers cold.
That is immediately getting decommissioned!

So we can immediately save 15% of our annual electricity usage by having warm beer, and another 5% by getting a newer telly. So a saving of approx £600 a year at the October cap, and probably £1,000 at the January cap, without doing anything else.

Interesting exercise. You've inspired me to do the same. I already have a few smart plugs that I use for automation but which also monitor usage. They're now on a tour of the house, looking for miscreants.

 

[mjheathcote]

Interesting exercise. You've inspired me to do the same. I already have a few smart plugs that I use for automation but which also monitor usage. They're now on a tour of the house, looking for miscreants.

Old TVs and fridges are obvious ones.
The only other good energy saving appliance is an air fryer, which we have already and is actually very good anyway for cooking food regardless of the energy usage good or bad, which it isn't.

 

[D Walker]

Old TVs and fridges are obvious ones.
The only other good energy saving appliance is an air fryer, which we have already and is actually very good anyway for cooking food regardless of the energy usage good or bad, which it isn't.

I’m told those ninja things take miles less time and energy than an oven too. My mate reckons a full chicken in 20-30 minutes as opposed to 2hours whatever in the oven.

 

[mjheathcote]

I’m told those ninja things take miles less time and energy than an oven too. My mate reckons a full chicken in 20-30 minutes as opposed to 2hours whatever in the oven.

They are instead very good, we have a ninja!

 

[UlstermanAbroad]

Allow me to assist Dicky.View attachment 105206
Christmas sorted too!

Allow me to assist also!

I believe these are an item whose time has finally come.
Apparently, they come in family sizes too. Billy explains...

 

[mowlas]

Sure I will be advised if this post belongs in the politics poo bin thread, but I find myself agreeing with Dieter Helm, who wrote the 2017 Cost of Energy review, when he says that the government are trying to solely blame the war in Ukraine for the runaway energy prices that we are being asked to pay.

He argues that fundamental failures to reform the structure of the UK energy market has left citizens excessively (disproportionately) burdened. Some examples include wrongly fixing prices to the cost of gas and handing “supernormal profits” to renewable producers. More here…

Government failure not Ukraine to blame for soaring energy bills, says ex-adviser

Households ‘paying too much because the government failed to reform the market’, says author of 2017 review

www.independent.co.uk

I find it distressing that we have a media that have mostly failed to challenge the government’s narrative on this, thus dissipating the anger we might feel and shifting the focus on where the true root causes and solutions may lie.

 

[CatmanV2]

I know what you are getting at, he doesn't need a fancy TV so payback in 2 years.
Will probably move things around and ultimately get a new lounge telly.
Man maths.

Yeah, it's just never quite that simple, is it? Binning the old fridge is clearly a win. But replacing a TV with another TV (which will still use some electricity) is not so simple in the math.

Not that we should ever pass up the chance to buy a new TV

C

 

[spkennyuk]

There’s got to be other ways, I will happily pay £1k pa to have cold beer.

Its costing me more than that to keep the beer cold

 

[philw696]

 

[D Walker]

I’ve just suggested to the Mrs she could do the dishes in the shower.