The Benefits of Economy 7 – by Ray Smith

Economy 7 is a tariff based electricity supply designed to save electricity bills during winter months. The tariff itself is not suited to every household as it may actually increase electricity bills if not used within the correct requirements.
Households with electric Storage Heaters may significantly benefit from the Economy 7 regime. During the day (usually from 7am until midnight) your electricity costs slightly more than the standard rate. However for 7 hours every night, your electricity rate is around a third of the standard rate. Storage heaters have unique capabilities of storing heat. This hear can be stored during off-peak hours, and then released during cheaper hours (by utilising the economy 7 tariff) significantly reducing energy consumption.

For those interested in the science: Storage heaters usually contain ceramic bricks with a high specific heat capacity to store heat. Specific heat capacity is a unit measurement of how much heat energy a material can store in a given mass. Materials like ceramic bricks have a high specific heat capacity and can therefore store a lot of heat energy in a small volume. This is important because it means that a lot of energy can be stored in the storage heater at a safe temperature, meaning that it will be able to release heat into your home for a long enough time to last until the next off-peak period.

Economy 7 isn’t for everyone; if your house is already fitted with gas central heating then it probably isn’t worth changing your appliances and getting it installed. However if you are using electric heating already and finding your utility bills are costing more than you’d like, it’s definitely worth thinking about.

If you already have Economy 7 and you don’t have a storage heater, then I’d highly recommend looking into getting one. You aren’t making the most out of your tariff if you don’t!

Ray Smith is the editor/writer of the blog Home and Garden Help, the blog is focused on hints, tips, and advice, for particular issues in the home and garden environment, in particular; ways of reducing energy consumption around the household, and best usuages for particular heating appliances. For more information please visit his blog at – http://www.hygienesuppliesdirect.com/blog/home_and_garden/