# Electrical usage way up



## debodun (Jan 11, 2018)

When I read my electric meter for December, it was over 2 times the usual usage  reading. I don't have any lighted holiday decorations and haven't used  any electrical appliances more than usual. When I averaged the meter  readings from last January through this November, I averaged 177 KWH per  month. December's reading was 380 KWH. What could be happening to increase the reading?


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## retiredtraveler (Jan 11, 2018)

Are you running heat with a blower-fan? If so, was it warmer last year for this time period  so didn't use much? You'd have to look at your appliances too. Does your fridge seem to be running more? Do you have any 'hidden' lights left on in a garage or a crawl space that you might not notice? New appliances that you're using that you didn't have before like a PC? Lot of factors to look at.


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## Don M. (Jan 11, 2018)

Check your Electric companies web-site.  Many now have an application where you can track your daily/monthly usage.  Our supplier even breaks our usage down to hourly.  Awhile back, as I recall, you were posting about having refrigerator troubles.  If that appliance is running far more than normal, that would easily account for such an increase.  

I would LOVE to see 380 KWH....our place is total electric, and almost 4500 sq. ft with the basement/garage.  Our annual consumption is more in the 1500KWH/month range, and a monthly bill of about $150 on average.  If it weren't for my big outdoor wood furnace, we would have Winter electric bills approaching $400/mo.


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## RadishRose (Jan 11, 2018)

Deb you were saying your refrigerator kept running a short while ago.....


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 11, 2018)

It might be your reading.  

Sometimes if the dials, on the meter, are between numbers and you give them the higher number it boosts the bill for the month and then next month when you give the new reading it will give a you a lower bill and it all balances out.


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## Olivia (Jan 11, 2018)

It could be a mistake. They do that sometimes.


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## NancyNGA (Jan 11, 2018)

Deb, do you have gas heat?  Or electric?


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## nvtribefan (Jan 11, 2018)

Could be non-maintained appliances or heating system.


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## Buckeye (Jan 11, 2018)

Sounds like you have a loose wire, maybe in an outlet, that is letting a lot of electricity leak out undetected.  You should call an electrician to check everything out.


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 12, 2018)

Aunt Bea said:


> It might be your reading.
> 
> Sometimes if the dials, on the meter, are between numbers and you give them the higher number it boosts the bill for the month and then next month when you give the new reading it will give a you a lower bill and it all balances out.



Another thought.

If the last couple of bills were based on estimated readings and the current bill is from an actual reading the power company may be bringing your usage up to date.


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## Warrigal (Jan 12, 2018)

Has your water consumption also increased? 
If so, it could indicate a leaking hot water system.


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## debodun (Jan 12, 2018)

NancyNGA said:


> Deb, do you have gas heat?  Or electric?



Oil


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## debodun (Jan 12, 2018)

RadishRose said:


> Deb you were saying your refrigerator kept running a short while ago.....



Would a fridge use that much?


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## Don M. (Jan 12, 2018)

debodun said:


> When I read my electric meter for December, it was over 2 times the usual usage  reading. I don't have any lighted holiday decorations and haven't used  any electrical appliances more than usual. When I averaged the meter  readings from last January through this November, I averaged 177 KWH per  month. December's reading was 380 KWH. What could be happening to increase the reading?



Something is wrong with your numbers.  Using Only 177 KWH per month would indicate that you have virtually no electric appliances, almost never watch TV, and use candles for lighting.  Did you get those numbers from your electric bill statements?  If your usage is that low, I certainly wouldn't call the electric company....as they would probably find that you have a defective meter which is giving incorrect low readings.  I would expect a typical house to have average monthly usage readings somewhere in the 1000 KWH range....under the best of conditions.


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## Don M. (Jan 12, 2018)

Hoot N Annie said:


> Sounds like you have a loose wire, maybe in an outlet, that is letting a lot of electricity leak out undetected.  You should call an electrician to check everything out.



Yup, a person has to be concerned about a loose wire....all those electrons dripping out behind the wall could cause Mold to develop.  "chuckle".


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## debodun (Jan 12, 2018)

Don M. said:


> Something is wrong with your numbers.  Using Only 177 KWH per month would indicate that you have virtually no electric appliances, almost never watch TV, and use candles for lighting.  Did you get those numbers from your electric bill statements?  If your usage is that low, I certainly wouldn't call the electric company....as they would probably find that you have a defective meter which is giving incorrect low readings.  I would expect a typical house to have average monthly usage readings somewhere in the 1000 KWH range....under the best of conditions.



I assumed the reading on the meter is KWH. My electric bill per month averaged $35.30 in 2017.


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## RadishRose (Jan 12, 2018)

debodun said:


> Would a fridge use that much?



Refrigerators are known for being the biggest electrical vampires in the house.


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## Don M. (Jan 12, 2018)

debodun said:


> I assumed the reading on the meter is KWH. My electric bill per month averaged $35.30 in 2017.



Based upon your numbers, it looks like you are paying 19.9 cents/KWH....which sounds about right, because NY, and most of the NorthEast have the highest rates in the nation.  You should be able to find how much you are paying, per KWH, listed on your monthly statement.  Unless you use almost NO electricity, I would BET that your meter is miscalibrated, or going bad.  If you were using anywhere near a more normal 900-1000 KWH, your monthly electric bill should be close to $200/month.  According to the Internet, the average cost in NY is 18.76 cents/KWH....and that number varies slightly depending upon your locale, and provider.  

Check with a couple of your neighbors, and ask how much they are paying....if they are paying substantially more than you, I would strongly suspect you have a bad meter, and if you call the electric company, and that turns out to be the problem, be prepared to see your costs skyrocket.  

Our local rates are 8.3 cents/KWH, and we often use 2000 KWH/Month, especially during the heat of Summer and the depths of Winter.


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## WhatInThe (Jan 12, 2018)

retiredtraveler said:


> Are you running heat with a blower-fan? If so, was it warmer last year for this time period  so didn't use much? You'd have to look at your appliances too. Does your fridge seem to be running more? Do you have any 'hidden' lights left on in a garage or a crawl space that you might not notice? New appliances that you're using that you didn't have before like a PC? Lot of factors to look at.



That's what I'm thinking. Especially the fridge. Also even those portable heaters(if you are using one) are small they are energy hogs. A lot of tv watching? Did try recharging alot of stuff. Bad batteries take forever to recharge. Running a humidifier or air filter? Were you vacation last year or have unusual weather that didn't require AC or heat?


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## debodun (Jan 13, 2018)

No heating enhancements and my TV watching is not excessively over what it usually is.


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## Don M. (Jan 13, 2018)

debodun said:


> No heating enhancements and my TV watching is not excessively over what it usually is.



I'd bet money that your electric meter is giving bad readings...you should be using 5 or 6 times what your bill is showing, if you are just an "average" user.  Count your blessings with these low bills....some day your electric company is going to catch the problem, and then your bills will go Waaay Up.  Ask around to others in your neighborhood, to get an idea of what you Should be paying.


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 13, 2018)

My usage is similar to Deb's.  Last month I used 146 KWH at a cost of $6.75 and 2 additional therms of gas at a cost of $0.71 for a total of 5 therms, 3 therms are included in the basic service.  The basic service and delivery charges are $46.78.  The cost of electricity and gas $7.46 coupled with the delivery charge is a total of $54.24. This does not include the cost of heat and hot water which is provided by the landlord.

I think the problem is with the meter reading or the billing and not due to a change in usage.


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## nvtribefan (Jan 13, 2018)

Aunt Bea said:


> My usage is similar to Deb's.  Last month I used 146 KWH at a cost of $6.75 and 2 additional therms of gas at a cost of $0.71 for a total of 5 therms, 3 therms are included in the basic service.  The basic service and delivery charges are $46.78.  The cost of electricity and gas $7.46 coupled with the delivery charge is a total of $54.24. This does not include the cost of heat and hot water which is provided by the landlord.
> 
> I think the problem is with the meter reading or the billing and not due to a change in usage.



But you don't live in a big old two story house like Deb, do you?  Aren't you in an apartment?


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 14, 2018)

nvtribefan said:


> But you don't live in a big old two story house like Deb, do you?  Aren't you in an apartment?



I'm not sure what the size of my apartment has to do with how much electricity I use.

Maybe Deb has more outlets leaking electricity than I do.


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## Buckeye (Jan 14, 2018)

Don M. said:


> I'd bet money that your electric meter is giving bad readings...you should be using 5 or 6 times what your bill is showing, if you are just an "average" user.  Count your blessings with these low bills....some day your electric company is going to catch the problem, and then your bills will go Waaay Up.  Ask around to others in your neighborhood, to get an idea of what you Should be paying.



Sounds right to me. I've noticed my meter spins in both directions, sometimes clockwise, sometimes counter clockwise.  But I'm not complaining since my last electric bill was $14.71

Used 162 kwh in 34 day billing cycle


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## debodun (Jan 14, 2018)

Don M. said:


> Based upon your numbers, it looks like you are paying 19.9 cents/KWH.



Exactly correct. I got out my bill and divided the KWH by the amount billed.


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## Don M. (Jan 14, 2018)

debodun said:


> Exactly correct. I got out my bill and divided the KWH by the amount billed.



Quite frankly, If you are showing such little usage on your utility bills, you should just thank your lucky stars, and hope the electric company doesn't check your meter.  Someone living in a small 1 bedroom apartment would probably see higher electric bills than what you are getting.  Based upon your location in NY, and living in a full size house, anything less than a monthly average of $150 would seem quite good.


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## debodun (Jan 14, 2018)

Living alone helps. I use computer 5 or 6 hours a day. TV on all night (in fact I can't sleep unless the TV is on - if the cable goes out for some reason, it wakes me right up). Microwave maybe 2 minutes average per day. 60 watt reading light on, if needed, maybe an hour a day. Clothes dryer - 1 hour every 6 weeks. The fridge I leave on low settings. My heating system is oil. LP gas stove.


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## NancyNGA (Jan 14, 2018)

Is the air handler/blower on your furnace electric? Or do you have radiators?


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## Don M. (Jan 14, 2018)

A typical desktop computer, at your electricity rates, might eat up 5 to 10 cents per hour.  The TV usage varies all over the place..and older CRT TV uses gobs of electricity, compared to a current flat screen.  If you leave your TV on all night, and it is a 46" LED, you might be spending at least 2 dollars a day for that.  A couple of interior lights...maybe 3 or 4 dollars a month.  Clothes dryer...close to a dollar every time you use it.  Fridge, maybe 5 or 6 dollars a month.  Your biggest expense would probably be the blower for your furnace...a house your size should have a blower motor with a 400 to 600 Watt rating...with a startup draw of well over 1200 Watts....that could easily account for 40 or 50 dollars a month, in the Winter.  Then, if you have Air Conditioning...even a window unit...the Summer costs could be anywhere from 30 to 200 dollars a month.  It all adds up quickly to a monthly average Waaay more than what you are paying.


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## debodun (Jan 15, 2018)

I have an oil, hot water heating system with huge metal radiators. You can see one against the wall in this photo of my living room.


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## TonyK (Jan 15, 2018)

After I replaced my 30-year old water heater my electric bill decreased substantially.


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## nvtribefan (Jan 15, 2018)

debodun said:


> Clothes dryer - 1 hour every 6 weeks.



You must have a huge supply of sheets, towels, and underwear!


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## debodun (Jan 16, 2018)

nvtribefan said:


> You must have a huge supply of sheets, towels, and underwear!



Don't tell me you're one of those near freaks that changes everything every few days. I make things last.


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## nvtribefan (Jan 16, 2018)

debodun said:


> Don't tell me you're one of those near freaks that changes everything every few days. I make things last.



I've never thought that laundering sheets and towels weekly made one a neat freak.  I thought that (and daily underwear changes) was pretty basic hygiene.


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## Butterfly (Jan 28, 2018)

Deb, if I had electric bills as low as yours, I'd be jumping for joy!


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## Buckeye (Jan 28, 2018)

Deb - Any new info??  I will say my electric bill did about double this past month too,  from $14 to $27. I have no idea what the rate might be.


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## debodun (Jan 29, 2018)

I will know Thursday when I have to read it again.


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## debodun (Feb 1, 2018)

This month's usage (222 KWH) was still more than the average (177 KWH) over the past year but down from last month (380 KWH).


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## Buckeye (Feb 1, 2018)

debodun said:


> This month's usage (222 KWH) was still more than the average (177 KWH) over the past year but down from last month (380 KWH).



Great!  Let us know what happens next month.


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## debodun (Feb 1, 2018)

I suspect the refrigerator. I had it fixed in early December because it was running all the time. It runs less that it did before the repair, but still more than when it did months ago.


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