Unusually high electrical bill

Henryjr · 08-26-2009, 01:16 PM

I'm looking for help diagnosing unusually high electrical usage in my home. There is no obvious reason for the increased bill. Thanks.

Scuba_Dave · 08-26-2009, 01:24 PM

Do you have a well or other type of pump?

Leah Frances · 08-26-2009, 01:29 PM

No joke. Are there any unexplained wires running from your meter, house, garage? Electric theft does happen.

Henryjr · 08-26-2009, 01:36 PM

Yes both. Inground pool.

Henryjr · 08-26-2009, 01:37 PM

Thanks Leah, but there are no unusual wires ... Think it's an "inside" job!

Scuba_Dave · 08-26-2009, 01:42 PM

Can you tell if the well pump is running a lot?
Some have posted about leaks & well pump running almost non-stop to keep up pressure
Pool pump if failing or obstructed water line could be causing back presure & making the pump work harder

LeviDIY · 08-26-2009, 02:15 PM

PEPCO in Maryland and DC area bills unexpectedly spiked this past winter... when asked they said "must be your usage" but recent news articles are out that meters are malfunctioning... I smell bill credit soon.. check out news on your power company.

Henryjr · 08-26-2009, 02:29 PM

Thanks for your help. Will look into pumps.

vsheetz · 08-26-2009, 02:56 PM

Three months ago I had a unually high bill - nearly double the norm - Ouch!

Found the timer for the pump/filter on my inground pool had gone bad and causing it to run way too many hours in a day. A trip to a big box store for a replacement timer and all was good again.

Yoyizit · 08-26-2009, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Henryjr

I'm looking for help diagnosing unusually high electrical usage in my home. There is no obvious reason for the increased bill. Thanks.

http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/consumpt...on_tables.html

You can also use your wattmeter as an ammeter, if you're interested in isolating the problem to a specific appliance.
http://www.wholesalesolar.com/pdf.fo...ower-table.pdf

If you post a few samples of normal bills and of high bills, the chance of this happening "by chance" can be figured by using
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analysis_of_variance
somewhere I have a disk with a BASIC program on it that does this.

jerryh3 · 08-26-2009, 06:04 PM

Teenage son?
http://www.hydroempire.com/store/index.php

RStephen · 10-19-2010, 12:45 AM

POWER COMPANY CORRUPTION.

Yes, it happens. I hope you are not in a "Cooperative" and you are where they regulate.

You can get a Kill o Watt EZ and test the appliances yourself to make sure there is nothing on your end. Document everything.

If you have a new digital meter, several "experts" have documented faulty installation causing high bills.

hyunelan2 · 10-19-2010, 08:17 AM

Have your bills been "actual" reads or just "estimates?" Here, ComEd does no read the meter every month. They only read the meter like once every 3 months and issue "estimated" reads in-between. I have had the occasion where they underestimate the reads, then the actual read is high and I have a high bill to catch up.

fabrk8r · 10-19-2010, 09:05 AM

Do you happen to have a heat pump?

I had one case where the A-coil had a leak and the homeowner didn't realize it until they got a really high electric bill because the home was being heated by emergency heat for a month.

08-26-2009, 01:16 PM	#1
Henryjr Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 4	Unusually high electrical bill I'm looking for help diagnosing unusually high electrical usage in my home. There is no obvious reason for the increased bill. Thanks.

08-26-2009, 01:24 PM	#2
Scuba_Dave Xtreme DIY'r Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: South of Boston, MA Posts: 17,248	Unusually high electrical bill Do you have a well or other type of pump?

08-26-2009, 01:29 PM	#3
Leah Frances Learning by Doing Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Easton, Maryland Posts: 3,156 Blog Entries: 7	Unusually high electrical bill No joke. Are there any unexplained wires running from your meter, house, garage? Electric theft does happen. __________________ If I could only remember to THINK about what I was doing before I did it.

08-26-2009, 01:36 PM	#4
Henryjr Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 4	Unusually high electrical bill Yes both. Inground pool.

08-26-2009, 01:37 PM	#5
Henryjr Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 4	Unusually high electrical bill Thanks Leah, but there are no unusual wires ... Think it's an "inside" job!

Unusually high electrical bill