banny123:

My combined electric and gas bill through EON is around £240 per month but have been on estimated bills. Looking at the difference between the estimated figures and the actual meter readings I think we owe an extra £500 on top of that. We have only been here 6 months. That would make the true monthly bill over £300 per month. We only live in a 4 bed detatched - does this sound expensive ??

Hi banny

On the face of it, this does seem high but leaving your heating on for long periods will certainly contribute to this cost.

We've an Energy Efficiency team who can advise about not only using your heating more efficiently but also on many other ways you may be able to cut back. I would have a chat to this team. Give them a list of your appliances and they'll be happy to suggest ways to save.

Ask for a copy of a booklet called '100 ways to save money by saving energy.' It's free and contains lots of useful advice.

Check out our website, too; particularly the Interactive House and Energy Menu. More good tips here.

With your account, let us know the actual meter readings and we can make sure it's billed accurately. If it turns out there's a debt balance, ask for a payment arrangement to spread the amount over a more manageable period.

Also, make sure you're on the best tariff to suit your circumstances. As mountie says, there are additional discounts available for online management and payment with a Monthly Direct Debit.

I would pop your usage figures in kWh on to the independent comparison sites. These will list out the options available to you with both us and the other suppliers.

Hope this is of some help banny. Give me a shout if you need any more info as will be happy to help further.

Malc

It It certainly sounds horrendous. I am with E.on too and pay £134 oer month for a 4 bed house two bathrooms, and with a gas AGA which use gas 24 hours a day summer and winter!. You cannot be on the best tariff. Change to Online with Direct debit (no paper bills) charging and you should be much better off. Contact them and ask.

Hi, we (3 adults) live in a brick built 4 bed detached Wimpey style home (south of England) with cavity walls (not insulated) double glazing and plenty of loft insulation. We have gas central heating (and a gas fire which we hardly ever use) We have a hall thermostat set at 19-20° C and a heavy curtain (great investment) inside the front door (not double glazed) The heating/hot water runs 3 times (45 minutes) a day, morning, tea-time and just before bed time. We can and do also turn it on for the occasional half hour boosts, once or twice a day if we're at home. We do not use the heating during the summer months (clocks back/forward defined) unless we have an exceptional cold spell. Basically we use the heating to keep the house healthy and put on warmer clothes or an extra blanket on the bed if we feel cold, which isn't very often. Our monthly combined bill with NPower is £80 - £100. I'd take a reading and contact your supplier to check you're not overpaying. Then do some cheap insulation (believe loft insulation is now free to all) don't underestimate this, an extra 4 inches makes a big difference. Good luck.

Yes having the heating and hot water on for only a couple of hours in the morning and the same in the evening would help alot. Most people would have the heating turned off completely over the summer - I try to keep it off from 1 April to 30 September and this year it didn't go back on until at least half way through October as it was so warm with the hot water on for a couple of hours in the morning only.

If you must have the heating on then think about which rooms you are actually using in the evening and heat those only if you can - controls on each of the radiators should allow you to have the heating on in only the rooms you actually need to heat. It sounds like you also need to check your insulation - loft and cavity walls - as you should be able to reduce your bill quite quickly with some improvements and I think there may be grants available to help with the cost.

thanks for your help. We have gas central heating, The gas bill is more than double the electric. The heating is more or less on all day. Would turning it down or off for a few hours a day really make a big difference?

We also have the gas fire on much of the evening. How much effect will the fire have do you think?

Thanks

It does sound expensive and I expect that there will be some scope to economise. Generally money goes more on heating than other things and electric heating costs more than gas. A tank of hot water heated by electricity, for example, could easily cost £100 per month if it is on 24/7. You can check the meters at various times with various appliances on to see where the money goes.

My combined electric and gas bill through EON is around £240 per month but have been on estimated bills. Looking at the difference between the estimated figures and the actual meter readings I think we owe an extra £500 on top of that. We have only been here 6 months. That would make the true monthly bill over £300 per month. We only live in a 4 bed detatched - does this sound expensive ??