Electric Heating - Taking Advantage of the Economy 10 Tariff
Electric radiators and panel heaters offer many great benefits to homeowners and are being hailed as the ‘future of home heating' thanks to their ability to make use of the only widely available sustainable energy source on the planet – electricity. However, proponents of gas and oil systems argue that electricity is too expensive to run.
While it is true that per kWh, gas and oil are currently cheaper than electricity to run, there is a little known tariff that is making electric heating much more affordable: economy 10.
What is Economy 10 Electricity?
We've all heard of the economy 7 tariff – it is installed in hundreds of thousands of homes across the UK,providing 7 hours of off-peak electricity that can be used at a reduced rate during the night. For people with no access to the gas grid, the economy 7 is something greatly relied upon and the tariff pretty much gave birth to the storage heater market – systems which were the forbearer to today's more advanced and economical panel heaters and vertical radiators.
Economy 10 works in the same way as economy 7 except, as the name suggests, it provides 10 hours of off-peak electricity usage.
Economy 10 Hours
Rather than being split into two tariff periods like economy 7, economy 10 is split into three periods. The exact times the tariff is effective will depend on the supplier, but users will usually be provided with:
- 5 hours overnight
- 3 hours in the afternoon
- 2 hours in the evening.
For customers in central Scotland (within the Scottish Power Energy Networks Distribution Network Operator area) economy 10 electricity is available at slightly different times, from 13:30-16:30 in the afternoon, 20:30-00:30 in the evening, and 04:30 to 07:30 in the morning.
How to Get Economy 10 Electricity
While the economy 10 tariff is available nationwide, demand has never reached the heights of economy 7 and, as a result, many people do not know that it exists. If you have electric radiators and panel heaters installed in your home, the Electric Heating Company recommends that you use the tariff offered by Scottish & Southern Energy. If you are not a customer, you will need to change provider and have an economy 10 tariff meter installed in your property; however, there will be no charge for this service.
To make further savings from the economy 10 tariff, visit our site for some useful hints and tips.
The Electric Heating Company is Scotland's leading supplier of electric radiators and panel heaters. The company also specialises in the provision of electric boilers.
