What are all the different things about a home that needs to be looked @ that could run electric bill up?

Question

I recently moved. My electric bill in this house is sky high. I need to discuss this with the landlord. But I want to be more prepared. What all could be wrong w/a house, to cause an electric bill to raise very high? (I'm aware that if we use more water, leave more lights on etc, that will do it. I'm just looking for things that could be wrong w/a house to cause it). There are some gaps in the doors that lead outside, so that's one thing. What are some other things I should ask him to have checked? Thanks!

Answer 1

Good suggestions above. I would just add, do not rely on your landlord. Contact your utility company, they may come out and check to see if there is any unauthorized use on your meter. I had a friend that found out he was paying for all of the outside lighting around his condo. Got it taken off and saved about $50 per month. They may do this without a fee. You may also want to have an electrician, or a friend that is familiar with wiring, check it out for shorts, etc.

Best of luck to you.

Answer 2

The landlord has no control over the appliances you use. Switch light bulbs to Compact Fluorescent bulbs - they use 1/5 the energy - washer, dryer and refrigerator are the major energy using appliances - use cold water for all clothes washing - I just read today that it's the friction that cleans clothes, not the temperature = Air conditioners / central air and central heat. If it's an old house - may not have good insulation - that will cause you to use more heat and cooling. Dishwasher? - wash dishes by hand. Hang clothes out to dry when weather allows - save electric from using dryer - Do you use desk top computers? They use 3-4 times the wattage of notebook PC's - Big Screen TV set? - big energy user - If you just moved in Summer - your bills will be higher than Spring and Fall due to heating and cooling - not knowing what state you're in makes it hard to analyze everything

Answer 3

Electric heat is a HUGE expense, so is an electric water heater, stove, and clothes dryer.

Try this: If you have an electric water heater, take a shower first, so that the water heater is active. If you have electric heat, leave it alone. You already know it's a power pig. Turn on the stove and dryer as well. Turn OFF sensitive electronics, like computers. They really don't like having their power supply cut off suddenly.

Have someone watch the electric meter outside while you're inside at the breaker or fuse panel. Use cell phones or radios to communicate with each other. As the wheel is spinning like mad, the person at the panel turns breakers off, then on, until the wheel suddenly slows. That breaker controls the item that's using the most power. Work your way through the entire panel - you may have more than one of these items.

Answer 4

1) 0that somebody is "siphoning" your electricity ( really)

2) that there is some minor short somewhere

3) older appliances - that could be helped by cleaning
coils ( refrigerators)

4) try to see how things are interacting.
may regular light bulbs heat up the air, which make the air conditioner have to run more.

50 this should be a low amount of electricity, but a lot of things use electricty constantly - in my house
the CD player
THE DVD player
all TV cable boxes
the computer
the printer

if it is "instant on" it uses a tiny bit of electricity all the time

Answer 5

Not enough insulation, bad/old windows, cracks under and around doors. All these things you can take care of with a trip to the hardware store. Check your A/C to make sure the filter is clean, same with the furnace for winter time.
FYI check your lease but most if not all of those things are your responsibility in a lot of areas.

Answer 6

even when the tv is off, it will keep the meter running, when not at home, unplug those plugs to save on eclectric bills

running A/C is a bill $$$, use ceiling fan

old Appliances are worthless, get new energy efficeint ones

lights bulbs, get those new ones that uses 100watts but cost 23 watts on your meters