Problems with off-peak circuit on Economy 7 - any help appreciated!

[Bob 1 57434]

Hi,

So I'm trying to understand what's going on with my off-peak electricity supply, as something's wrong with it and I'm trying to determine if it's the responsibility of my energy supplier or I need to get an electrician out to take a look.

Here are some pics:









I live in a flat that's all electric. The hot water tank and the storage heater in the living room both rely on off-peak circuits to charge overnight.

The easiest way to explain is to provide a timeline:

Weds 6 December - woke up to find the flat cold, which was obviously worrying. Figured it was an issue with my storage heater and tried turning it off and on again. Nothing had tripped in the consumer unit.

Thurs 7 December - storage heater still producing no heat.

Fri 8 December - realised the hot water from the tank was lukewarm (it had stayed warm since Weds due to the insulated tank), and deduced that it probably stopped warming up at the same time that the storage heater stopped working. Contacted my energy supplier but they refused to send anyone out until an electrician has taken a look. The night rate clicked in as expected on my in-home display and on the meter itself, but neither indicator light turned on.

Sat 9 December - figuring the storage heater was a lost cause, I turned both switches off in the early evening. Before I went to bed I stood by the meter cupboard and waited for the clunk to indicate the changeover, which happened at 22:34 (the display on the meter switched from T1 to T2 simultaneously with the clunk). Went to check the indicator light on the off-peak switch for the water tank and it was dormant/no light. Charged the hot water tank for an hour using the on-peak switch to take advantage of the cheap electricity, and then went to bed, keeping the in-home display on my bedside table.

At around 0:15 I noticed it was flashing amber, indicating high energy usage. I hadn't turned anything on so left bed to investigate. I found that the off-peak switch for the water tank was glowing red, and the tank had started to warm up! I then went to the living room and tried turning on the storage heater. This time, the off-peak switch glowed red and the heater seemed to be charging up.

I then went back to bed but kept a close eye on the in-home display, which continued to show high energy usage for half an hour before dropping off to almost nothing at around 0:45 (so overall it seems like there was off-peak supply for half an hour). I left bed to check what had happened, and sure enough the indicator light had turned off at the water tank and at the storage heater. I checked the consumer unit, and as before no switches had tripped.

When I woke up, my in-home display showed a typical cost that would correspond to how much energy I'd use when both devices were working (jumping by around £1 from when I checked before I went to sleep), which makes me think the Economy 7 must have reactivated after I went to bed.

So overall, all very odd. Any theories on what these various symptoms could be pointing towards/what my next course of action should be?

 

[littlespark]

It sounds like its working, but not at the correct times.

Can you do a meter read at night, then again in the morning to see how much is used? (on both rates)

The E.On box on the right is what brings the off peak on and off, but its controlled by e.on themselves... not sure if its through radio waves still or more likely a SIM card.


The earth sticker on the Henley block is a little confusing, but that can be picked off or coloured in.

 

[marconi]

Take a look at your electricity account or a recent bill and tell us the name of the tariff you are on.

Are you with eon or some other company?

what is the make and model number of the storage heaters?

Are there any time switches for the hot water tank peak and off peak heating elements?

Is your electricity meter showing the correct time?

 

[mainline]

Hi,

So I'm trying to understand what's going on with my off-peak electricity supply, as something's wrong with it and I'm trying to determine if it's the responsibility of my energy supplier or I need to get an electrician out to take a look.

Here are some pics:

View attachment 112199


View attachment 112200

View attachment 112201

View attachment 112202
I live in a flat that's all electric. The hot water tank and the storage heater in the living room both rely on off-peak circuits to charge overnight.

The easiest way to explain is to provide a timeline:

Weds 6 December - woke up to find the flat cold, which was obviously worrying. Figured it was an issue with my storage heater and tried turning it off and on again. Nothing had tripped in the consumer unit.

Thurs 7 December - storage heater still producing no heat.

Fri 8 December - realised the hot water from the tank was lukewarm (it had stayed warm since Weds due to the insulated tank), and deduced that it probably stopped warming up at the same time that the storage heater stopped working. Contacted my energy supplier but they refused to send anyone out until an electrician has taken a look. The night rate clicked in as expected on my in-home display and on the meter itself, but neither indicator light turned on.

Sat 9 December - figuring the storage heater was a lost cause, I turned both switches off in the early evening. Before I went to bed I stood by the meter cupboard and waited for the clunk to indicate the changeover, which happened at 22:34 (the display on the meter switched from T1 to T2 simultaneously with the clunk). Went to check the indicator light on the off-peak switch for the water tank and it was dormant/no light. Charged the hot water tank for an hour using the on-peak switch to take advantage of the cheap electricity, and then went to bed, keeping the in-home display on my bedside table.

At around 0:15 I noticed it was flashing amber, indicating high energy usage. I hadn't turned anything on so left bed to investigate. I found that the off-peak switch for the water tank was glowing red, and the tank had started to warm up! I then went to the living room and tried turning on the storage heater. This time, the off-peak switch glowed red and the heater seemed to be charging up.

I then went back to bed but kept a close eye on the in-home display, which continued to show high energy usage for half an hour before dropping off to almost nothing at around 0:45 (so overall it seems like there was off-peak supply for half an hour). I left bed to check what had happened, and sure enough the indicator light had turned off at the water tank and at the storage heater. I checked the consumer unit, and as before no switches had tripped.

When I woke up, my in-home display showed a typical cost that would correspond to how much energy I'd use when both devices were working (jumping by around £1 from when I checked before I went to sleep), which makes me think the Economy 7 must have reactivated after I went to bed.

So overall, all very odd. Any theories on what these various symptoms could be pointing towards/what my next course of action should be?

Have a read of the link to try to determine the times in your area.

What are my Economy 7 Times?

What are my Economy 7 times? So how do you identify the times that your Economy 7 reduced rate period operates? First, you look in your electricity

community.eonnext.com

If it's not switching at those times, then you need to contact the supplier.

 

[Bob 1 57434]

Thanks both, and sorry for going quiet. I ended up hearing electrical crackling (!) from the consumer unit so got an electrician around to take a look, and they found some melted parts from what looked to be a loose connection! It was a bit scary but it's due to all be fixed in a few days now, so is all resolved.

 

[BenCos18]

Thanks both, and sorry for going quiet. I ended up hearing electrical crackling (!) from the consumer unit so got an electrician around to take a look, and they found some melted parts from what looked to be a loose connection! It was a bit scary but it's due to all be fixed in a few days now, so is all resolved.

yeah that's defn not ideal