What is Economy 7?
Economy 7 (or E7) is a type of electricity tariff, where the electricity you use at night costs less than the electricity you use during the day.
The difference between the two rates can be as much as 50% depending on your supplier.
The 'night' rate lasts seven hours (hence the name). Exactly when this rate kicks in varies depending on your supplier as well as where you live.
Generally, it'll be at some point between 23:00 and 08:00, but check with your supplier to be sure.
How to work out if you have an Economy 7 meter
You have an Economy 7 meter if the Meter Point Access Number (MPAN) in your bill starts '02'.
Your meter will have two wheels or two sets of numbers on the display. If in doubt, you can call your supplier and ask them what meter you have.
How to save with Economy 7
Whether or not Economy 7 works out cheaper than a traditional electricity plan depends on your energy consumption habits.
To state the obvious, in order to make it cost effective you need to shift as much of your electricity consumption to the night-time as possible.
The ideal split of usage to make a saving will vary from supplier to supplier.
On average you should be aiming to use electricity off-peak at least 30% of the time to ensure your tariff is better value than a standard one. To really make it worthwhile you should aim for 40%.
How to increase your night-time Economy 7 usage
To shift more energy consumption into the night, use timers to configure your main appliances to run during the small hours.
A dishwasher or washing machine can consume up to 3kWh depending on the load, temperature and the efficiency of the appliance.
If your appliances do not have timers built in, you can get external timers that plug into the socket.
We own more mobile devices than ever before, which tend to require daily charging. Try and do this at night-time as well.
If you have a water storage heater, obviously ensure that it is set to heat during the right time at night and that enough water is heated to last you through the day.
You should also check the weather forecast and set the heaters accordingly.
How to replace your Economy 7 meter
Finally, if you find you can't raise your night-time usage above, say, 20%, you should consider asking your supplier to replace your meter with a standard one.
You should then look for the cheapest energy deal in your area by shopping around.
How to save even more on energy
Finding the right tariff is just first step in achieving cheaper energy bills. Read these articles to save even more:
29 more ways to slash your heating bills