Adding a Smart Gas Meter

[nowty]

I have a SMETS 2 Smart Meter fitted by Octopus Energy for my Leccy and an old legacy (non smart) gas meter from a different supplier which went bust so I am now with British Gas (not by choice) but they have now offered me a smart meter. So I have applied for one being installed 16th Nov.

I believe because I have a SMETS2 leccy meter, the gas meter which will have a 10 year+ battery in it, will piggy back onto my SMETS2 Leccy meter comms hub, at least, that's in theory, so we shall see on the 16th.

Also the current reading is one unit less than the official reading because when PFP Energy went bust they would not accept the actual reading because I hardly use any gas, so I had to add 1 unit for them to accept it. I still need to use 0.2 of a therm (about 6kWh or 1 week of gas cooking) for the reading to be the same as what BG they think it was over a month ago so even then it will look as if I have used no gas for 2 months.

I feel its going to be a rerun of my favourite Rik Mayall (RIP) & Ade Edmondson episode of Bottom, "Gas" from 1991, back from my University days.

I feel the gas man is going to say.....................skip to 1:40

PS - Because of Storage Heater boost on 5p / kWh and running a GSHP on time shifted leccy via batteries, my house is very warm.

[Tinbum]

I have an electric meter that the meter read is still ahead and I've changed suppliers more than 3 times. The last but one supplier knew their reading was ahead but it was too hard to rectify as the error was 2 suppliers earlier. My latest wants to install a smart meter but I naturally don't one one.

[Stinsy]

Why do you pay the standing charge Nowty? Surely you could disconnect?

[Oliver90owner]

It now costs over £1.80/week just to not use any gas in our house!

[nowty]

Why do you pay the standing charge Nowty? Surely you could disconnect?

With the ripple wind turbine and the TOU cheap rate, if it stays this cheap to compete with gas that is becoming a REAL possibility. But for now I still have the gas boiler plumbed in parallel with the GSHP and I know I'll need it Dec / Jan / Feb if only a little. Its been switched off since end April this year.

I have a couple of ideas, either to add an ASHP and parallel it up with the GSHP or to add a separate air to air heatpump which would also do air con for the summer. Could even do both.

But I am blown away on how easy the system is working with the Octopus Intelligent tariff giving me 6 hrs of 5p / kWh, those 2 extra hours of cheap rate compared with standard octopus Go are really making the difference with the storage heaters and recharging my large battery bank without risk of blowing my main fuse.

At the beginning of last month I made a pledge to try and limit my domestic gas to a max of 2000 kWh a year, having reduced it from a peak of 28,000 kWh 11 years ago down to a record low of 4009 kWh in 2019.

Message 46
https://camelot-forum.co.uk/phpBB3/view ... t=40#p3073

[Stinsy]

I’ve been considering an air-to-air to do some of the heavy lifting and reduce my gas usage. Really is a no-brainier cost wise in the cheap period. Even in the peak period the economics don’t look bad.

3.5kW or 5kW units are available fully fitted for £1000-1500.

The £80 a year (I guess) you’re paying as a standing charge buys you 1600kWh of cheap-rate electric. Which would give you 4800kWh of heat (at a CoP of 3) from a HP.

[Adokforme]

I’ve been considering an air-to-air to do some of the heavy lifting and reduce my gas usage. Really is a no-brainier cost wise in the cheap period. Even in the peak period the economics don’t look bad.

3.5kW or 5kW units are available fully fitted for £1000-1500.

The £80 a year (I guess) you’re paying as a standing charge buys you 1600kWh of cheap-rate electric. Which would give you 4800kWh of heat (at a CoP of 3) from a HP.

Couldn't have put it better myself Stinsy. We ditched gas 18 months ago and have absolutely no regrets. All space heating served by two A to AHSP's, DHW from PV or Octopus Go Faster overnight and cooking superbly covered by an induction hob. Aren't they just so much easier to clean than a gas equivilant!
Go on Nowty, if anyone could make it work, then I reckon you could!

[Andy]

All space heating served by two A to AHSP's

How noisy are the ashp in operation? I don't mean in a start up period as that could be noisier. More when they are up to speed and trickling heat in to the room?

[nowty]

The £80 a year (I guess) you’re paying as a standing charge buys you 1600kWh of cheap-rate electric. Which would give you 4800kWh of heat (at a CoP of 3) from a HP.

Now I've been forced to join British Gas its £95 standing charge, up from £55 with PFP Energy.

[Adokforme]

All space heating served by two A to AHSP's

How noisy are the ashp in operation? I don't mean in a start up period as that could be noisier. More when they are up to speed and trickling heat in to the room?

Ours are timed to start in the middle of the Go Faster tariff, circa 04.00. With the internal unit sited just outside our bedroom door it's barely audible, certainly not sufficient to wake either of us(we are not yet at the stage where we have hearing aids to remove each night). There are various settings which can be applied both in terms of noise level and air direction so plenty of options to choose from. The external unit is mounted on the gable end wall, just above our heads. In the still of the night it's just about audible, but no more so than the central heating circulating pump it replaced. Again it has yet to disturb either of us. It's usually my bladder that does that!