Charging devices
We are all year round caravanners, and do not use much electric where possible, we turn everything off we can when going out and set timers for heating and hot water when required.
Having now watched a few YouTube videos some people seem to be on a one night stay at sites to power all there power banks etc then leaving, plus people saying they leave heating on all day so as to return to a warm van.
Is this having an effect on supply demand so pushing towards metering on site 🤔
Just a thought, or is it just us being naive.
PS We do understand that everything is increasing 🙄
Comments
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As the saying goes, give them an inch and they will take a yard and how true that saying is!
I am afraid that there will always be those who have no qualms about being selfish, as was very obvious to many of us in regard to people booking numerous weekends and not bothering to turn up, prior to the change in the booking conditions or those who would frequently turn up on site, well before the due time. I stayed at Poolsbrook a few years ago and there were vans queueing up at 10.15, even though the arrival time there was 12 noon!
Strangely enough, it is very often the selfish who complain the most when the boot is on the other foot.
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I’m not sure what power banks you are referring to. If just only the leisure battery(s) and phone battery(s) / device power packs, I can’t see that using much power. In the summer months those are easily handled by our solar panels. However, in any event they are paying handsomely for the privilege. Therefore the club is benefiting by letting a pitch that they otherwise wouldn’t.
As to leaving the heating on all day, we do exactly that. Although that doesn’t generally happen unless it is very, very cold, as it is controlled by a thermostat, set at a reduced level while we are out. Personally I very much feel the cold and don’t go away to feel uncomfortable. Metering would indeed be the fairest way to control prices and I would have no objection to it, as long it is accompanied with realistic price reductions. It would make no difference to how we heat the van.
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I have much the same view as SteveL As long as electricity is included in pitch prices, people will use it with little thought as to their consumption.
With thermostatic control of heating it may be false economy to turn it off when going out. Like Steve we only turn it down, not off. If a pitch is metered, as we have refillable gas tanks, we would run our heating on gas.
peedee
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Steve has summed it up well. There’s no need for me to repeat what he said but, in short, he’s explained why your fears are groundless, PJMEG.
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I suspect the videos you watch are motorhomers? They may well choose to stay at an occasional campsite in order to top up batteries but probably more importantly to empty waste and refill their water supply. If you subscribe to the the " leave no trace" policy, which the majority do, whilst camping off piste it seems to me responsible to use a campsite every few days in order to be seen a acting responsibly?
As to using site facilities to the maximum, why not? The majority of people are sensible in how they use the likes of electricity. If a campsite is offering pitches in the colder months of the years they must expect the consumption of electricity to higher. Metering is likely to become more common, especially if energy prices remain high. At this stage how can we say if that changes how people use it? We don't leave heating on if we are out but our system warms the van up pretty quickly anyway so its not an issue but we wouldn't sit in the cold just because our connection was metered!
David
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I'm with Steve. I'm on holiday and as such I am going to enjoy my time away, if that sounds selfish then so be it. I would a warm hotel room, or even a cool AC room. I would expect a warm holiday cottage on returning home and I expect the same with my caravan.
I do leave the heating on while out if it's cold, I've found I don't like coming back in winter to a cold caravan with no hot water.
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"If a pitch is metered, as we have refillable gas tanks, we would run our heating on gas."
agreed, PD.
It'll be interesting to see the effect of 'fairness' (metering) down the line once many winter hours of KWH have been racked up in a week.
a while back there were stories of 20 kWh or more being consumed, that's a tenner a day at the Clubs 50p ??? a unit.
OTOH, a full gas bottle lasts us about three weeks even with some heating so that's a pound a day for a refill at £22.
a sizeable difference and gas far more speedy at getting things cozy.
even in winter we might get sufficient juice to keep phones, iPads charged.
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We have always charged our iPads and iPhones through our MH. On the move, and via the solar panel, even in Winter. Without hook up. If you use an ebike, it might be worth checking if you can charge devices via your ebike battery. We have four ebikes, and each battery allows us to charge a mobile device.
If on a tour, we might have a couple of days with no hook up, then we might use a site with hook up and do a full recharge of devices, including bike batteries. Chance to empty tanks and refill as well. Small devices use a minimal amount for charging up. We have no TV or other large gadgets/ cooking appliances, beyond a travel hairdryer. Perfectly happy to use a metered pitch, if the initial pitch price is around £15 per night. We use our gas for heating, hot water, but we are off site most of day anyway, and don’t have any heating on at night.Up to date information for cost of iPhone/iPad charging. Note the annual cost, these devices are not a problem, it’s anything with a heating element that is…….
https://www.householdmoneysaving.com/cost-to-charge-an-iphone/
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Hi the figures being quoted are a reduction of between £1 @ £3 off pitch fees so at current prices £15 is a dream.
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That’s what has been offered on some CL/CS sites we have used. 🙂 Decent pitch + 2 price, you pay extra if you want electric. I’d add that for the £15, we got free loos and showers on site as well, very nice ones. We know that the Club Site prices are more where metered.
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