For those on Octopus as energy supplier - free power

[Harry Bloomfield]

Free Electricity with Octoplus

octopus.energy

Octopus are giving away an hours worth of free electric, on some days, when there is a surplus on the grid. Usually around between 1pm and 2pm-ish, but they email you to let you know the day before, and the actual timing of the hour. Use as much power as you like, during the hour - all for free, any consumption which for that hour, is higher than your normal consumption.

Put the fan heater on full blast if it's cold, do the washing, put the dishwasher on.

For the none Octopus customers, here's a referral link to become one... https://share.octopus.energy/jade-light-417 - You get £50 off your first bill, I get the same off my bill too, what's not to like?

 

[ericmark]

Interesting, Octopus it seems to have some good deals, but also some odd conditions, to register for an EV tariff, they ask for car and charger details. British Gas don"t, I want off peak for around 2 hours to recharge battery, BG gives 5 hours, which is ample.

This would not be ample for storage heaters, using items at a set time, with dish washer, washing machine, and tumble drier is easy enough as they have delay start timers, but it goes in half hour incruments, and they in the main run for over an hour, dryer 2.5 hours typical.

So in real terms, not something I could use, the battery can be set to charge, but during the day I have solar anyway.

So having a shower is about the only item which could use the power.

If getting free power also means not being paid for solar export, then I would actually loose.

 

[jj4091]

Probably just a gimmick to get people on smart meters.

 

[Taylortwocities]

Probably just a gimmick to get people on smart meters.

Indeed. It sayeth …

You can join Octoplus as long as you have a smart meter and pay by Direct Debit or smart prepay.

 

[securespark]

I don't think I get this deal.

I have Octopus Go with 7p EV charging.

 

[Adam_151]

I don't think I get this deal.

I have Octopus Go with 7p EV charging.

I think you still get it, I'm on agile and apparently I still get it it (though the benifiets to me will be small, as any time this applies, the power is likely to be sub 5p a unit anyway).

I think with go (the inteligent or non-intelligent version?) you get x number of hours at night that are 7p to charge up, but the rest of the time its near to standard price cap unit rate? (sort of like a variation on E7, where you get less hours but a more cheaper rate in those hours) in which case, it'll likely be worthwhile to you, as often thsi free power is in the early afternoon, so anything you use over your along term average for the specific time period on that day would be free, so its worthwhile banging on the washer, diswasher, even charge the car a bit then and save your 7p/unit that you'd pay in the night

 

[Adam_151]

Probably just a gimmick to get people on smart meters.

Well, Yes and No, It does seem that the whole smart meter thing is perhaps just starting to turn a corner and be useful and actually help with energy efficency. If you take the average consumer on a flat rate 24p/kwh, it doesn't matter to them when they do their washing, run the dishwasher, etc. However on a cold winters night, if we have a lot of demand when folk get in from work/school at 4-7pm that is going to need extra generation which often has to be bought in from coal generation. (which is both costly and not great for the environment) Often you might have surplus capacity 1pm-3pm in the after lunch lull, especially if its windy and something has to be done with that, if its not used, then they'll have to pay some of the wind farms to *not* generate instead of paying them to generate. So with the costs the same, if they give away the surplus for free, perhaps the homeworkers will set their washing machines going after lunch, rather than after they clock off, which reduces demand in the evening (and yes, they would be paying their 24p for unit for this, but the energy company isn't making much if anything at all on that, its the most expensive period on the wholesale market and the fixed cost to the consumer takes into account that it'll average out throughout the day.


Obviously at the moment the effects are probably quite limited, but we are slowly moving to a system where demand is shaped in accordance with supply so that we can make better use of the large amount of wind generation this country has installed in the last 15 years or so

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Interesting, Octopus it seems to have some good deals, but also some odd conditions, to register for an EV tariff, they ask for car and charger details. British Gas don"t, I want off peak for around 2 hours to recharge battery, BG gives 5 hours, which is ample.

They have some brilliant deals - I'm just on a normal/no off peak consumption tariff, but I've saved hundreds, by simply moving from the CAP tariff, to the Tracker. The saving were somewhat better, when I first moved to the Tracker, but any saving is worth having. We manage to save a tad more, by making a point of doing the washing etc., when we see a cheaper energy day appear, but it has always been worthwhile saving, day in, day out for us.

If getting free power also means not being paid for solar export, then I would actually loose.

No, you don't lose out by signing up to it, it's a matter of sign up to it for free, no commitment, then use it, when and if you want. For you and your export, it's a matter of deciding - is it worthwhile your stopping your export for that hour, then balancing the lost export against using that hour of free power to heat your hot water/charge your EV/ or etc..

Probably just a gimmick to get people on smart meters.

If it's a gimmick - then I say keep the gimmicks coming.

I don't think I get this deal.

I understand it is available on the web site, to all their customers, though some customers have received an email inviting them to sign up for it. I didn't receive an invite, I spotted it on the site, and followed the link to sign up. It's free of any cost to signup, there are no downsides, or on going costs, you don't lose anything by signing up - it's just there, and free.

Well, Yes and No, It does seem that the whole smart meter thing is perhaps just starting to turn a corner and be useful and actually help with energy efficency. If you take the average consumer on a flat rate 24p/kwh, it doesn't matter to them when they do their washing, run the dishwasher, etc. However on a cold winters night, if we have a lot of demand when folk get in from work/school at 4-7pm that is going to need extra generation which often has to be bought in from coal generation. (which is both costly and not great for the environment) Often you might have surplus capacity 1pm-3pm in the after lunch lull, especially if its windy and something has to be done with that, if its not used, then they'll have to pay some of the wind farms to *not* generate instead of paying them to generate. So with the costs the same, if they give away the surplus for free, perhaps the homeworkers will set their washing machines going after lunch, rather than after they clock off, which reduces demand in the evening (and yes, they would be paying their 24p for unit for this, but the energy company isn't making much if anything at all on that, its the most expensive period on the wholesale market and the fixed cost to the consumer takes into account that it'll average out throughout the day.

Exactly!

 

[ericmark]

I am on an expensive tariff, up to now this month £16.62 or £28.64 including standing charge. last month £41.71 total, I am in process of arranging a move, but at those figures the question is does working out when to use electric save enough to be worth the hassle?

If I run the dish washer during the day, with sun shining is costs nothing, if I run it at 1 am I am on cheap rate, during the day it means selecting is it full enough, over night is always has a near full load, so often more convenient to run over night.

By 4 pm I consider if to run the three now or after 1 am, before that it just goes on when required. Yes the weather forecast now shows how much, but is it worth the hassle, for me at the moment no, as not being paid for export.

 

[big-all]

i am with bg low user slightly higher unit charges but lower standing charge
as my base use is only 3kw a day it suits me well
i was toying with a smart meter but savings where less with no where to reduce consumption as so low

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

i am with bg low user slightly higher unit charges but lower standing charge
as my base use is only 3kw a day it suits me well
i was toying with a smart meter but savings where less with no where to reduce consumption as so low

I use an average of 7Kw per day, spread fairly regularly throughout the 24 hours - the discounted electric and gas rates, via the Tracker, have more than suited me. The potential free hours worth, is just the icing.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Dare I say? kWh.

 

[JohnW2]

Free Electricity with Octoplus

octopus.energy

Octopus are giving away an hours worth of free electric, on some days, when there is a surplus on the grid. Usually around between 1pm and 2pm-ish, but they email you to let you know the day before, and the actual timing of the hour. Use as much power as you like, during the hour - all for free,...

Interesting. I'd be interested, maybe even intrigued, to know how it works 'for them'.

I can understand that, from the point of view of the generators, it is beneficial, probably 'cost-effective' to not have to switch on additional generation capacity at times of peak demand and/or switch it off at times of low demand.

The deal you mention obviously results in a loss of revenue for the supplier, so it would only make sense (for them) if there was a corresponding reduction in what they have to pay the generators. However, those generators do not know, at least in hour-by-hour real time, how much of their electricity is being used by the customers of a particular supplier, being reliant on what the supplier tells them (I presume at least a bit 'retrospectively'.

I imagine that such a system can only work for a supplier with whom ALL of their customers have 'smart' meters, and Octopus is one of the few (maybe the only one?) for whom that is the case.

 

[nero44]

Interesting. I'd be interested, maybe even intrigued, to know how it works 'for them'.

I think GaryDoesSolar has a good video explaining this. All about flattening the curve (peak at evening and low in early morning), but your assumptions are probably correct.

I imagine that such a system can only work for a supplier with whom ALL of their customers have 'smart' meters, and Octopus is one of the few (maybe the only one?) for whom that is the case.

well, not sure as long as you have critical mass. I know people on octopus, who do not have smart meters for some reason. I think it's all a gimmick to get more people onboarded to adopt smart meter+smart tariffs and solar+battery, as that does the most to flatten the curve (and helps sustainability). There are a few videos explaining this and it is a lot more complicated to make any use of the savings when you have solar+batt, as you need to switch them off at the right time. One lad calculated that he could save £1.6 for that one hour free session, provided you are at home and switch off your battery and optimise everything else around it... you make 30 times that amount by just posting it in a forum and adding your octopus referral code for it and hoping just one person will use it

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I imagine that such a system can only work for a supplier with whom ALL of their customers have 'smart' meters, and Octopus is one of the few (maybe the only one?) for whom that is the case.

What they say, is obviously you must have a SM. In that hour you would pay for whatever your normal consumption would be in that hour, but any excess beyond that basic consumption will be completely FOC. Without a SM, then they wouldn't have clue when you used what.

What energy companies are charged for their energy, varies minute by minute. Sometimes the cost is positive, sometimes negative. If they can persuade consumers to consume more during those negative cost periods, then they make more money/pay less for their energy import. People consuming more when there is surplus, also tends to reduce the demand away from the peak times. So they win both ways..