[meldrewreborn]

OK so we can see that your Mum has some sort of economy 7 meter. These have two prices charged one for daytime use and one for off peak. You have provided the tariff details for us but not the consumption figures. I think a better photo of the labels attached to the meters might help because they show the readings when they were fitted. With a current reading (one looks like a smart meter), consumption might be inferred.

The radiators fitted are presumably night storage radiators. Older versions of these are notoriously difficult to manage because they store the heat at night and release it during the next day, and changes to the weather can necessitate opening windows to release the unwanted heat. The storage radiators should only be on at the time the cheap rate is available, but I have known instances where the timings are out - resulting in expensive electricity being used instead. More modern storage radiators have much better controls and are not as wasteful. Pictures of the radiators and controls would be helpful.

Water heating is another big user of power and here too there should be a timer to ensure the water is heated in the off peak period. But these can be set incorrectly again leading to increased costs. Theunknowntech will be along soon.

[theunknowntech]

Sorry for the delay, this is taking me longer than usual to figure out and I need to be confident before I'm happy to post a proper reply. I've not forgotten you, there's just some added complications that I've noticed.

Based on what you've said, I also don't think I can easily pull off a Creep Test either, so I'm currently discussing this with my friend Blastoise186 for advice. He's more experienced than me but doesn't monitor this forum himself.

Thanks for understanding

[Confusedofbromsgrove]

Thanks for your help, its really appreciated

[theunknowntech]

Ok I'm back. Sorry for the wait! Blastoise186 has been extremely busy this week and he's not had much chance to respond to me on Discord or Jitsi Meet until just now. Here's what he's advised for you to do.

Originally Posted by blastoise186

Hey TUT, sorry for not getting back to you! I've had a read through what you said and ultimately I think the only way we can figure this out would be a Creep Test. It's not the ideal solution because the only other way to test the meter would be a chargeable Meter Accuracy Test and I know you'd rather not make people do that without good reason. I think it'd be best for the user to assist their mother with the process as it can be tricky for some people to do. I just got done writing up a new version of my Creep Test instructions on Confluence though, so you should see them now if you check the space again. Thanks for pointing out my mistakes in the last one!

With that, I've got the next steps for you. It's extremely important that you only perform this test during the day because you'll temporarily lose all power as part of the process. If your mother relies on electricity for medical reasons or similar, please don't perform this test as I'd rather not risk disrupting supply to critical equipment.

With that said, here's what to do.

1. Safely shut down all electrical/electronic equipment but leave a single light on
2. Grab a torch - it may come in handy
3. Take a meter reading from the electric meter, ideally from both registers as you've got Economy 7 (ignore the Smart Meter, that's probably for someone else) and note these down
4. Turn off the power to the entire property using the fusebox/consumer unit
5. Observe the electric meter for around 10 minutes - ALL dials and rotors should stop spinning completely within 30 seconds
6. After 10 minutes, take another meter reading and note it down
7. Turn the power back on and you can now power up anything you turned off before the test
8. Please let me know the results of the test and the readings both before and after it.

Based on the test results, I'll then give you advice based on what I think is best.

[Confusedofbromsgrove]

thanks, will do