why is my electric bill so high?

Answer 1

Place the electric bill on the carpet and you'll find it to be much lower.

Answer 2

I bet it is not as high as Mr Gore's
Work out what your daily usage is (in kilowatthours ie kWh)
then learn how to read your meter and do so at the same time approx for a few days
1 kWh is 1000 watts for one hour or 2000 watts for half an hour etc
If you have say 5 100 watt lights on for 4 hours that is 5x100x4 = 2000 Wh = 2kWh
Lighting is not the biggest user anything with a motor such as a fan or your fridge will be bigger users and electric heaters are huge consumers
Get a feel of where the heaviest use is and take appropriate action

Answer 3

You may need better insulation. Are you turning the heat way down in the day when you're gone? Ours was really high and here are some things we did. Put blankets or rugs in front of all outside doors, where the door and floor meet and cold air comes in. Close off rooms that aren't used much. Turn heat pretty much off when we're at work and keep it lower when we're home, just put on an extra layer. Shut lights off, unplug things that aren't used. Turn the computer off when not in use, keep the windows covered unless it's really sunny...after we started being really aware of our energy consumption our bill went down by about thirty five bucks a month.

Answer 4

You don't say if you have electric heat or not, but an easy (although time consuming) way to find out which electrical appliances are your biggest energy hogs is to turn off all your electrical devices and watch your electric meter; hopefully it stops spinning. If it doesn't, you either missed something, or you have a line-loss somewhere. Turn you appliances on one-by-one and watch your meter. If it barely creeps along, you're ok. If it spins out of control... BINGO, you found the culprit.

Answer 5

I believe because gas and the electric bill fused together resulting in a higher bill...it sucks! But use energy saver light bulbs to help reduce the electric portion of your bill.

Answer 6

As above, plus an electrician once told us to keep the fridge pretty full, as when empty it takes more energy to cool. Also do not leave fridge door open and try to get all items needed in one go.

My sympathies, most mornings I turn off 2overhead lights, one lamp and 2 counter lights left on in kitchen by hubbie, plus radio and lamp in bedroom - that's by 8a.m.

Answer 7

Leaky windows
Badly sealed doors
Ineffective and inefficent furnace
Thermostat set too high
Dirty filter
Blocked radiators/registers
Hot water tanks set too high
Hot water faucet dripping
Lights left on
Appliances left running
Phantom devices using power
High wattage bulbs when lower ones will work
Incandescent instead of fluorescent
Outside lighting not on timers

Answer 8

change over to a company that provides cheaper electric like a certain scottish one

Answer 9

it is probably an estimate, do a meter reading yourself and give it to the company, I got a high bill and did this and it ended up they owed me money!

Answer 10

Check your refrigerator. They are huge consumers of electricity. Is it working efficiently?