Huge electricity bill!

[Jacque]

Ok, guys, I need your help to figure out if my electricity meter is running properly or not. For a few yrs now, our quarterly bill has been coming in at around $500-600, and, though I've always thought it high, have not really worried unduly about it until the last bill, which was $700. Asking around, I discovered that my parents bill is around the $300 mark and they have ducted a/c! I then started to investigate and worry that maybe there is something else missing.....

If I outline our situation maybe someone in the know can shed some light on this, to let me know if this is a "normal" amount to pay.

Our 4 bed 2 bath house has no a/c of any description. (We have whirlybirds and fans instead in four rooms)
We do have a pool which has a filter that is on approx 7-8 hrs in a 24 hr period. Hubby has cut this back to 4-5 hrs to see if that makes a difference. It also has an automatic cleaner (JetVac) which is on for the same period, but I can't see that this would cost so much to run. Even the girl I spoke to at EnergyAust said the average inground auto pool costs around the $150-200 per yr to run.
We are on Off Peak 1 hot water, which I've found is more expensive than Off Peak 2. Our hot water each bill is around the $85 mark. We are working on timed showers now and less baths! :)
We have one TV, one fridge only, one dryer which rarely gets used, a washing machine that I use for 1-2 loads a day on cold water only, gas for heating (separate bill) and that's about it.
Apart from the normal things that are present in most households (coupla radios, two PC's, stereo system) the only thing we have extra really is the pool.
I'm always reminding the kids to turn off the lights/not open the fridge etc.


If anyone can give me any pointers here, I'd be most grateful. I just can't understand why our bill is so high! Is it possible for a meter to be stuffing up?

[duncan_m]

Ok, guys, I need your help to figure out if my electricity meter is running properly or not.


If you're prepared to spend a little money ( :rolleyes: ) Clipsal have a great product called "Cent-a-meter" that gives you a dynamic read-out in the home of the COST of electrical consumption. The device computes the approximate power use, energy cost and greenhouse gas generation..

It wont calculate your bill, but it will help you understand how the consumption of energy happens in your home and it offers a nice visual check on the way out the front door that heaters, ovens etc arent running.

Details here (http://www.clipsal.com.au/centameter/centameter.cfm)

(Yes, I work for Clipsal)

[kissfan]

Hi Jacque
Can't help you out on the technical side of things here but your electricity bill seems excessively high. I would have switched off the power at the meter box by now if my bills were anywhere near what yours have been. We have a 3 b/r place ( no pool admittedly), but use the air conditioning as needed, have 2 fridges running and all the other normal appliances and my average electricity bills are around the $250 mark. I would definately be getting someone from EnergyAust out to check on things. Let us know how you go.

Regards
Marty

[househunter]

HiJaque,

Your bill does seem a little high for your house. I have a big house with a/c/dishwasher/ computers/ 5 tvs/4 fridges etc and my bill is about the same as yours. I don't have a pool in this house but I can tell you that when I had the pool in a smaller house my bill was still about the same. All I do now is have an automatic set-up on internet banking to pay $50 per week to energex. It is a great way to pay the bill without having that big amount in one go. Usually when my bill arrives I am in credit.

Househunter

[likewow]

Wow!! Thats a big bill. Things that heat are the huge power consumers and add a lot to a bill. Things like lights, computers, small electric motors. tvs, stereos all add up but are rarely the cause of huge power consumption.

Look for things like, stove, oven, dishwasher, hot water heater, heaters...etc...are the big ones and something might be faulty. Call your electricty provider and/or get an electrician to put his ''clamp tester' (sometimes called a 'tong tester' on the wires leading to heating appliances which usually have their own circuit. He can do this from the meter box, better still get the Integral/Energy Australia to do it. He might do it for free.

[Jacque]

Thanks for the tips, guys. Have since found out that the pool filter alone has been costing us on average $220 a quarter to run. Phew!
Am also resorting to hosing the kids and eating more salads :)

[likewow]

Thanks for the tips, guys. Have since found out that the pool filter alone has been costing us on average $220 a quarter to run. Phew!
Am also resorting to hosing the kids and eating more salads :)

Do you know what size motor it is (Either kw or hp) and approx. how many hours per week/day its on? . If you do i'll be able to estimate how much it should cost you per quarter.

[David E-Noosa]

Ours is around 420-450 with large pool which is solar heated but thats pumped to the roof, dishwasher, large 4 bedroom home, spa, elec water heater, tank water so pump for that also, 2 computers, 4 TV's etc etc

We are in Qld so that may be different

[Macca]

Hi Jacque,

check your filter pump flow thru, that seems a long time to be running it. I have a 10mtr pool and was told to run pump for 4 hrs per day maximum.

[michaelg]

Hey Dunc,

I believe that was one of the entrants in the New Inventors show on the ABC. Good to see good Aussie ideas being marketed.

Michael G

If you're prepared to spend a little money ( :rolleyes: ) Clipsal have a great product called "Cent-a-meter" that gives you a dynamic read-out in the home of the COST of electrical consumption. The device computes the approximate power use, energy cost and greenhouse gas generation..

It wont calculate your bill, but it will help you understand how the consumption of energy happens in your home and it offers a nice visual check on the way out the front door that heaters, ovens etc arent running.

Details here (http://www.clipsal.com.au/centameter/centameter.cfm)

(Yes, I work for Clipsal)

[house proud]

we had an unexpected high electricity account over two quarters ago.....I was in the in the kitchen one day and heard the water heater heating up in the middle of the day...???
Turns out the timer on the heater was playing up and the water was being heated at really odd and expensive times during the day ! Just a thought for what's its worth...

good luck
House Proud

[house proud]

If you're prepared to spend a little money ( :rolleyes: ) Clipsal have a great product called "Cent-a-meter" that gives you a dynamic read-out in the home of the COST of electrical consumption. The device computes the approximate power use, energy cost and greenhouse gas generation..

It wont calculate your bill, but it will help you understand how the consumption of energy happens in your home and it offers a nice visual check on the way out the front door that heaters, ovens etc arent running.

Details here (http://www.clipsal.com.au/centameter/centameter.cfm)

(Yes, I work for Clipsal)

great idea...any idea what they are worth Duncan ???
House Proud

[Jacque]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. Much appreciated :)
Will let you know the results of the next bill from cutting the pool pump down in usage. Am also being more pedantic about all those lights left on!

[units4me]

Water beds, with electric heating elements, can also gobble heaps of electricity. Not many around these days, but often forgotten in power calculations. Cheers.

[Peter 14.7]

Hi Jacque

Just a note but can the meter reader actually access your meter? Reason I ask because if not they make and estimate of use from previous use. This can disadvantage you and actually put your in credit. IS the Meter box locked?

Peter 147

[Twitch]

Also, old fridges with dodgy seals can chew the electricity very fast.

[Jacque]

Hi Jacque

Just a note but can the meter reader actually access your meter? Reason I ask because if not they make and estimate of use from previous use. This can disadvantage you and actually put your in credit. IS the Meter box locked?

Peter 147

No, meter box is easy to get to and always unlocked.

[duncan_m]

great idea...any idea what they are worth Duncan ???
House Proud

I believe the Trade Price is around $150 so with an electricians mark-up and the installation cost.. maybe around $250? Not cheap, but nice to have a dynamic readout in cents of your houses current electricity consumption !:)

[Dos]

Not sure what type of electrical options you have down there but in Qld we have a Tariff33 which only runs at certain times of the day at a much lower cost due to it's limited hours. We therefore have our pool pump on this tariff and it is timed to be on during those times. It costs us 1/3 of what it normally would if we had it on the normal tariff. Only cost around $250 to install and connect but will save hundreds of dollars a year. We also have 2 tv's, air con, and bill is much lower than yours, almost half!!!

Dos

[house proud]

Thanks Duncan, we can get trade price and an elctrician to fit it -realtion ;-) so I reckon it will be on our must have list...
BTW how is your building coming along?

cheers House Proud

[MarkR]

REALLY simple (& free) thing to do,

Time a full revolution of the disc in your meter (there's a mark on them for a start-stop point), go & turn off everything major, then one by one turn them on. Not scientific but if the meter suddenly increases 50% in speed you know what's causing it.

I bought 2 oil heaters for our old house, got told they were extremely cheap to run & as a result had them both going full bore. Resulted in a 200% increase in electricity, when i checked this way as soon as I turned them on the meter started clicking over at a great rate. Needless to say we modified our usage very quickly.

Cheers
Mark