Skip to main content

How to optimise Power Move Flex on a weekday

  • July 17, 2025
  • 14 replies
  • 596 views

My first opportunity to play Power Move Flex from 2-3pm today Thursday and I can’t quite recall if that’s the one where 1; I get free electricity, or 2; an incentive if I use more juice for an hour… or is it less (3)? I assume it’s not 4; gas which is a relief as the thought of turning on the gas central heating in this heatewave is already making me sweat! So, on the assumption it’s 1 or 2, I guess the tactic is the same; burn through as much power as possible?   My only problem is that we don’t have a tumble dryer, preferring a washing line in the yard, and I did our weekly 30o washing machine load yesterday; and a full dishwasher load overnight…? So how can we burn more juice this afternoon?  Ideas welcome. We had planned a salad tonight, but if I dig that chicken (planned for Sunday lunch) out of the freezer, and roast it on warp speed from 2-3pm, it’ll hopefully still be edible this weekend?  Obviously I could turn all the lights on, although that seems odd in the middle of the dsy. And if I turn on the television in the bedroom and the spare set in the utility room as well as the main one in the lounge…. Oh and the radio. I can probably do my neighbour’s washing for them if I ask nicely; maybe even load the dishwasher if they and the neighbours on the other side have some dirty dishes….  And charge my Fitbit…Anyone got any better ideas?  Gotta burn more power?

14 replies

  • Carbon Cutter****
  • July 17, 2025

Just do the best that you can. l have opted in for today’s as well. l am not working as on holiday this week and next. l don’t know if l used enough yesterday. so it’s a trial and error l am not going to worry just go with the flow.


Emmanuelle_OVO
Community Manager
  • Community Manager
  • July 17, 2025

Hey ​@alexmac,

Your event notification emails will have all of the details you need to know, what you need to do, when you need to do it and what you’ll get in return 🙂

If you’re part of the free electricity group then your performance in that weeks events earn you free electrcity the following week, but it should explain this in the email notification.

The idea isn't to use more, it's to move when you’d normally use energy ike washing, cooking, cleaning etc. 

Hope this helps.


 


  • Carbon Cutter****
  • July 17, 2025

I had a notification for the power move yesterday but I've not had a power move flex notification for today. Is it a power up or down? Just to confirm, it's 2 - 3pm? 


Forum|alt.badge.img
  • Carbon Cutter****
  • July 17, 2025

The amount of offers OVO has seems hard to keep track. Thought power move flex was about EV car charging and keeping the car plugged in for longer 😅


Blastoise186
Plan Zero Hero
Forum|alt.badge.img+1
  • Plan Zero Hero
  • July 17, 2025

This time around, Power Move Flex has multiple use cases - plugging in an EV is just one of them.


Abby_OVO
Community Manager
  • Community Manager
  • July 18, 2025

Hey ​@Belinda5 

 

Would you be able to share a screenshot of the email you’ve had?

 

@NathanEV  Blastoise186 has left some good advice on this, in June we started inviting eligible customers to the next series of Power Up event, (eligible Charge Anytime customers were contacted first, so I can understand the confusion).

 

For more information on the next series of Power Move Flex events, please visit Power Move Flex or check out our Forum topic below:

 

 


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter*****
  • July 19, 2025

I’m not sure if I’m getting this right. Despite what Emmanuelle says (lovely name that by the way; did you see the 1974 film?) my emails from OVO are a bit opaque. The last one says “ the 10 communities that shift the most electricity earn a bonus, shared by all members who take part…” so I’ve got as many neighbours in the street as I can persuade into joining me to blow as much juice as they can. We all turned on our irons and ovens and tumble dryers and toasters at the same time. A pity this was on one of the hottest days of the year so the house soon became intolerable but we made it easier by having a drinks party outside. Trouble is, a couple of em ain’t with OVO but with Octopus or British Gas but I mugged em into joining in on the promise of a couple of glasses of well chilled Picpul du Pinet (do you know it? A brilliant white wine from Languedoc- much better than and cheaper than Sauvignon or Chardonnay?). So we should win the prize for the community that shifts the most- hands down. Can’t wait to see my end month bill?


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter*****
  • July 20, 2025

Ah- as like ​@NathanEV NathanEV above, I was struggling with the complexity of OVO offers, emails, etc, I’m grateful for ​@Abby_OVO giving us pointers to bits of the website as she does above. Mixed results I’m afraid Abbs?  You refer to suggestions that we…

  • “Schedule smart appliances…(long list of gadgets) …through smart home devices like Amazon Alexa.
  • …save certain activities for Power Up times, like drying your hair, ironing your clothes, or charging your devices.
  • Try batch cooking meals during Power Up sessions…”

trouble is, nothing in my home is smart so I’d have to chuck away my existing home appliances (which ain’t very green?). And I refuse to have an Alexa listening in (my name’s Alex, and whenever I’m in a home with one, the intrusive bottess joins the conversation every time someone addresses me by name!). I don’t iron (linen crumples the minute you put it on anyway) nor dry my hair as there is none (I began to lose it almost 40 years ago when I turned 40 and two bouts of cancer in 2018 and 2023 didn’t help). Batch cooking, however… mmm; there’s an idea. Gonna dash out and buy loads of tasty mackerel (I usually eat lamb but that takes too long to cook.) Thanks Abby


Emmanuelle_OVO
Community Manager
  • Community Manager
  • July 21, 2025

Hey ​@alexmac,

Power Move Flex is about shifting electricity usage from a time when you would have used it into the Power Up time window if you can - it's not about using more energy than you need. For some power up events you may not be able to shift much, it’s best to partake in the events you think will fit in with your capabilites. We appreciate not everyone has the same circumstances or lifestyles 😊


Our FAQs state this: 

"Power Up events are about shifting activities you would have done at another time into this specific time slot - not to use more than you usually would. "

https://www.ovoenergy.com/terms/power-move-flex-terms

Power Down events might suit you more, Power Down events - you’ll be asked to shift your electricity usage out of this time period – that means running energy intensive tasks outside of these times.

This topic might have some helpful information:
 


& thank you for the wine recommendations!!! Very much appreciated haha...


Forum|alt.badge.img
  • Carbon Catcher*
  • July 28, 2025

@Emmanuelle_OVO 

How do you know whether to opt in to an event when it is unclear how Power Flex Move calculates your typical usage for that time period ?


Abby_OVO
Community Manager
  • Community Manager
  • July 29, 2025

Hey ​@DuncanL 

 

I checked with the Power Move Flex team about this and they’ve said;

 

‘It takes the last 10 working days without events into account when calculating the baseline for events within the week. It's the same baseline used in the Demand Flexibility Service (P376 for those interested).

It's definitely one for us to monitor to ensure we've got the right trade-off between sufficient events for statistical significance as part of the trial, and reliable baselining. 

We'd like to reassure customers that we're continually validating the accuracy of the baselining method against the control group, and may take corrective measures if any glaring issues are highlighted.

By testing this baselining method, and any potential issues that come with it, we are still directly informing the future of flexibility markets and both feedback and participation levels in events are key to helping shape the future of the energy grid.’

 

I hope this helps to clear that up for you, if you’ve got any other questions please don’t hesitate to ask.😊


Forum|alt.badge.img
  • Carbon Catcher*
  • July 29, 2025

@Abby_OVO 

Thank you for your reply but it doesn’t really answer the query I asked about the baseline previously but was never replied to.

 

Since the summer trial began, I have had a Power Move Flex event every day except for the two days I have had Free Hours.  Assuming that days with Free Hours events are also ignored for working out the baseline then this means that my baseline remains fixed at the same 10 days prior to the trial commencing rather than the rolling 10 days it is surely intended to be.  It will remain fixed at these 10 days as long as there are daily PMF events.


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter*****
  • August 8, 2025

Drat; after a lovely morning (swim in the Lido, walk in the park, coffee out, lunch...) I turn on the computer to clear out my emails… and find that I had a “Power Move Flex” offer form 1-2pm today if I opt in… via an email which I opened at 13.56..!  Now- how much energy can I use in the next 6 minutes..?  (I must get out less)


Ben_OVO
Community Manager
  • Community Manager
  • August 11, 2025

Ah that’s a shame ​@alexmac! Easily done though. 

 

Hopefully you’ll be able to make use of the next offer...