First time using gas in our new home

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tweake

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#3173188 18-Dec-2023 17:16

MurrayM:

I've live in Auckland and recently moved into a new rental property that uses gas for the kitchen hob and a gas fire.

just remember to use the range hood. most range hoods are the barest minimum needed (ie compliance box ticking) so they don't work great but its still a lot better than nothing. be fussy on the filters, far more than normal. make sure you have decent ventilation.

trig42

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#3173250 19-Dec-2023 07:18

I'd definitely be asking the landlord about replacing the hob (or at least changing the jets to use LPG).

At $1.35 a day for the connection, that is way more than you'd pay for cooking on it.

Our last house, we had a gas hob (on bottle - LPG). We'd replace the BBQ sized (9kg) bottle every three months, at a cost of about $35 (so ~$12 a month). We used the hob every day, including for boiling water for tea/coffee.

Unless you're on Gas hot water, I don't see the value of a mains gas connection.

Aucklandjafa

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#3173293 19-Dec-2023 10:10

Yeah, if it’s just the stove you’re using (and no gas hot water) 100% ask your landlord to get it converted to LPG - gas stove tops still run rings around induction. As most houses don’t yet have e-metres (slowly getting rolled out) metres are read every second month, but you can manually punch in a reading which will adjust your bill. Did Frank Energy ask for a reading when ya moved in?

MurrayM

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#3173296 19-Dec-2023 10:15

Aucklandjafa: Did Frank Energy ask for a reading when ya moved in?

No they didn't. They arranged for someone to come around and connect the meter up, maybe he did a reading then?

Aucklandjafa

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#3173298 19-Dec-2023 10:26

Oh, yep, I’d say so.

johno1234

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#3173303 19-Dec-2023 10:46

MurrayM:

I've live in Auckland and recently moved into a new rental property that uses gas for the kitchen hob and a gas fire. This is the first time I've ever lived anywhere that uses gas so I'm pretty unfamiliar with how it all works. The house is hooked up to mains gas (eg not bottles). After we moved in I signed up with Frank Energy for power and gas (I figured it was easier to use one provider that offered both) and they arranged for someone to come around and hook up the meter to the supply.

I've now received my first gas bill and it's quite a lot more than I was expecting. Power is $70 and gas is $80. I know I pay a daily charge for the gas ($1.35/day) but then the invoice has gas used at $31. I thought this was really high, until I noticed that it's an estimate reading and not an actual reading. I guess maybe they've based their estimate on a typical family home and that's why it's so high, and when we get an actual reading it'll be a lot less and they'll sort out the large estimate (just like I'm used to how the Auckland water bills work).

I had a look at the gas meter and it has a digital readout on it which made me think that it might work the same as the digital power meters and be reporting usage back to the power company on a regular basis. Do gas meters not work like this? Should I expect someone to turn up and read the meter every month? Or is it every second month like the water?

Our gas bill is less than that and we have three teenagers taking day long showers under the gas powered hot water. We also run a gas hob.

Assume you have not turned on the fireplace as it's not cold... and your hob wont use much. I think it's a poor estimate. The bill should show opening meter reading and estimated meter reading. Check the latter against your meter.

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axxaa

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#3173306 19-Dec-2023 10:54

Live in the Hutt, we use gas for hot water and cooking. Connection Fee is a whopping $40 with only $11 average for actual gas usage. Considering moving to bottled gas.

Aucklandjafa

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#3173317 19-Dec-2023 11:36

axxaa:

Live in the Hutt, we use gas for hot water and cooking. Connection Fee is a whopping $40 with only $11 average for actual gas usage. Considering moving to bottled gas.

Can I ask who you're with to be paying $40/month in line charges?

alasta

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#3173326 19-Dec-2023 12:17

Aucklandjafa:

Can I ask who you're with to be paying $40/month in line charges?

Genesis charge me this amount per month in Wellington, inclusive of GST and discounts.

I don't know what other companies charge for the daily gas connection fee, but I went through an analysis process when my Genesis contract renewed a few months ago and no-one else was cheaper as a total package.

Shindig

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#3173330 19-Dec-2023 12:24

I have been on Frank energy. They massively over estimated gas usage charge, and there is little to nothing you can do other than submit a meter reading, which has to be done over the phone.

It feels like they look at one month and go, we need X amount of $$$ from this person and over-estimate, charge you, then reduce usage estimate in subsequent months.

Moved off fairly quickly.

The little things make the biggest difference.

axxaa

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#3173348 19-Dec-2023 13:33

Aucklandjafa:

axxaa:

Live in the Hutt, we use gas for hot water and cooking. Connection Fee is a whopping $40 with only $11 average for actual gas usage. Considering moving to bottled gas.

Can I ask who you're with to be paying $40/month in line charges?

Mercury Energy

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alasta

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#3173384 19-Dec-2023 14:41

I don't really see the problem with conservative meter reading estimates. I know how much electricity and gas I use in a typical year, so I just work out the annual cost, divide it by 12, and accrue that amount each month.

mattwnz

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#3173505 19-Dec-2023 17:54

alasta:

Aucklandjafa:

Can I ask who you're with to be paying $40/month in line charges?

Genesis charge me this amount per month in Wellington, inclusive of GST and discounts.

I don't know what other companies charge for the daily gas connection fee, but I went through an analysis process when my Genesis contract renewed a few months ago and no-one else was cheaper as a total package.

I don't think Frank energy charge any gas bottle for renting bottles. So if you are a low gas user, it could work out a lot cheaper to have bottles instead if appliances and the connecting can be converted over and are compatible. IMO it is ridiculous that the line charges are so high compared to the rental costs for bottles, although the unit cost of gas inside bottles will likely work out quite a lot more expensive that for piped gas.

mattwnz

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#3173506 19-Dec-2023 17:57

axxaa:

Live in the Hutt, we use gas for hot water and cooking. Connection Fee is a whopping $40 with only $11 average for actual gas usage. Considering moving to bottled gas.

Frank don't charge for bottle rental currently (at least I don't get charged and they used to charge $10 per month). So if your connection and appliances are all compatible with bottled gas, it could make sense. I do also wonder if bottle gas is safer, because if there is a gas leak inside the house, then it will only leak the contents of the bottles.

Leo90

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#3182747 16-Jan-2024 17:42

mattwnz:

axxaa:

Live in the Hutt, we use gas for hot water and cooking. Connection Fee is a whopping $40 with only $11 average for actual gas usage. Considering moving to bottled gas.

Frank don't charge for bottle rental currently (at least I don't get charged and they used to charge $10 per month). So if your connection and appliances are all compatible with bottled gas, it could make sense. I do also wonder if bottle gas is safer, because if there is a gas leak inside the house, then it will only leak the contents of the bottles.

Highly doubt that bottled LPG is safer than reticulated natural gas - natural gas is lighter than air as such a leak would likely dissipate fairly easily and be unable to reach a concentration high enough to ignite. LPG on the other hand is much heavier than air and a leak will pool up and collect. Most houses on bottled gas have two 45KG bottles, so you would have up to 90KG of LPG at your property at any time...

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