Fixed Price Energy Deals

[Dedworth]

Has anyone signed up recently ? I know Les went for the British Gas Fix & Fall.

It's baffling and I don't trust these comparison sites because not all the tarrifs and deals are on them.

We're just coming out (30/11) of a 2 year fixed dual fuel online no standing charge with Scottish Power. After a lot of research I've gone for an NPower one year "Energy Online Jan 14 Dual Fuel with standing charge" - £100 cashback from Top CashBack which ends today.

We heat with a combination of Economy 7 Night Storage Heaters and Gas Fired Warm Air.

Looking at total electricity consumption last year of both day and E7 it looks like going for a standing charge but getting a cheaper unit price will save approx £300 pa. Gas is harder to calculate as Scottish Power have 2 per kwh prices - primary & secondary.

What a minefield

[grahamw48]

Anyone up my way, I'm doing FREE cavity wall insulation plus FREE loft top-up if you have less than 125mm existing. Also, from January 2013 FREE external wall insulation for solid wall houses (owned or privately rented)....regardless of your income etc.

Power companies and govt. are desperate to meet CERT (Carbon emissions reduction target) targets set by EU...otherwise liable to fine equivalent to 10% of their gross turnover.

Permanently save you a lot more than any tariff fiddling.

[stevewool]

what about internal wall insulation for solid walls can you get me a deal on that Graham

[grahamw48]

They're only going to be doing external on the scheme Steve (internal just too involved), still about £6,500 quidsworth for nowt though, and no internal disruption.

That scheme hasn't started yet, but we're getting geared up for it, training installation teams etc. The house finishes up being rendered of course...on the solid walls.

Been waiting for this for years.

[stevewool]

they have started it down our way, looks like most are council homes, and they do look good after all the works done, it seems to add on about 4 inches so the windows and doors do look further back, i live in a terrace and my door goes straight onto the street so i am sure i cannot go the external way, that would look very very odd in the street

[andy222]

Has anyone signed up recently ? I know Les went for the British Gas Fix & Fall.

It's baffling and I don't trust these comparison sites because not all the tarrifs and deals are on them.

We're just coming out (30/11) of a 2 year fixed dual fuel online no standing charge with Scottish Power. After a lot of research I've gone for an NPower one year "Energy Online Jan 14 Dual Fuel with standing charge" - £100 cashback from Top CashBack which ends today.

We heat with a combination of Economy 7 Night Storage Heaters and Gas Fired Warm Air.

Looking at total electricity consumption last year of both day and E7 it looks like going for a standing charge but getting a cheaper unit price will save approx £300 pa. Gas is harder to calculate as Scottish Power have 2 per kwh prices - primary & secondary.

What a minefield

I thought they were making it clearer Ded?

[grahamw48]

The aim is to try to persuade everyone in the street to get it done (though not necessary)...hopefully not too difficult, as it's free, will save them a fortune, give a warmer home, and add value to it. There will always be one of course.

[grahamw48]

they have started it down our way, looks like most are council homes, and they do look good after all the works done, it seems to add on about 4 inches so the windows and doors do look further back, i live in a terrace and my door goes straight onto the street so i am sure i cannot go the external way, that would look very very odd in the street

Quite right Steve, some councils have already started.

Need to get myself a nice big contract and I can retire to the Phils with you. lol .

[lastlid]

I had economy 7 storage heaters many years ago and they were a nightmare. Mugs game. I ripped em out and installed gas central heating.

[lastlid]

Do be careful when having any insulation related work done on your house as it can alter the character and integrity of the look and structure of your biggest asset. Particularly cavity wall related work.

Free cavity wall insulation might sound enticing but it won't be free if they bodge it or use a naff process / materials.

(I never trusted a second hand car dealer or a double glazing salesman and I exercised a lot of caution when I purchased my cavity wall insulation some 15 years ago).

There's a lot of bad history in this area of home improvements.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/x-ray/201...ity-wall.shtml

"In the last year, dozens of viewers contacted X-Ray about problems in their homes, which started after cavity wall insulation was fitted - from damp, mould, and rotten skirting boards to crumbling plasterwork.

The body which guarantees cavity wall insulation work, CIGA (Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency), says houses should be surveyed pre-installation, to ensure suitability.

But installer Tim Kaye says the surveys he receives are often of poor quality.

"Anything that could go wrong on a survey sheet, I think has gone wrong," he said.

"We turn up at houses regularly that have damp. If you were to pump the property it would make it worse."

Even when installers are concerned houses are not suitable, he claims company managers put pressure on them to do the work.

"It's very much 'If you don't do it, someone else will'," he said.

Installers are paid piecework, so the more houses they insulate, the more they get paid. Tim claims this leads some installers to rush jobs - also leading to problems."

"His fears about the quality of pre-installation surveys are shared by a second industry whistleblower, Richard Newman. He spent two months last year working in the North of England as a subcontracted surveyor for a cavity wall insulation company which also operates in Wales.

With no formal training and after just one day shadowing another employee, he says he was sent to sign people up for cavity wall insulation."

A quick squint on the internet will reveal similar documents / stories.

[Dedworth]

I had economy 7 storage heaters many years ago and they were a nightmare. Mugs game. I ripped em out and installed gas central heating.

They work fine here the only drawback is at the start/end of the cold weather when you are having to think ahead 24 hours about switching them on or off. The Warm Air is a good top up and handy for a blast of instant heat. House is cavity wall insulated, double glazed and loft insulated so retains warmth well.

I'm glad I left behind broken pumps, thermocouples, sludged up radiators to bleed.

Pikey 7 also means low dishwasher and washing machine running costs

[lastlid]

They work fine here the only drawback is at the start/end of the cold weather when you are having to think ahead 24 hours about switching them on or off.

Exactly. How's your weather forecasting skills?


How do you heat your hot water?

And I am sure you will find that gas central heating is cheaper than Pikey 7 storage heating. It certainly was in our case.

I have storage heating now on the equivalent of economy 7 and can't wait to get back to gas central heating.

The biggest and cheapest source of heat you can harness is from the sun so get yourself a south facing house with a lot of windows. It worked for me. Big semi with huge glass double glazed bays - we got the sun in through our windows all day long. Didn't need heating for half of the winter.

[Dedworth]

The biggest and cheapest source of heat you can harness is from the sun so get yourself a south facing house with a lot of windows. It worked for me. Big semi with huge glass double glazed bays - we got the sun in through our windows all day long. Didn't need heating for half of the winter.

I'll stick to our south facing detached with expensive double glazing

[lastlid]

I'll stick to our south facing detached with expensive double glazing

But then you have spoilt it by going kuripot on the heating with the storage heaters.

How many times have you switched your storage heaters on overnight to find that its a glorious sunny day outside and the stored heating is wasted?

[bigmac]

the cheapest way to heat your home is body heat.

so--if the weather turns colder--simply invite all your friends round--at least a 100 for the average size house. then--crank up the volume--get them all dancing and having a high old time.

i guarantee you wont need any expensive heating.

just a new house.