Struggling to achieve Power Move target!

Why 2am -4am for the washing?

Well

Had my email today 14.59% which is down from 15.5% last month. Not sure what more we can do, used washer, TD, DW outside of 4-7 Mon-Fri. 2 weeks out of 4 shifts mean only me in house so sat in dark starving 🤯. Will try again this month. Would be good to be able to download the data and double check myself.

On a positive note since fixed tariff ended and on extortionate tariff have achieved overall reduction of 1000 KWH for both gas and electric. Thank God for multi fuel stove that keeps house warm, fuel paid for by credit back last year 

Can’t hit my target at all. I mainly use a slow cooker and cook outside of the 4-7 slot, don’t have a tumble drier, wash at 7.30 am and only put heating on for an hour in the morning. I work from home and can’t see how I can use less. Set up to fail I think. I’ll try for another month, but I use as little as possible now...Don’t think I can reduce it unless I turn off my TV and sit in silence in the evenings.

If you log into your account, select “Usage” then select Electric, scroll down you will get the usage for each day

This is tricky. The whole premise can be really hard - after all, we’re being asked to move usage not actually cut down - but you need to look at every single thing you use that’s electrical & consider if you can stop using them in the 4-7 slot, apart from things like the fridge & freezer, WiFi & other constantly on, background stuff. 
I think one thing that needs to be considered is whether you previously used those high usage things like the tumble dryer in the 4-7pm time slot. If you didn’t before, then you’re not going to change your percentage much. Do you normally use the washing machine & tumble dryer in the 4-7 slot?
We’re talking about 3 hours out of 24, & those 3 hours are when we normally come home, cook dinner, put the tv & heating on, make cups of tea, put dishwasher on, have a shower etc - all high usage activities. Anything that heats stuff up is high usage, so kettle, oven, the shower etc need to be moved out of the 4-7 slot. The heating & hot water also. Some tvs kick out a load of heat & are very thirsty for electricity. 
Looking at the maths, (for simplicity) if I used a steady 1kW for each hour of the day the 3 hour slot would be 12.5%. 3/24x100= 12.5%.
If I reduced my usage to just 1 kW for the whole of the 4-7 slot by moving the other 2kW to another time slot it would be 1/24x100= 4.5%

So in order to succeed in this challenge everything electrical needs to be considered & anything movable should be moved, which means changing the heating & hot water timers so the house is warmed by 4 & put back on again at 7 if needed,  cooking before or after 4-7 (or maybe batch cook at the weekend & freeze it). Watch tv programmes on catch up on a laptop. Charge your phones & laptop after 7pm. Make flasks of hot drinks for the evening so the kettle isn’t used. Have a shower after 7 if you have one in the evening. Put the dishwasher on after 7.
My usage last month for the 4-7 time slot was 7.5%, & that was achieved by doing all the above (& I’m a very low user normally so it’s quite hard to reduce/ move). 
This might all be stuff you’re already doing, in which case I’d go round every room & look at what’s plugged in & pull out anything not needed, then look at what keeps your house ticking over & see if it can be moved to another time slot. But definitely move those high-usage items out of the 4-7 slot. 

Hi @Linds ,

It may well be that your constraints do make it impractical for you to do Power Move. However, the other thing you could try is moving any heavy usage tasks from the weekend to weekdays - avoiding, of course, the 4-7 pm slot. 

We use a lot of electricity running a kiln and charging an electric vehicle so can schedule those accordingly. Other high usage tasks include using the washing machine, dryer and dishwasher. If you can move some of them from weekends to weekdays befits 4 pm or after 7 pm you might just hit the target.

Kind regards, 

Simon

Hi @MrsM16  and @Trudi 2463 ,

It is not worth messing up your life for £15 a month. Also, sitting in the dark shivering won't help if you have gas or oil heating. Try to keep roasts and casseroles to weekends but do washing, drying, ironing and dishwashing on weekdays before 4 pm or after 7 pm NOT at the weekend.

Good luck, 

Simon

Solar and Batteries (Lithium Iron Phosphate) and a timer

I definitely think it’s the whole eating before 7pm thing that makes or breaks. I am so lucky that I have a flexible and supportive husband who can be very flexible. He is retired and I work very little so we can be exceedingly flexible. Sometimes we eat before 4pm and sometimes after 7pm and sometimes I prepare the things that need electricity during the day and then use the gas hob.  In all other respects I have been extreme and we don’t watch TV or listen to the radio. We only have one light on and sometimes I even use a powerful free standing torch to light the room and it is charged through the day. I don’t know how achievable it is for a family who have time constraints with children and having to eat between 4-7pm. We use about 9% but we have nothing other than the fridge/freezer and one light running. Good Luck

Hi @Glib How frustrating to miss out by such a tiny percentage, but at least it looks like you'll have it cracked for November and December with whatever excellent strategies you’ve now got in place. 
 

I’d make sure you now check your weekday half-hourly usage stats once a week or so as you go through November to make sure the system doesn’t spring this one on you again! Also, there is a slight difference between working to two places of decimals and to three places, as your automated email demonstrates, so make sure you factor that in…

My own smart meter decided to suddenly cease submitting half-hourly electricity readings between 2nd and 31st October (it kept up with gas readings OK), and to recommence them again on the 2nd November, it must have a whimsical sense of humour is all I can surmise!

Best of luck…

Hi @Johnoutthere, that’s the route I take as well, but it’s a huge capital outlay (my PV panels and main inverter are ten years old now), even for the relatively small 24 volt 100AH LiFePo4 battery I’ve got. 

Of course, to shift power from the 4-7 slot you wouldn’t even need to have solar panels, just the battery and inverter, a regular car-type charger, and a timer, given that an average moderate household consumption (without using any heavy items, of course) of LED lights, TV, ‘fridge/freezer, central heating pump, router, tablets/laptop, mains smoke alarms, PIR outside LED lighting, etc. etc. is probably around 300 Watts an hour, say 1kWh for the entire 4-7 slot. Provided nothing heavy is switched on during that time, of course.

I find it hard to re-charge the battery up here in sunny Sunderland during the six darkest months, as some days my panels generate a daily total  0.5 kWh or even less! Split East/West roof can be a pain!

when your using  far less the the average gas or electricity than the average house  of your size how can you cut your consumption by the amount OVO want this is just a gimmick to give the company green credentials 

I didn’t hit my target for the month either. but l achieved  it for the hour and half for the end of November . it seems easier l don’t know why.

Hi we achieved our target since we started power move we are at home most days so use most of our appliances outside the peak time ie Monday am washer runs about 2 loads into tumble dryer if required cook late lunch either oven ,halogen cooker gas hob ,microwave dishwasher also run in this time period .During peak time 4-7pm use only background power tv,fridge/freezer etc .If weather forecast good for next day may put the washing machine on after 7 pm to hang the washing out first thing 

we aim to follow this plan Monday -Friday and it works for us 

Also stopped using electric kettle using gas hob with old fashioned whistling kettle !
Trying to do our bit for the environment.

The same with me we don’t use washer dishwasher we don’t have a tumble dryer the only item we use to heat is the kettle and may be once a week the toaster.I 

don’t think I will never hit the target.Nice option but unachievable.

People tend to focus on what they can turn off between 4 and 7pm but there is another tactic. It may not be what Ovo want (and could be seen as gaming the system) but, if you can shift heavy usage (e.g. washing machine, oven, dishwasher, tumble dryer, ironing) from the weekend to a weekday (obviously not between 4 and 7pm) then your %age will be lower and you may hit your target.

I charge an EV so make sure to charge midnight to 4pm and 7pm to midnight on weekdays. That works a treat!

That last line is precisely the strategy you need to use! Well put.

If you don’t have a really heavy load you can put on outside the peak during a weekday then it is going to be a struggle to meet the target. My EV has used 64% of my total electric load so far this year so owning one is a massive advantage once you have cracked the strategy.

You may think this is unfair but the rules are not set by Ovo, they are set by the Demand Flexibility Service (DFS - link below) and in very simple terms it is saying - Whatever loads you have don’t put these on the grid during peak hours on a weekday. Choose another time to do this and we can generally avoid having to ask operators of high carbon / high cost power stations (e.g. coal) from either generating on line or having them on standby and we will compensate you.

https://www.nationalgrideso.com/industry-information/balancing-services/demand-flexibility-service-dfs

Peter

I find it impossible to achieve the targets now it is winter. As a single person household where I am really frugal with the power anyway - i do my washing early to use economy 7 rate and every non-residential appliance is off when not in use - so my normal usage is low. 4pm is when it is necessary to have lighting on, but only the room I'm in and I can't cope with having my main meal till well after 7pm as it is too late and I need something hot in the this weather. So short of sitting in the cold by candle light for 3 hours and eating cold food, I can't cut down any more. How do I exit this system?

We too have moved heavy usage from the weekend to weekdays during the day. Laundry and dishwashing is done on weekdays now and I try not to vaccum or use hairdryer unless it is a week day. I think our biggest ‘saving’ is by not watching the television or cooking between 4-7pm. We only use a room with low energy light bulbs rather than the kitchen which has halogen lights. If I need to use the kitchen in those hours I use a previously charged torch that lights the whole room. We boil the kettle and fill a flask just prior to 4pm so we can have drinks. We eat either before 4pm or after 7pm having prepared as much as we can before hand. For November we managed 6.74% so we are really pleased and has inspired us to continue. I will often go out for a walk at 4pm which gives me exercise and stops me using appliances. When I get back I have a hot drink and either read a book or watch TV episodes on my previously charged laptop … it’s actually improving my quality of life by making me take some ‘me time’.

One of the things I do as a single person is to cook something with 3 or 4 portions for my evening meals outside of peak hours on Monday and Thursday. Then all I have to do at 5 o’clock is microwave something for a few minutes to have a hot evening meal. 
 

I also make sure my laptop and phone are fully charged before 4 o’clock (so I can turn the TV etc off at the wall), and I boil the kettle just before 4, so then I just spend a few hours watching YouTube or reading, with my only electricity draw being an energy saving lightbulb, a plate in the microwave, and the background fridge freezer/router. 
 

Combined with using the washing machine and dishwasher on weekday mornings, I’ve averaged under 10% every challenge so far. 

Hit it every month, this month's we used 7.47% during peak times. We have an EV and the wife does lots of miles a week it's never charged at peak time and it's by far our biggest consumer of electric. That said we don't generally do too much at peak time as I'm not home from work to nearly 6 and all washing and drying is done at the weekend and dishwasher run outside of peak

I don’t understand how I failed to meet the required target through November, I would like detailed ½ hourly usage readings because

1 between 4-7pm every day i switched off EVERYTHING with the exception of fridge/freezer, and a tv on standby. All washing, drying, dishwasher and heating have been outside these times.

2 my in home monitor was showing that it was the lowest usage during these times also.

i feel that either its being fudged by ovo so as not to pay out and/or there’s something wrong or inconsistent with the way they take the readings.