Energy Bills

[sidcow]

2 minutes ago, It's Your Round said:

Just got an email from Octopus Energy, they ‘recommend’ that I increase my direct debit to £357 per month. Which is £160 more! I expected it to go up, but that seems mental. 
 

Edit: that’s until April 2023, then it’s reduced to £342 after that. So it seems they’re predicting prices to stay high for the foreseeable. 

It's likely to go up again in October when the cap is reviewed again. 

[sidcow]

I think that log burners are going to see big sales over the next few months in preparation for next winter. 

[Xela]

On 14/03/2022 at 21:31, Risso said:

Actually I lie, it's usually about a week. We've got through 2,000 litres a month over the winter. Slightly less now now it's a bit warmer.

Which castle do you live in?!

 

[Xela]

8 minutes ago, It's Your Round said:

Just got an email from Octopus Energy, they ‘recommend’ that I increase my direct debit to £357 per month. Which is £160 more! I expected it to go up, but that seems mental. 
 

Edit: that’s until April 2023, then it’s reduced to £342 after that. So it seems they’re predicting prices to stay high for the foreseeable. 

It's absolutely crazy.  A lot of people won't be able to afford the bills. Not just low income families, who obviously struggle all the time, this will impact a lot of people who would have considered themselves middle income/comfortable. 

I've halted my house/cottage search. I'll stick it out in my efficient flat at the moment - energy bills have increased here but still under £100 per month. 

[ender4]

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

[Genie]

13 minutes ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

As a boy we only had 1 electric 2 bar heater in the living room and single glazed windows, but I don’t remember feeling cold.

[bickster]

19 minutes ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

Coal fires

[foreveryoung]

1 hour ago, Genie said:

I thought fuel prices had topped out and would drop? Just seen 180.9 at Sainsburys.

£1.54 in West Brom, so they can do it. Fuel companies take advantage all the time, like when people were panic buying. I doubt we will see much of the cheaper prices.

[It's Your Round]

1 hour ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

The house I lived in up until I was 16 didn’t have any central heating (despite my Dad being a central heating engineer!) We had single glazed windows where the condensation used to freeze. We just used blankets in the winter, or a hot water bottle if it was really cold. I grew up used to it so always had a good tolerance to cold weather. 
 

Thats changed since meeting my missus. Her and the kids always want the house to be hot, and over 14 years I’ve adjusted to that and now feel the cold much more than I ever used to. 

[Xela]

3 minutes ago, foreveryoung said:

£1.54 in West Brom, so they can do it. Fuel companies take advantage all the time, like when people were panic buying. I doubt we will see much of the cheaper prices.

The down side is that you have to go to West Brom

[It's Your Round]

1 hour ago, sidcow said:

It's likely to go up again in October when the cap is reviewed again. 

I’m trying not to think about that just yet. I’m lucky in that I can afford to pay it, but it this had happened 10 years ago when the kids were younger and we didn’t earn as much, it would have been a nightmare. There’s going to be some real struggles out there for those less fortunate. 

[Xela]

1 hour ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

The flat I grew up in had what I think was called central air heating. Air pulled into the property from a vent on the outside wall and heated over a gas flame. Circulated via the property via ducts and vents.

When I was cold I remember I used to sit in front of the vent in the hallway to keep warm. 

[sidcow]

1 hour ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

[It's Your Round]

We used to have one of these…

It was great for toasting bread on when the parents were out. It also used to send you to sleep when it hadn’t been serviced. Ah, I miss the smell of carbon monoxide to chill me out 

[sidcow]

One of my old clients was Wolseley plc. Probably better known in The UK as Plumb Centre and Builder Centre.  You would have seen their lorries about and premises on industrial estates. 

They started out as a company that made sheep shearing equipment. They dabbled in cars for a bit when one of their young engineers, a certain Herbert Austin persuaded them to make some before he buggered off and built them himself. 

Then they got involved in tractor spares. 

But what really turned them into a mega corporation was in the 60's when they got into Central Heating and rode that wave through the 70's and 80's as the whole UK installed central heating.  Ended up a FTSE 100 company, when I looked after them their turnover was £5.5bn, god only knows what it is now.  I actually needed to buy a new calculator so I could work on their turnover figures as the one I had didn't work in billions

They still owned the Tractor spares business when I looked after it though I think they finally sold them a few years ago. 

Anyway, I'm sure in the 1960s there were people saying they would never be able to replace their coal fires with Central Heating and I can't help thinking someone is going to make a killing on the move from Central Heating to Heat Pumps (my money is on Octopus Energy) and a new mega corporation will be born.

[KAZZAM]

People need to insulate there houses properly as a start. I would imagine 95% of houses arnt up to standard. Before thinking of changing to a heat pump or something else that radical or expensive. 

[VillaJ100]

7 minutes ago, KAZZAM said:

People need to insulate there houses properly as a start. I would imagine 95% of houses arnt up to standard. Before thinking of changing to a heat pump or something else that radical or expensive. 

A lot of houses like mine have no cavities to fill so when the roof's done that pretty much it. 

I asked my dad about before central heating etc. Answer was blankets and lots of em, and a hot water bottle! 

[Davkaus]

3 hours ago, It's Your Round said:

Just got an email from Octopus Energy, they ‘recommend’ that I increase my direct debit to £357 per month. Which is £160 more! I expected it to go up, but that seems mental. 
 

Edit: that’s until April 2023, then it’s reduced to £342 after that. So it seems they’re predicting prices to stay high for the foreseeable. 

I'd also recommend you send me £160 a month for me to look after for you. 

The best thing to do if you're worried about paying the bills in a few month's time is check your usage over the year and your current rates, and project it yourself, then stick a bit of cash in a current account or savings account that's at least generating a small amount of interest for you instead of them.

There's nothing compelling them to ensure their "recommendations" even out over the length of the contract, and what business wouldn't love an interest free loan?

[snowychap]

3 hours ago, ender4 said:

Now I’m intrigued. How did people in the UK live before houses were fitted with central heating? It must have just been freezing all the time? Were people just used to being cold all the time?

Yes.

The trip to the bathroom that was added on to the kitchen extension was **** horrid - single bar heater was the only source of heat.

[turvontour]

4 hours ago, It's Your Round said:

Just got an email from Octopus Energy, they ‘recommend’ that I increase my direct debit to £357 per month. Which is £160 more! I expected it to go up, but that seems mental. 
 

Edit: that’s until April 2023, then it’s reduced to £342 after that. So it seems they’re predicting prices to stay high for the foreseeable. 

It's not that they predict that, it's what the market price is.