I've got to ask how you've worked that out, I think £480 a month is very high. My gas and electricty bill (actual, not estimated) was £160.78 last month. I've reduced the number of computers on at any one time, started using low power tablets for internet surfing and this:
Wow , 160 & 480, you two must be using a lot of power gadgets. My last dual fuel bill was £88.
CH is on sometimes for 2 hrs morning and again the same in the later evening, during the day if too chily the open fire is lit with wood . The cargo bike /trailer is ideal for collecting fallen wood locally on the trails and from the woods, I have a toe path along the railway that backs on to the garden and the council have copiced aload of hazel etc, and left it laid it down on the banks of the water way that takes alot of excess rain away. I simply have to go along with a battery saw and large loppers to cut it up for carting away.
When the open fire is not in use , the flue is block by a PIR insert I made to be 100% draught proof.
With this snow I have noticed alot properties around me not very well insulated in the loft as they have only half of the snow on them mine has , some of the converted loft house have little or only 20% of snow covering comapared to mine.
Thye must be using alot of heat to keep warm whilst helping to melt the roof snow.
Having up to 500mm of inulation above my ceilings and in between the loft floor makes a big difference to heat loss, I didn't bother with gov't subsidies to do the work by a bunch of cowboy energy firms ripping off the tax payer but dif I did it myself.
