ENERGY MATTERS

[Tizer]

And they changed from steam to leccy long before we changed from steam to diesel.

[Stanley]

[Tizer]

Reading an article about alternative fuels for ships led me to this report from December 2017 which I hadn't heard about...
`A new all-electric cargo ship with a massive 2.4 MWh battery pack launches in China' LINK

[Tripps]

Of course when the need arises we could always slow down the pace of life, and go back to the simpler,old fashioned, green method - direct application of the wind. Clipper ships

[chinatyke]

I went for a walk today and noticed that someone (China Southern Power Grid) has erected new pylons and they are in the process of installing the insulators. These were hanging down and they are an enormous length. We already have a 500 kV HVDC transmission line passing nearby and I think this could be a second one. Associated with the HVDC line is an AC balance line, something to do with stabilising the power. Power is transmitted 600 miles from the hydroelectric plant to Guangzhou.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HVDC_Tian%E2%80%93Guang
If it is warm enough tomorrow I'll nip down on my bike and take some photos.
It's funny how we take this infrastructure for granted. I paid my monthly electric bill today, about 16 quid, every little helps!

[Stanley]

I like monthly bills China, you always know where you are and no nasty surprises. My combined gas and leccy bill is climbing slowly as winter comes. It's about £50 a month now and will go much higher. But.... I have the satisfaction of knowing I am as close to paid on as I can be.

[Big Kev]

Apparently British Gas are offering one of the cheapest fixed price tariffs at the moment and throwing in free boiler cover, the downside is it's only a 12 month deal.
It's only available on comparison sites and it's not automatically offered to existing customers, you also need to have smart meters so it's probably just BG dangling a carrot to meet their smart meter obligation.

[Tizer]

EDF keep trying to push us towards a smart meter but to avail. Talking of EDF, as well as supplying our leccy they deal with our solar generation. This morning we received this email message from them...

Sign up to EDF Energy grid services and save at least £1,500 off our standard Powervault 3 battery package price. So why wait? Upgrade your solar PV system with a smart battery and take advantage of our exclusive offer and you could start saving on your energy bills.
Powervault 3 gives you increased value from your solar PV system. Here’s how:
• Power more of daily life with the free energy you generate
• Store energy for when you need it
• Save money up front when you sign up to EDF Energy 10 year grid services contract
• Save more by charging on cheap, off-peak electricity (E7 Meters)
• Reduce your reliance on electricity supplied by the grid
Powervault 3 comes with a ten-year warranty so in the unlikely event anything goes wrong you can relax knowing you’re fully covered. It’s also easy to install so there’ll be minimal disruption to your home while the fully-qualified engineer is there.
Please note this offer for Powervault 3 is exclusive to EDF Energy and discounts are only available when signing up to EDF Energy 10 year grid services contract as part of this offer. All offers are subject to stock availability and can be removed at any time. Please note this offer is not available in conjunction with any other offer. LINK

[Big Kev]

Why the aversion to smart meters?

[Tripps]

I think you're 'in the trade' now Kev. Here's a bit of feedback.

There is almost zero benefit to me.

I'm OK with reading the meter every month, and supplying the reading to my supplier Octopus.

However it gives the supplier (maybe not now, but who knows what the future holds) the possibility of tight control of my supply. They could switch it off if demand was high, or charge a varying tariff depending on the time of day. Whatever anyone says about it - if I don't swap - they cant do it.

The numbers used regarding the savings to be made in the relentless campaign to get us to change are dubious. They read the weasel words out after every advert as they are obliged by law to do. I doubt many listen. The only way to save is to use less.

I have a usage monitor, and it is accurate, and fun to use when I first got it, but surely everyone knows that kettles, heaters, washing machines etc use a lot more energy than LED light bulbs. I don't look at it any more.

I am not a meter Luddite. I changed my water to 'measured' - there was a clear large financial advantage to do so, and if I didn't like it, I could change back to the old system with no fuss.

[Tizer]

Kev, Tripps has saved me the need to respond, I agree with everything he has written in the above post (including his comment about the water meter). All I will add is that both mobile and broadband connections are not reliable here and that might affect the use of smart meters too.

[Pluggy]

At the other end of the scale I volunteered to have smart meters fitted, the bod showed up and threw up his hands in horror, because of all the stuff I have around the meters. The smart meters are larger than the fairly late non smart meters I already have. The electric meter was changed in 2012 because the really ancient meter it replaced ran backwards when the solar panels were doing their thing. The gas meter he said would be a struggle because the new meter is taller and there isn't enough give in the existing gas connections to get it in. So he filled in a form saying he couldn;t do it, recommending I get qualified gas enginners and electricians to make it compatible. and left.

This is my electric meter setup :


Tip left is the solar panels generation, Bottom left is the standard electric meter (import meter). The top right is one I've put in to meter how much we're actually using (which you lose when you have solar panels). Most people with PV panels dpn't know how much they save unless they'r doing an educated guess based on what they used before the panels went in. I know exactly. The bottom left meter meters how much power is going into charging my battery setup. I already have many of the benefits of smart metering, because of the stuff I've put in myself. The one thing it doesn't do is give them the readings.

There is a humongous amount of bullsh#t spouted about smart meters. They can't switch you off, None of the smart meters I've seen have breakers for electric or solenoid valves to isolate gas. They just sit in line and measure like meters have always done with some mobile phone technology to send the readings out. Yes they can change tariff based on when you use stuff, but the energy companies have to pay the data changes for the information transfer. Its lot cheaper for then to send out a reading once or twice a month than it giving readings say every 30 minutes which would need to do to 'spy on you'.

The big selling point is that they can tell you how much its costing you on a moment by moment basis, but that doesn't mean the energy company knows that.

[Tripps]

They could switch it off if demand was high,

Thanks for the correction Pluggy. That obviously is 'fake news'.

I must have read it somewhere, and failed to think it through. It's good to have an expert to moderate the board. I think I stand by the rest of the post.

Seems to have livened up the site though - rare to get so many posts after lunchtime.

[Pluggy]

Its infected badly with the largely American and often religion based conspiracy nut and pseudoscience crap.

[Big Kev]

They fry your brain and watch you in the bath, allegedly

[Wendyf]

Its infected badly with the largely American and often religion based conspiracy nut and pseudoscience crap.

Same with everything.

[Big Kev]

I volunteered to have them too, eventually there will be an additional charge to not have one...

[Stanley]

I was offered a smart meter in the early days and accepted. I have never had any problem with it but agree with David, it doesn't actually save you money. The problem I had with the billing and the enormous debt was nothing to do with the meter, it was their computers and I suspect I wasn't alone. That's sorted now and the smart meter means I can have an accurate monthly bill without me doing anything. I regard that as a benefit.

[Tizer]

`Government must 'get a grip' on Sellafield' LINK
`The UK government must "get a grip" on spiralling costs and project delays that have plagued the Sellafield nuclear site, MPs have warned. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said in a report that some decommissioning projects had already been delayed by more than a decade. It said estimated budget overruns had climbed to nearly £1bn. Sellafield is home to 40% of the world's stock of plutonium which is used to make nuclear bombs. The committee expressed concerns about the government's lack of clarity over what to do with the stockpile...'

[Stanley]

Absolutely right Tiz and the tip of an iceberg. Yet another forgotten corner of public funding!

[Stanley]

I am so grateful for the fact that I have a warm house with no effort at all from me (especially in my present circumstances). We are so lucky! As for the bill for 24 hours a day of constant reliable heat, I pay it with pleasure!

[Stanley]

Just got the October bill, it reflects the colder weather. £72 will come out of my account in 14 days. No worries, I know I'm not building up a deficit!

[Tizer]

I've just submitted our latest quarterly solar FIT reading to EDF. We made 937 kWh in Aug/Sep/Oct, compared with 1739 in May/Jun/Jul and 758 in Fe/Mar/Apr. They are not solar quarters of the year but shifted by a month, which is why the early spring one is lower than the late autumn one. The sun is not as high in the sky.

[Stanley]

Those figures tell the story of the summer don't they Tiz. A good year I would say.....

[Tizer]

I know I keep going on about large dams but....
`Large hydropower dams 'not sustainable' in the developing world' LINK