Having both myself and Mr Boo been made redundant in the past we are now more than ever aware of how our financial situation can change. Having been reckless in the past with our budgeting we would like to think that we are in more control of our bills. One of the areas that we have been blind to is our energy usage. Although we have done the usual things like switch over to energy saving light bulbs etc. our energy bills each quarter are still higher than we would like.
After receiving an email from our energy supplier E.ON just before Christmas regarding the Smart Meter rollout across Britain, we decided to find out a little more about what a Smart Meter is and the benefits of having a Smart Meter installed.
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Why we switched to a Smart Meter
Having registered our interest in getting a Smart Meter installed via the E.ON website, we finally had our Smart Meters installed last month. For us, as a family, there were two main reasons for switching to a Smart Meter. Firstly, the digital readings being sent directly to our energy supplier in order to receive more accurate bills. I can finally say a fond farewell to estimated bills! (one less thing for me to remember to do each month – or not do as the case may be).
Tracking Energy Usage
Secondly, the in-home display which allows us to track energy usage and the amount we are spending on energy. We are all guilty of switching lights on and then leaving them on as we leave the room. Whilst you might think that leaving a light on isn’t going to waste much energy and incur that much of a cost, you’d be surprised at how much this can add up to over a week, month and year. If we adopted this same approach with other appliances throughout the home your energy bills would be jaw-dropping.
The in-home display meter shows near real-time how much energy we are using at any one time. Showing the increase in energy for switching on lights, TV, and appliances around the home. Seeing how much extra energy is required to run these appliances (I never want to use my oven, it costs a fortune to run). Whilst allowing us to think about ways we can run the home more efficiently to save energy usage.
Making savings
Have you really ever given much thought to how much your home costs to run each day? Have you received your bill and divided it by the number of days it covers to find out the average daily cost? No? Me neither.
Just a month into using a Smart Meter and we have already seen a reduction in our energy usage. The in-home display allows us to keep an eye on how much we are spending in near real-time. This is helping us ensure that we are running those appliances efficiently. For example, is the dishwasher or washing machine full before switching it on? Could I use the microwave for cooking smaller meals instead of heating the oven space if not using it at capacity?
More information on Smart Meters
For further information on Smart Meters please visit your energy suppliers website.
Collaborative Article
Photo Credit: Sophia Baboolal Malte Fleuter
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