Saving On Electricity Costs

[eefoo]

It's a long time since the unit cost was 0.05p (3.25 Baht) per unit in the UK (60 years?) but it's not just the UNIT COST but also the extra QUARTERLY STANDING CHARGE (40 quid last time I get a leccy bill in UK 5 years ago) that makes it so expensive in UK.

From the nPower website it's between 13.600p and 21.600p (excluding 17%VAT) per unit for the first 728kWh per year and then between 11.410p and 14.190p (excluding 17%VAT) per unit thereafter depending on your Payment Plan unless you use the electric at night when it can be as 'cheap' as 4.420p (excluding 17%VAT) per unit.

So even at the cheapest unit cost of 4.420p the leccy in Thailand is only 1.13% (excluding 17%VAT) of the cost of leccy in UK and 0.23% (excluding 17%VAT) of the 'standard' unit cost in UK.

At todays Baht rate (From the TV link) of 66 to the pound, I make 3.25 Baht to be about 5p which makes it slightly more expensive than nPower's cheapest rate, and about 1/4 (25%) of the expensive rate (ignoring standing charges and VAT) give-or-take. Therefore I think we can say that electricity in Thailand is significantly cheaper overall than its equivalent in UK. Problem solved - argument over. How much you use - and how big your resulting bill is, is completely up to you.

PattayaParent - not sure how you came up with the highlighted numbers. There seems to be a problem with decimal point positions

[PattayaParent]

You're right it 0.05 Quids = 5p. It's been a long time since I used that funny money.

[telaksslave]

Why all this talk about airconditioner usage when debating telaksslave's original assertion that electricity is double the price of UK. How much you use is totally irrelevant in this argument - the price per unit is what is important. Using more will simply put your bill up, and could make it several times a bill in UK without taking into account the amount of electricity bought for that price.

Does anyone have any actual figures for electricity prices per unit in UK, as opposed to 'my bill is/was' sort of tales. Then perhaps we can figure out whether telaksslave's initial statement was right or wrong before he back-pedalled with this quote:-

" but perhaps there isn't a lot of difference in the unit charge, it is what the cost of running air con is and any farang who tells me they prefer to live without air con it is normally because they cant afford to run it or they are super kinyaws "

lets get one thing straight its not my thread, and how am i back peddling ?? so that 2 counts ur incorrect on i was making a statement, whether it is correct or not, we will see and if you take into account the average salary in Thailand percentage wise it must be a lot more expensive than the UK, why do u think its lights out at about 8pm up in jungle,

[eefoo]

lets get one thing straight its not my thread, and how am i back peddling ?? so that 2 counts ur incorrect on i was making a statement, whether it is correct or not, we will see and if you take into account the average salary in Thailand percentage wise it must be a lot more expensive than the UK, why do u think its lights out at about 8pm up in jungle,

2 counts eh?

I never said it was your thread -

You made a statement - "it's a bug to me that electricity is double the price compared to the UK". Thaifan2, PattayaParent and Begsaresponse queried it quite strongly. Your later quote - "but perhaps there isn't a lot of difference in the unit charge" looks like a backpedal to me -

As the thread seemed to have gone off tracks into the realms of how much it cost to run an a/c I was interested in whether electricity was actually more expensive here than UK or not. I think we've shown that it isn't, and no mention of 'relative to salary' was ever brought into it.

.... and lights out "up in jungle" is early because they are up at dawn and work hard in the fields all day, not because they can't afford a baht to keep a flourescent tube burning for a few hours.

[Lancashirelad]

1 x 60 watt tube (once started) will run for over 16 hours on ONE unit.

1 unit = 1 kilowatt hour.

..... and those small size tubes they tend to use are low wattage.

[telaksslave]

1 x 60 watt tube (once started) will run for over 16 hours on ONE unit.

1 unit = 1 kilowatt hour.

..... and those small size tubes they tend to use are low wattage.

and also you tend to get through a lot more bulbs here, they seem to blow quicker hehe here we go again

[Cuban]

...tend to get through a lot more bulbs here, they seem to blow quicker hehe here we go again

I believe the ever so popular radio advert is talking about tungsten filament light bulbs blowing rather than fluorescent tubes.

Also I note that the radio advert labors the 'approval' CE mark. But what exactly does this mean ?

Source: Officially, CE has no meaning as an abbreviation, but may have originally stood for Communauté Européenne (European Community) or Conformité Européenne (European Conformity).

Is this product safety tested and approved by EU standards authorities?

Can someone that has bought one comment on this matter.

[Basil B]

...tend to get through a lot more bulbs here, they seem to blow quicker hehe here we go again

I believe the ever so popular radio advert is talking about tungsten filament light bulbs blowing rather than fluorescent tubes.

Also I note that the radio advert labors the 'approval' CE mark. But what exactly does this mean ?

Source: Officially, CE has no meaning as an abbreviation, but may have originally stood for Communauté Européenne (European Community) or Conformité Européenne (European Conformity).

Is this product safety tested and approved by EU standards authorities?

Can someone that has bought one comment on this matter.

As far as I know there is now one organization that enforces "CE" within the EU, it is up to each manufactures to en shore that his product meets with the required standards.

There are loads of test houses who will test and check any product for conformity, but a manufacturer can certify any product themselves if they so wish, enforcement comes when products sold in the EU fail to comply with CE and the manufacturer, importer and retailers may face prosecution.

Normally prosecution for non conformity will arise from incidents where users get hurt, product catches fire or the product radiates to much radio interference.

As for the product in question just from the documents posted and reports of it overheating would make "CE" conformity questionable.

BB

[PattayaParent]

As for the product in question just from the documents posted and reports of it overheating would make "CE" conformity questionable

You're starting from the very dubious premise that the electricity supply in Thailand is as reliable as the electricity supply in the EU, or indeed reliable at all!

[desktop]

Total elec cost = 40 baht month

How to: Install your own ground. Connect it to your main breaker box on the 'non-power' side.

Disconnect the 'non-power' side going into your meter. Done.

Had this setup when purchased a used home. Wondered why elec bill was 40 baht/month every month.

Workman discovered the setup, I reported it to the elec co. same time (2 months after moving in).

They charged ME a penalty.

[Cuban]

How to: Install your own ground. Connect it to your main breaker box on the 'non-power' side.

Disconnect the 'non-power' side going into your meter. Done.

Am I understanding you correctly - someone had disconnected the neutral feed from the electric company's meter and substituted a locally installed electrical earth. Yes, I imagine someone would get fined for doing this, it is bypassing the meter. Correcting the situation and recovering the lost revenue (estimate of the following month's bills?) would be the right thing to do.

[KKK]

Why all this talk about airconditioner usage when debating telaksslave's original assertion that electricity is double the price of UK. How much you use is totally irrelevant in this argument - the price per unit is what is important. Using more will simply put your bill up, and could make it several times a bill in UK without taking into account the amount of electricity bought for that price.

Does anyone have any actual figures for electricity prices per unit in UK, as opposed to 'my bill is/was' sort of tales. Then perhaps we can figure out whether telaksslave's initial statement was right or wrong before he back-pedalled with this quote:-

" but perhaps there isn't a lot of difference in the unit charge, it is what the cost of running air con is and any farang who tells me they prefer to live without air con it is normally because they cant afford to run it or they are super kinyaws "

A couple of years ago I found a UK website where you could put in your postcode (so the system knows where you are) then say how much power you use per month and submit. They would come back with a quote from all the different power companies in that area for you to compare. I tried it for Kingston, Surrey with my usage here in Pattaya. The cheapest was British Gas (gas company selling electricity!!) who would have been at least 50% more than Thailand. Other companies double to triple. It's really hard to compare unit for unit price as here the unit rate increases the more units you use. A sliding upwards scale. In Kashmir, India its exactly the opposite..a sliding downwards scale. The more you use the cheaper it gets. How the UK scales or not scales I have no idea but you can only really compare an average months usage in kWh you can't do it by the single unit.

[KKK]

Take a look at these:

http://www.plugandsave.com/index.php

http://www.boondee.net/

note especially on the second website a gadget that makes your meter GO BACKWARD.

No recommendations...no responsibility.......don't come back to me if they don't work or you get into trouble...You're on your own...

[Naam]

Model 3000kw Version

:D

http://www.boondee.net/electric-power-saver/3phase.html

[timekeeper]

Take a look at these:

http://www.plugandsave.com/index.php

http://www.boondee.net/

note especially on the second website a gadget that makes your meter GO BACKWARD.

No recommendations...no responsibility.......don't come back to me if they don't work or you get into trouble...You're on your own...

they won't ship the backward one within Thailand

they will only export it

no surprise there........

[timekeeper]

Take a look at these:

http://www.plugandsave.com/index.php

http://www.boondee.net/

note especially on the second website a gadget that makes your meter GO BACKWARD.

No recommendations...no responsibility.......don't come back to me if they don't work or you get into trouble...You're on your own...

they won't ship the backward one within Thailand

they will only export it

no surprise there........

sit down before reading.....

ready??

they want 549 euros for box and shipping to UK

i will get my missus to ask in Thai and see what the thai price is

[Cuban]

Model 3,000 kw Version

I think you knock them up in your workshop.

I found a picture that explains why the lights in Pattaya dim when you turn your pond's fountain pump on.

[BSJ]

Hi enfield, if it works, and I stress 'IF', it will probably take 15 years to payback the investment! There is not a lot you can do to mains source power to make it better. And in lab tests with an oscilloscope I have rarely seen a sine wave that is as bad as the one in the OP's pix's!

[elkangorito]

The OP doesn't have any pics