# Help! Electric bill too high, what can I do?



## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Bills tend to be higher in the Winter & Summer (especially during Dec-Jan & July through August). First thing I would do, is check to see if this was a estimated reading, or Actual.

Start off by looking at habits. If you are currently using all incadesent lighting, look at CFL. For those areas that people tend to forget about hitting the light switch to turn off the light (Pantry, Entry way, Laundry room, Bathrooms), look at installing motion sensative switches such as http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=39638-334-K6109W-L&lpage=none

You can ask all you want, but doing a little investigating, helps in eliminating spenders. Also, look at using Cold Water Tide, to help cut out using so much Hot Water for Laundry, turn down the Thermostat to 68 during the day, 64-66 at night when sleeping. I just changed out our Thermostat to a 7 day multi-program, that hopefully I should see a change in use with it.


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## wire_twister (Feb 19, 2008)

Check the readings on both the water meter and electric meter for correctness, around here the utility will sometimes estimate usage for a month or two then read meters and get back to even. This means we have an unusually high(or low) bill for seversl months then they read meters and correct any ovre or under charge. Check for a water leak, a leaky toilet will use an incredible ammount of water. Finally call the utility and ask them to check the electric meter they do get out of calibration some times.


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## hms (Feb 12, 2008)

All above are good ideas. I would get a thermemeter(digital is best) and check the temp. of the air going into the "return" air register and check the temp at the register closest to the unit coming out. If the difference isn't at least 10 degrees, get an HVAC company to check out that heat pump. Might need to have someone find a leak and charge the unit. Also the fan motors can be checked by the same people. Have them check the amps the fans are pulling. Have the evaporator cleaned while they are in there. You should have your unit checked for proper operation at the beginning of season. Heat pumps are energy guzzlers. Also check your weatherstripping around the exterior doors, you would be amazed at the savings after closing these up. Also check around the windows that they were properly sealed and that they are not leaking around the frame, sill, etc. good luck!


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## LawnGuyLandSparky (Nov 18, 2007)

Also, check the first bill you're making the comparison to. Was that a (possibly) grossly underestimated reading or actual? And yes, a leaky toilet can waste thousands of gallons of water. 

(This is the first I've ever heard of a combination water and electric company!)


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

When I lived in a Rural town, the utilities where billed under the Village. They bought Electric, NG, made their own water, and have a Sewage Treatment Plant.


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## Joba Fett (Aug 14, 2007)

Rates vary quite a bit. Where do you live.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

As pointed out by the OP, SW Virginia. I am guessing around Roanoke.


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## mdshunk (Dec 4, 2005)

pirategirl007 said:


> Help! Electric bill too high, what can I do?


Become Amish. :thumbsup:


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## pirategirl007 (Feb 19, 2008)

*some answers and thanks!*



JGarth said:


> Rates vary quite a bit. Where do you live.


Bristol Va is where I live. We literally are on the TN/VA state line. Our cost of living here is extremely low, so that's what has me so concerned over this bill. 

I did some checking today on the web and our electric company (BVU) as of Jan 1 switched back to purchasing power locally from TVA (past several years it was somewhere in Ohio that our power came from) and the announcements of this and newpaper articles listed reasons such as supporting local industry and an effort to reduce escelating energy costs. The community has been complaining and holding town meetings on the high costs for the past 2 years. I also checked w/ my neighbor and his bill went up drastically but is only $70 more than mine. His house is twice the size and he has 2 heat pumps. I called and BVU was to send someone to my house today to check my meter. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Thanks for all the great tips, I'm gonna check out the links and look into having someone come check my house for efficiency.


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## Sammy (Mar 11, 2007)

As previously said, keep an eye on your meters especially a few days before your normal statement date on the bill. 

They have been known to be wrong which is an honest mistake or they may just be estimating.


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## 24hourapartments (Feb 19, 2008)

First, make sure you are using energy-saving bulbs.

The heat pump is your next enemy.

I used to get bills that high, and I installed a gas heater on my wall--quit running my 220 unit outside. Wow! It's already paid for itself many times over, and I don't even believe in gas per se.

I would look to replace old unit, but I know it's expensive.

You probably have an old 100 amp breaker box too. You may have to ubgrade to 200 amp.

--Scott
built2please
http://www.turf-touch.com


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Changing from 100 amp to 200 amp service will not make any changes, other then put a nice dent into the wallet.


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## BigJimmy (Jun 30, 2006)

Go down into the basement and find the pot farm! Or maybe you just forgot about it!:laughing:


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## erikoart.com (Jan 17, 2009)

*Check out....had same problem*

Hi,
We had a very similar scenerio to yours. We did all kinds of updates, replaced all of our old appliences, sealed the doors, windows, have not used lights when we were not in the room, adjusted the temperature in the house to save energy, turned the fridge to a higher temperature, also the water heater, updated the insulation in the attick, turned off the computers for a month when not used (which is by the way not the best for a computer to turn it off every day), and were waiting excited for our electric bill, hoping to see a low $ amount on it. :thumbup:And guess what!? It went up! I called the electric company, was all furious :furious:....They suggested to check the duct in our home. And we found out that it had a leak. So basically, we did heat or cooled the attick way more than we did the living area of our house. So, probably you want to let someone checking on that. 
I hope I could help!
Erika


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## Scuba_Dave (Jan 16, 2009)

A small drip can leak 3-6 gallons of water a day
That's 100-200 gallons a month, 300-600 gallons a quarter if that is how they bill.

Any leaks? Outside hose? Water in the crawl space?
Toilet ruinning?

As a bachelor I used to turn my heat down to 55 when I was not home & the same at night.
We turn our heat down to 60 when we are not home
Heat is set at 68 when our son is home, I turn it to 65 when I am the only one home
Installed a programmable thermostat that does the Temp changes automatically. We adjust as needed if we are home

CFL bulbs are a good idea


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## Yoyizit (Jul 11, 2008)

One kW, 4A at 240v, all the time is about average for a house according to my PoCo. 

And, there is a number stamped on the meter that you can use, along with a wrist watch, to use your wattmeter as an ammeter. Your PoCo can help you with that. 
It's something like counting the number of revolutions of the wheel in 10 seconds and multiplying by the factor stamped on the meter.

100 gal/person/day is about normal.


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## J. V. (Jun 1, 2007)

I am going to have my heat pump updated to gas. I live in SC. but it has been very cold here the last few days. My heat pump has been running for at least two days now without stopping once. This will be the last winter with electric heat. It gets updated to gas or I am moving to Florida.


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## LoneStarGuitar (Dec 24, 2008)

it might be a bit of a hassle for you to do but.. 
I unplug everything from my entertainment center when I am not using it. 
You would be surprised how much power ANYTHING with a remote requires to keep it ready for that "instant on" when you hit the remote. 

lot of other good inexpensive suggestions here too.

Chekc around your outlets and light switches. You can purchase insulation rings for them very inexpensively. I think it cost around 13 dollars to purchase all I needed for my house. Cut down on the noticible draft as you passed an outlet. 

I swapped every bulb in my house to CF's. I had a ceiling fan in my living room with three 75w incandescents.. replaced with six 11w CF recessed lights. They put out better quality light and cost less. Plus I was able to get rid of the @$$-ugly light kit on the fan. THink of it.. 66w vs 225w. That adds up and the room is MUCH more pleasantly lit.


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## pcampbell (Feb 7, 2008)

I think we should see a break down in your bill. You mention water, but is that really significant? I would have to go out of my way to have a water bill more than roughly $10 a month and I am not exactly the most "green" when it comes to water usage.

How much are you paying per KW/H and per therm or CCF of propane, or is it Natural gas?

Like others said are these estimates or actual meter readings?


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## WFO (Nov 5, 2008)

Answer #1. All houses come with an automatic energy saver. It's on the wall and all you have to do is flip the switch to off.
Is that a smart-ass answer? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It takes the individual to make the decision if his light bill is proportionate to his life-style.

Answer #2. Assuming you are being frugal with your usage....after more than 30 years with a POCO, most of the high bills we see are when people expect devices to work automatically and they aren't. Examples would be;

1. Leaks in water lines if you are on a well. Makes the pump run a lot.
2. A water-logged well. Same thing as above....cycles way too often.
3. Leak in hot water pipes, Water heater runs constantly while your hot water flows down the creek.
4. Any cooling unit that is low on freon. Doesn't have to be an old unit to have a leak. Dirty or blocked coils do the same thing. Same for the 'fridge.
5. AC units that are heating and cooling simultaneously. As UTTERLY RIDICULOUS as this sounds, you would be surprised how many time I've found an A/C unit running with the heater strip coils glowing.
6. Stupidity. People that have three freezers running 24/7 in a shut-up garage with the ambient temperature at 120 degrees.
7. The ever popular deteriorated weather stripping, refrigerator seals, etc.

My personal favorite was the water heater where the thermostat was not attached to the tank....it was hanging out in open air. The water would heat up unrestrained until it boiled out through the pop-off valve. New cold water would come in , cool it off, it would start heating again, and the whole process would be repeated. You could see the steam cloud from the street, but the homeowner was clueless.

Yoyizit is right. Look at your meter and find a number on the faceplate that says "Kh". Usually it will be Kh = 7.2, but you might find 3.6, 1.0, 12, etc. This represents the amount of energy used per disc revolution in watts.
For example, if your meter had a 7.2 Kh and it turned one revolution in an hour, you would have consumed one watt/hour. If it went around 1000 times in an hour, you used one kilowatt/hour.

To calculate what you are using at any one time, get a stop watch and clock 10 revolutions of the disc, then use the following formula;
(Kh X # rev. X 3600) divided by (clocked time in seconds X 1000)

For example....a meter with a 7.2 Kh is clocked for 10 revolutions in 65.5 seconds.
(7.2 X 10 X 3600) divided by (65.5 X 1000) = 3.957 Kwh or 3,957 watts/hr.

Remember, a water heater or A/C unit cycling on or off during the test will mess you up.

If worst comes to worst, you can get your meter tested. Meters are usually required to be plus or minus 2 percent accuracy and almost all are well within this (usually within .5 percent). In 10 years of meter testing, I only saw about 10 meters that were out of tolerence fast (if they're off, they're usually slow) and only two were siginificant enough to have affected the bill dramatically. One was 7 percent, the other 35 percent ( a direct lightning hit on the house that fried the meter along with all the house wiring). The rest were in the 3 and 4 percent range (i.e., 3 percent being $3.00 on a hundred dollor light bill.....hardly the smoking gun).

Last but not least, paperwork/reading errors. Always check your billing statement against your actual meter reading (allowing that the bill will be several days, if not weeks, behind).

Good luck!


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## gp_wa (Aug 19, 2008)

WFO said:


> Yoyizit is right. Look at your meter and find a number on the faceplate that says "Kh". Usually it will be Kh = 7.2, but you might find 3.6, 1.0, 12, etc. This represents the amount of energy used per disc revolution in watts.
> For example, if your meter had a 7.2 Kh and it turned one revolution in an hour, you would have consumed one watt/hour. If it went around 1000 times in an hour, you used one kilowatt/hour.


This needs correcting. Whatever the Kh number, the power usage is that number of watt hours per rev. For example, Kh 7.2 means that you've used 7.2 watt hours every time the disc turns one revolution, or .0072 kwh. If it turns once an hour, you're using 7.2 watts.

I'm too lazy on a Sunday night to check the rest of your math :whistling2:


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## gp_wa (Aug 19, 2008)

J. V. said:


> I am going to have my heat pump updated to gas.  I live in SC. but it has been very cold here the last few days. My heat pump has been running for at least two days now without stopping once.


We had a nasty cold snap in Dec., with temps down to around 5-10* for a couple or three nights, and my heat pump ran almost non stop, too. But, I am not aware of any time that it brought in the backup heat (electric), aside from defrost cycles. It would seem it's a tad oversized  But, with this unit, it should have been running at well over 150% efficient even at those temps. Are you sure you're going to save much of anything by putting in gas back up heat? If yours is running non stop, it probly isn't bringing in the back up, either.


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## i6pwr (Jan 8, 2009)

I just had the same situation, my elec was around $150-180 for winter, i'm in northern Va. Then it jumped to $280 then $360 and turned out the thermostat took a dump and the outside unit was not turning on, I was on elec heat for most of the month.

Fixed the thermostat and after more issues with the heat pump we got the temp sensors all sorted out and hopefully I can catch a break this month.

How old is your water heater?

When the heat is on, make sure the outside unit is running, the fan outside in the unit will not turn in defrost mode but will the other times.

Generally when the bill spikes in winter the elec is kicking on more than usual but like the other poster stated, you could be low on freon.

If you have a broken pipe or just a big leak, the well pump will pull alot of power but I'm going to put this further down the list of things to check.

Make sure the toilets aren't running.

Check the doors to make sure there isn't large drafts coming in.

If the lower element in the water heater is bad it will suck alot of juice to keep the water hot, generally caused by alot of sediment from the well.

Get a HVAC person out there and check the charge of the sysytem, if the thermostat isn't satisified within a certain amount of time, it will call the elec heat to help out, low freon will let this happen.

Let us know what happens.


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## J. V. (Jun 1, 2007)

gp_wa said:


> We had a nasty cold snap in Dec., with temps down to around 5-10* for a couple or three nights, and my heat pump ran almost non stop, too. But, I am not aware of any time that it brought in the backup heat (electric), aside from defrost cycles. It would seem it's a tad oversized  But, with this unit, it should have been running at well over 150% efficient even at those temps. Are you sure you're going to save much of anything by putting in gas back up heat? If yours is running non stop, it probly isn't bringing in the back up, either.



The heat strips are coming on. I can tell because you can feel the difference in heat coming out of the vents. Also the heater smell. My problem is my house is very old, concrete block and virtually no insulation in the walls. It is insulated very good on top and bottom.
The HVAC guy that installed it told me when he quoted the job that due to lack of insulation he could not guaranty comfort in the winter. 
It's all my fault. Buy a house with little insulation in the walls (did not know), and choosing a heat pump instead of a gas pack or oil. :furious:


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