UK On/off peak water heater help

[GrieveCube]

Hi everyone, I’m looking for some help.

I’ve just moved into a new flat that uses an economy 7 tariff. It’s all electric. I’ve never used something like this before and am very confused as to how it works and what I should do.
I have 2 switches next to my water heater one that says on peak and the other off peak. Both are switched on all the time but the off peak light never comes on. There’s also a timer for on/peak.
I get about 1 hot shower before the water gets cold and I have to use the boost function on my on peak timer.
I’ve spoken to my landlord about this and he said I can find a instructions as to how to effectively use the off peak heater online which I can’t seem to find. I’ve found a programmable timer in my fuse box pictured below that has off peak written below it so i assume it has something to do with this?

I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to stuff like this so could anyone offer any advice as to what I need to do to set this up properly?

 

[SparkySy]

Looking at your photos it seems as though the lower switch marked off peak is either not in use or connected through the one above to the timer unit.
If you turn the peak rate switch off does the timer go off too?
It could be that the on peak immersion is heating the top of the tank only so that's why you are running out quickly.
I would try overriding the timer switch and turning off the peak rate switch overnight and see if you have hot water in the morning. If not then you will probably need professional assistance to test the heaters and timer.
Hope that helps for a start.
Sy

 

[brianmoooore]

Economy 7 is simply a tariff where you have an electricity with two displays. One records the electricity you use for 17 hours of the day, and the other records what you use for the remaining 7 hours, usually sometime between midnight and 8am.
You are charged slightly more than normal per unit for what you use in the 17 hours, but between a half and two thirds for what you use during the 7 hours. This applies to all the electricity in your house.
The exact amounts you are being charged per unit should be on your electricity bill
For this reason, you need to use as much as possible of your daily electricity usage during these 7 hours.*
The time switch in the CU should be set to be on for the same period as you have off peak electricity, so that it heats your water thermal store fully during the night. The light on the off peak switch will be lit during this period.
The 'on peak' switch and the controller beside it are provided in case you run out of hot water during the day, and if the system has been designed correctly, should rarely be used. Water heated via this switch and timer is costing you up to double compared to heating the same amount of water at night.

* Storage heaters should also heat up ant night, and there are savings to be made by running washing machines, dishwashers and tumble driers during the night period as well, but there are dangers with running these three items at night, as they are frequent causes of house fires.
If you're up early enough in the morning, try running them then.

 

[GrieveCube]

Economy 7 is simply a tariff where you have an electricity with two displays. One records the electricity you use for 17 hours of the day, and the other records what you use for the remaining 7 hours, usually sometime between midnight and 8am.
You are charged slightly more than normal per unit for what you use in the 17 hours, but between a half and two thirds for what you use during the 7 hours. This applies to all the electricity in your house.
The exact amounts you are being charged per unit should be on your electricity bill
For this reason, you need to use as much as possible of your daily electricity usage during these 7 hours.*
The time switch in the CU should be set to be on for the same period as you have off peak electricity, so that it heats your water thermal store fully during the night. The light on the off peak switch will be lit during this period.
The 'on peak' switch and the controller beside it are provided in case you run out of hot water during the day, and if the system has been designed correctly, should rarely be used. Water heated via this switch and timer is costing you up to double compared to heating the same amount of water at night.

* Storage heaters should also heat up ant night, and there are savings to be made by running washing machines, dishwashers and tumble driers during the night period as well, but there are dangers with running these three items at night, as they are frequent causes of house fires.
If you're up early enough in the morning, try running them then.

Thank you for the incredibly detailed reply, I shall give it a try with the timer set to the off peak times as you have suggested and see if that works. Will let you know the outcome

 

[GrieveCube]

Looking at your photos it seems as though the lower switch marked off peak is either not in use or connected through the one above to the timer unit.
If you turn the peak rate switch off does the timer go off too?
It could be that the on peak immersion is heating the top of the tank only so that's why you are running out quickly.
I would try overriding the timer switch and turning off the peak rate switch overnight and see if you have hot water in the morning. If not then you will probably need professional assistance to test the heaters and timer.
Hope that helps for a start.

Thank you for the reply, if I turn off the on peak switch then yes the timer also turns off. Also if I turn off this switch then I get no hot water whatsoever. Not even a little bit. I am going to try with the timer in the CB set to come on over my peak period and see if that works

 

[brianmoooore]

Those little DIN rail mounted electronic timers can be a pig to set. I have one of that style that controls an outside light, and setting it is often largely a matter of trial and error.
If you can work out how, set it to be 'on' between 1am and 7am every day. The red light on the 'off peak' immersion switch should be on during this period.