Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

New Octopus Go tariff and off peak options?

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
Smart meters don't use mobile in the north, they use a separate network.

Which doesn't work. Government cheapest bid FTW.

But *in theory* mobile reception is no issue :p
SMETS2 don't use mobile networks they use the crappy WAN as you say, which was supposed to provide improved coverage. ha
The older SMETS1 use mobile networks but it is quite common for the same areas to have crap coverage in both
 
You have mail ;)

I’m elec only and on the Go tariff. You signup to one of their other tariffs and switch to Go once you’re on supply.
You can say you want to join GO right from when you join now. If you don't have a smart meter they still stick you on the standard tariff of course but they start the process of smart meter installation straight away. The day the confirmation of completion of my switch came through they sent me a mail to expect a call from the meter installers with instructions to contact Octopus if I had heard nothing in 14 days.
5 days and counting..........
 
I've been doing some calcs... didn't have enough space to do it on the back of a fag packet (I don't smoke too) so did it on my favourite app - notepad!

My conclusion is that these EV friendly energy tariffs could provide a decent saving to you if you do very high volumes of charging at home and stick to the short 'off-peak' times for EV charging. If you're EV charging requirements at home are very low and your household energy usage is high, in some cases you may actually be better off with a non-EV friendly tariff. See a couple of worked example below using Ocotopus Go and Avro Energy as an example.

Assuming medium household electricity usage per year: 3200kWh

Octopus Go
Off-peak unit rate (00:30-04:30): 5p/kWh
Peak-rate unit rate: 14.29p/kWh
Daily standing charge: 25p

Avro Energy - Simple and SuperSave
Unit rate 13.808p/kWh
Daily standing charge: 18.9p

Example 1: Assuming high volume of charging at home: 10,000 miles per year

30 miles added per hour @7kWh charging rate
= 333 hours of charging (10,000 / 30)
= 2,331kWh of electricty usage (7kWh x 333 hours)

Annual electricty costs using Octopus Go:

Assuming all car charging performed using off-peak rate: 0.05 x 2,331 = £116.55
+
Household electricty usage: 0.1429 * 3200 = £457.28
+
Standing charge: 0.25 * 365 = £91.25

Total = 116.55 + 457.28 + 91.25 = £665.08

Annual electricty costs using Avro Energy:

Car charging: 0.13808 x 2,331 = £321.86
+
Household electricty usage: 0.13808 * 3200 = £441.86
+
Standing charge: 0.189 * 365 = £68.99

Total = 321.86 + 441.86 + 68.99 = £832.71

Savings using Octopus Go = £167.63

Example 2: Assuming medium-lower volume of charging at home: 5,000 miles = 1,165kWh

Annual electricty costs using Octopus Go:

Assuming all car charging performed using off-peak rate: 0.05 x 1,165 = £58.25
+
Household electricty usage: 0.1429 * 3200 = £457.28
+
Standing charge: 0.25 * 365 = £91.25

Total = 58.25 + 457.28 + 91.25 = £606.78

Annual electricty costs using Avro Energy:

Car charging: 0.13808 x 1,165 = £160.86
+
Household electricty usage: 0.13808 * 3200 = £441.86
+
Standing charge: 0.189 * 365 = £68.99

Total = 160.86 + 441.86 + 68.99 = £671.71

Savings using Octopus Go = £64.93
 
SMETS2 don't use mobile networks they use the crappy WAN as you say, which was supposed to provide improved coverage. ha
The older SMETS1 use mobile networks but it is quite common for the same areas to have crap coverage in both

Interesting point. We were put under pressure to have a smart meter when we requested a change to an Economy 7 meter. As we have no mobile signal here, I suggested that a smart meter may not work, and we'd rather stick with the E7 tariff (works better for us, at the moment).

When the meter fitter came out we chatted about smart meters and his comment was that he could have told his office that fitting a smart meter here would be a waste of time, as he knows the area and knows they just don't work here, as they can't "phone home". Did make me wonder how many other areas were "no go" zones for smart metering.
 
I was on only 10.1p flat rate with Outfox the Market but that would have ended in August anyway. But with Octopus I'm still saving at least £100 a year (including standing charges which are slightly cheaper with Octopus) vs that Outfox tariff based on my own spreadsheet projection because of the EV factor. And I think my projections are conservative as so far my projected cost for peak charging looks way too high and if anything the off-peak charging is less than projected. Plus, we're putting some white goods on overnight now (dishwasher and washing machine).

I'm fairly confident that my monthly charge will be reduced or my account will have more credit in it than is healthy.
 
Interesting point. We were put under pressure to have a smart meter when we requested a change to an Economy 7 meter. As we have no mobile signal here, I suggested that a smart meter may not work, and we'd rather stick with the E7 tariff (works better for us, at the moment).

When the meter fitter came out we chatted about smart meters and his comment was that he could have told his office that fitting a smart meter here would be a waste of time, as he knows the area and knows they just don't work here, as they can't "phone home". Did make me wonder how many other areas were "no go" zones for smart metering.
I don't live in the middle of nowhere i'm in a small town in a fairly rural area but for some reason the WAN and all mobile networks have a really really bad signal where my house is. Go a few hundred yard north and the mobile signal is fine. I can't have a smets2 I'm currently waiting to find out if I can have a SMETS1. If not I might have to look at E7 but not sure the increased day rate will make it worthwhile. Its very depressing :(
 
I've been doing some calcs... didn't have enough space to do it on the back of a fag packet (I don't smoke too) so did it on my favourite app - notepad!

My conclusion is that these EV friendly energy tariffs could provide a decent saving to you if you do very high volumes of charging at home and stick to the short 'off-peak' times for EV charging. If you're EV charging requirements at home are very low and your household energy usage is high, in some cases you may actually be better off with a non-EV friendly tariff. See a couple of worked example below using Ocotopus Go and Avro Energy as an example.

Assuming medium household electricity usage per year: 3200kWh

Octopus Go
Off-peak unit rate (00:30-04:30): 5p/kWh
Peak-rate unit rate: 14.29p/kWh
Daily standing charge: 25p

Avro Energy - Simple and SuperSave
Unit rate 13.808p/kWh
Daily standing charge: 18.9p

Example 1: Assuming high volume of charging at home: 10,000 miles per year

30 miles added per hour @7kWh charging rate
= 333 hours of charging (10,000 / 30)
= 2,331kWh of electricty usage (7kWh x 333 hours)

Annual electricty costs using Octopus Go:

Assuming all car charging performed using off-peak rate: 0.05 x 2,331 = £116.55
+
Household electricty usage: 0.1429 * 3200 = £457.28
+
Standing charge: 0.25 * 365 = £91.25

Total = 116.55 + 457.28 + 91.25 = £665.08

Annual electricty costs using Avro Energy:

Car charging: 0.13808 x 2,331 = £321.86
+
Household electricty usage: 0.13808 * 3200 = £441.86
+
Standing charge: 0.189 * 365 = £68.99

Total = 321.86 + 441.86 + 68.99 = £832.71

Savings using Octopus Go = £167.63

Example 2: Assuming medium-lower volume of charging at home: 5,000 miles = 1,165kWh

Annual electricty costs using Octopus Go:

Assuming all car charging performed using off-peak rate: 0.05 x 1,165 = £58.25
+
Household electricty usage: 0.1429 * 3200 = £457.28
+
Standing charge: 0.25 * 365 = £91.25

Total = 58.25 + 457.28 + 91.25 = £606.78

Annual electricty costs using Avro Energy:

Car charging: 0.13808 x 1,165 = £160.86
+
Household electricty usage: 0.13808 * 3200 = £441.86
+
Standing charge: 0.189 * 365 = £68.99

Total = 160.86 + 441.86 + 68.99 = £671.71

Savings using Octopus Go = £64.93

Your calculations assume no household usage during the Go period so would be a worst case scenario
 
I don't live in the middle of nowhere i'm in a small town in a fairly rural area but for some reason the WAN and all mobile networks have a really really bad signal where my house is. Go a few hundred yard north and the mobile signal is fine. I can't have a smets2 I'm currently waiting to find out if I can have a SMETS1. If not I might have to look at E7 but not sure the increased day rate will make it worthwhile. Its very depressing :(
I was on Three for a while and was happy with it - EXCEPT at home :( I could hardly get a phone signal at all unless I was upstairs and constantly had missed or interrupted calls. I switched to BT (EE Network) and it has been transformatory. I have at least 2 bars of signal anywhere in the house. O2 is not that great here and I think older cars like mine use O2, so the car's 4G signal is borderline, but we do have WiFi (though even that isn't great despite the car being just 10 feet from the router inside the house).

They tried to fit a SMETS 2 meter here but couldn't get it to work so they removed it and put a SMETS 1 in (I already had one of thse from a previous supplier but it was not compatible with Octopus). The SMETS 1 has been fine.
 
I don't live in the middle of nowhere i'm in a small town in a fairly rural area but for some reason the WAN and all mobile networks have a really really bad signal where my house is. Go a few hundred yard north and the mobile signal is fine. I can't have a smets2 I'm currently waiting to find out if I can have a SMETS1. If not I might have to look at E7 but not sure the increased day rate will make it worthwhile. Its very depressing :(

Bit like us. We're 10 miles West of Salisbury, but our village is in a mobile black hole. We can get a signal by driving half a mile up the hill behind our house, but nothing at the house at all. I even tried fitting an external directional antenna, pointing to the nearest mast, and connected to a repeater amplifier box, but no joy, there just isn't enough signal from any of the networks where we are. On the bright side, we are about to get fibre broadband, which should make a useful improvement to internet speeds I hope.
 
Yes, our house burns about 350W even in the wee hours and, say 5 nights a week of dishwasher use and 2 nights of washing machine probably add up to 20 kWh /week or £1, so £50 a year - saving £80 compared to a 13p flat rate.

Yep, everyone has some background electricity usage even in the night and there will be some who are able to set/run dishwashers and washing machines at night so the savings will be a little more for those folks.

But even with a EV tariff there will be times when you may need to charge outside the off-peak periods - maybe two days of back-to-back long drives. So the savings may be a little less than expected.
 
I got some interesting results. For low mileage (3,000 miles), Octopus Go is cheaper than the cheapest non-E7 plan by £65 a year. And for high mileage (10,000 miles) that same difference is £261 per year. Given I was paying £70 a tank for ~300 miles on my ICE car, even £261 seems pretty small potatoes to warrant spending too much time on this topic. I mean sure, we all want to be on the cheapest possible plan, but it seems like there isn't a lot in it, at least not at the moment.

upload_2019-11-19_10-21-15.png


upload_2019-11-19_10-21-43.png


upload_2019-11-19_10-22-11.png
 
  • Informative
Reactions: Durzel and MrBadger
If you have a fair bit of overnight load, then Bulb's Varifair Economy 7 tariff may be a reasonable choice. We can't charge up the "storage heater" that is our ground floor concrete slab, with embedded UFH pipes, in just the 4 hour time window that the Octopus Go tariff gives, but find that the 7 hours at 8.148p/kWh from Bulb's E7 tariff is fine. The car can also get more charge overnight with the charge point set to only come on during the E7 tariff slot, around 50 kWh if needed (so far never needed this much overnight, but have charged to ~30 kWh overnight a couple of times).

Just read our meter and it looks as if our £48/month for electricity is about right, and at that sort of price it's hardly worth the bother of hunting around for a better tariff, as the saving might only be around the price of a pine each month, anyway.
 
Yep, everyone has some background electricity usage even in the night and there will be some who are able to set/run dishwashers and washing machines at night so the savings will be a little more for those folks.

But even with a EV tariff there will be times when you may need to charge outside the off-peak periods - maybe two days of back-to-back long drives. So the savings may be a little less than expected.
I have budgeted for 750 miles of annual worth of peak-rate charging but in the last 6 months I've only used about 70kWh - about 230 miles.