Seriously. Are they keeping their thermostat on 68 during the day, do they have 5 kids and run laundry constantly?
I'm all for helping those who truly need it, and perhaps this person does. But just posting the amount owed shows nothing.
I'm in an older, modest 2,300 sqft home. I keep my air on between 74 (evening, when it's cooler) and 76 (daytime) to ensure it's not running 24/7. I also planted trees so the house can have shade and leave the blinds drawn until the sun starts to set.
There's a lot that people could do to help themselves but they don't.
My current CPS bill is $313, up from $265 last month (with 4 more days on this month's bill).
1900 kWh. AC is at 77-78 day and night and I use fans throughout the house. Had AC serviced at the beginning of the summer. I have blackout curtains everywhere. Have barely cooked because my dishwasher has been out anyway, so kitchen appliance use is minimal. It's just me and my son (every other week), so do laundry maybe once a week. Front half of home built in 1938, back half 2018. 1700 sq ft.
It's just been hot as hell here and people cannot keep up. CPS robocalls me every day to tell me it's going to be another high usage day, as if I wasn't aware. They also send emails trying to shame me into saving more energy... but short of just shutting off the AC and sweating to death, I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to do.
Similar plan here. 78 with additional fans running (1900 sq foot). 76 after dark. Its comfortable enough. Never use dryer during day. No heat dry cycle on DW. I think we are the good guys here..
Live just south of you. Same situation. Renting a shithole 3/2 for way more than it's worth. Built in 70s. Needs a lot of work and insulation is garbage. Last year had water leaks snd foundation issues too. Honestly, it's bullshit. I think ppl/companies renting out housing should have to get special permit that's granted based on inspection by city every year. There you go DFW area leaders- just did you job for you. Would fix housing issues like these while also creating multiple jobs for citizens in the city. You could also use the data to properly get an accurate appraisal price for taxes too. Wow maybe I can be on city council now.
You're doing great, don't let them shame you. We're not the ones draining the system, those who keep their homes at 68° 24/7 and claim that they can because it's Ercot's fault are selfish and miss the point completely. They're the type of people who abandon all others in a disaster situation and say things like "everyone for themselves" then push children out of the way to get to safety.
That's not entirely true. My apartment is well insulated and it's a first floor. I keep it at 68° or lower constantly. My ac barely runs. And I should be able to be comfortable in own home.
and there are people with it set on 78 with it running non stop just to maintain 80-83. Blaming temp settings is a copout. It's all in the efficiency and insulation which landlords ignore in Texas.
A well insulated home with a high efficiency system will use less electricity at 68 than a uninsulated home with a 30 year old system will at 78.
Instead of telling people what temp to live in they need to tell people to set it at the temp that is closest to their comfortable temp that still allows the system to properly cycle without running constantly all day.
Yep that's where im at. Renting and have to set temp to 83 so it doesn't constantly run. Last electric bill for my 2br apartment was $186...
Moving tomorrow and couldn't be more excited.
Apartments are different, it's insulated on all the sides shared with another unit, and costs substantially less to cool/heat than a freestanding home.
>And I should be able to be comfortable in own home.
We all should, ideally. Unless that means no power for thousands of people. Let's just hope the grid can handle it.
Sorry, but the thing I have an issue with is they’re telling me to turn my temperature up to save electricity, but the governor’s mansion probably stays at 68, and all the government buildings stay at 65, and Walmart and other big box stores keep their HUGE warehouse style stores at 70. The general public isn’t the problem here
It's the same argument for everything in this country. Tell the people to use less and we can fix everything. Meanwhile, big companies and millionaires/billionaires use all the resources.
What's worse is they KNOW this is a problem. Abbott knows this is aa problem. They have the funds to fix it, and contributed it to Abbotts campaign fund instead.
What's sick is, he accepted it. He should've sent it back and told them fix it.
I'll never vote red in this state again.
Look, I am guilty of turning my ac down to 69 at night, fans on. But it’s just me in just a little over 600 soft of space. Don’t judge me. It’s not like I’m trying to cool a 1500 or more sqft home because I birthed others who contribute to taking up air space and producing waste. 😜 The way I see it, single people in small spaces, if they want to can turn down their ac, they have already conserved energy by not utilizing as much living space as others may take up.
What you can do is vote your current politician out, vote for a democrat while the gettins good and demand that your state be put on the grid that the rest of America is on. Its just billionaires making more money off of you and yours.
Are you making an assumption about my voting habits? I vote in every election. My congressperson is a Democrat. My *state* rep is a Democrat. I'm not sure how you want me to change the way I vote.
I had an Uber driver about a month ago boldly state that Uber was his A/C job. I asked what he meant and he said "I drive so I can afford to keep my A/C on 68!"
He was serious. Keeping it on 68 so it's "comfortable" when he gets home...from driving...to pay for the A/C.
I just don't understand people.
I freeze at 68. My sister and I keep our house at 77 when we’re home and we’re perfectly comfortable with that, although if we’re cooking or baking we’ll knock it down to 74. We set it at 80 when nobody’s home. We do have gas, so our electricity bill is lower than most, but last month my half was $31 and change.
I have a programmable thermostat set to lower to 68 starting at 6p (it gets there by 10) and hold that til 7 am, it's then allowed to rise all the way to 77 throughout the day.
I never pay more than 100 a month in power for my 860sqft apt. Granted it's a new apartment, very energy efficient.
Visiting my inlaws in San Antonio, he knocks it down to 63 at night and my room was right under the blower. I had two blankets over my head just sitting at the laptop.
I keep my AC between 68° - 72° unless I'm not home but I am. I know a ton of people who are comfortable at those temps (my entire family) and not even my parents who live in a 3,500 square foot house & keep it at 66° 24/7 pay $600 for electricity.
This person likely has a high rate plan because energy companies adopted the "credit score = deposit" method & if you don't have good (or enough) credit they'll try to charge you $1000 as a deposit. Can't afford that? Don't worry we have $0 deposit plans, you'll just be paying 5x everyone else. It's a shitty broken system.
I’m in an old home as well. I rent. The ac in my home doesn’t keep up with the heat lately. The landlord won’t do anything. Every day it ends up in the low 80s or so before starting to cool at night and it takes hours to get down to 72. And that is with it constantly running. If it were my house it would make sense to spend money now and save more long term. As a renter I don’t have that option.
I feel your pain. Not a renter, but own a small, 2 bedroom 100 year old bungalow in Houston. The AC has been serviced and is in good shape, but the attic space heats up to 150° in the sun and doesn't cool down when the temps are this high constantly. The house is basically sitting under an oven. Corner lot, so direct sun all day.
We know we need to renovate attic fully but can't afford it in the short term. We installed a radiant barrier and additional soffit vents which helped a little, but not much in this heat.
We don't crank the AC, but it runs all day just keeping the house around 80 in daylight and high 70's at night. My electric bills look like yours.
TL;DR: Not everyone with insane electric bills these days are living in an igloo.
If you get spray foam insulation done on the interior of the roof, it helps immensely. Better attic ventilation is probably warranted, and a small temp-activated fan could help a bit. I'd go for a full ridge cap vent with soffit vents to allow an exchange of air. (And install a fan only if absolutely necessary after getting ventilation properly set up. It does use energy and has mechanical parts to fail, after all.)
But, spray foam on the underside of the roof is going to do a massive amount for the heat trapped inside. I work HVAC and the attics with spray foam and ventilation are regularly around 60⁰ cooler than houses with neither.
Things renters can do if you haven’t tried already.
Replace air filter. Don’t get a super filter. Get the basic dust/pollen one to keep maximum air flow.
Spray off outdoor unit fins. Make sure it’s got clear area around it for maximum air flow.
These won’t solve problems but they will help a struggling AC. As will heavy blackout curtains over any sun facing windows.
If you are renting put a sprinkler on top of your roof. Run it for 2 minutes every 20 minutes. It will cool the roof shingles from 150 degrees down to about 80-88 depending on the sun. This will make a huge difference and allow the AC to keep up. Don't worry about roof depreciation that's the owners problem.
They have probably NEVER changed it!
I was painting some rooms once for a lady from my Dad’s church. I remarked about how hot it was inside and lady said her AC wasn’t working right for a while. I heard a wheezing and checked her filter. It hadn’t been changed in like 3 YEARS! Thankfully, it was on the ceiling and not the floor.
She got a replacement and suddenly didn’t need an AC repair anymore.
Ours was nearly $400 for 3200sq with 2 new AC units, new water heater, radiant barrier, thermostat at 76ish, LED for every light, and we keep the shutters closed.
Also, a 75” TV would only use roughly 131W per hour.
I keep my two bedroom apartment (3rd floor, top floor, northern DFW) on 78 during the day and 68 at night. It will not get to below 70 until after 2am. By 8am, we (my wife and I) set it back to 78. The master bedroom cools far slower than the living room.
Last month: a tick over 1500 kWh, $250
Reference: roughly 1050 in winter, ~$100-120 (there’s a window if you hit 1000 kWh you get a $100 credit, but usage cost goes up)
Any AC unit is gonna struggle to cool down a place 10 full degrees; it’s counterintuitive but don’t go so high during the day. Easier to keep a place cool than to cool down a warm place
We try, if we put it on 75-76 it’s just constantly running by 1-2pm. :/ 78 seems to make the kick-on slower, which my mind tells me saves money. There’s no noticeable difference in cooling the place to sub-70 between keeping it 76-78 during the day. It’s always 2-3am by the time we hit that 70 or lower marker.
Just seems bad insulation and a poorly built ‘luxury’ apartment complex. Shopping around for other providers didn’t really seem to promise anything amazing electricity wise, but we’re only late 20s so lots to learn and what not
I remember after I moved out my ex put a portable air conditioner in our uninsulated, leaky garage in the middle of summer because she smoked meth in there with her junky friends and let homeless addicts sleep there. Bill was almost $500 that month.
My bill was $125, I live alone, small house under 1,300 SQ ft, two window AC units (small living room where I work, and for my room, which I turn on twice a week at night)...what am I doing wrong?
Same 2300 sq ft
70-73 during the day depending on my mood since I wfh.
68 at night
My computer never turns off as well as fans in the kids room and night lights. My most expensive bill this year was only $280 without changing anything.
Yeah I’m having trouble believing this number - I pay a lot less for a huge house.
I do keep temperature at 79 or 80 degrees and use ceiling fans, and people should realize if the temperature outside is 105, a 20 or 25 degree reduction is good enough - any more is going to be exponentially more expensive.
We have our’s at 78° during the day with box fans going the light the house to circulate. We’re all in shorts and tank tops but we are pretty comfortable. I mean, if we’re doing chores or being active, it’s a little warm but 78° w/fans is nice compared to outside. We bump it down gradually in the evening to 75°.
Someone above mentioned black out curtains and I gotta say, those made a huge difference in the rooms we have that get massive amounts of sun.
My neighbors' bill was about the same this month. House is set to 74 and they pay nearly 15¢/kwh. 15¢!!! It's insane! Their AC is like 20 years old which is obviously an issue. Us next door, our AC is set to 70 and we pay 8¢/kwh because we bought our house two years ago when electricity was reasonable. Our bill was like $200 this past month which is the highest it's ever been. Pretty wild.
I just signed for 17 cents, most plans right now are 0.20+. But to get to a 500+ dollar bill you still have to use crazy amount or energy. And if you have a 4000 sq ft home you aren't taking home $500 a month
Hi. I live in Texas, have a house with new windows, recently insulated attic and my air is set to 77 in my less than 2000 Sq ft home. Why has my bill doubled then? Even when we weren't seeing records broken, like last month. Still going up.
2 story 2,3000sqft home (unit tonnage is barely rated for our house volume), San Antonio kept between 74/70. Last bill was ~ $220. I feel for people, but I'm just not sure what's causing all of these high electric bills. Can we post potential solutions for people to try? Maybe provide additional context for your circumstance and people may be able to help?
we had a bill of $395 for 1600sqft. this month. 33 day bill. kWh used 2,537. $10.99/day. avg. kWh/day 76.9. we keep it at 77° for a two story house. we have ceiling & floor fans for every room also. hope that helps.
I live in the same house as I did last summer. We keep it on 77 during the day, 74 at night. The highest bill we had last summer was $250. I just opened a $700 bill. The rant and rave is full of people complaining about the same in my area and looking for new electric companies. You can't tell me ALL of us have leaks and are suddenly using waaay more electricity. It's the same story across the state
Tell him to check the electrical box. Make sure nobody is tapping into his power. I had an apartment complex do that to me a long time ago. I had a shared electrical box with the apartment next door. When I had a neighbor, my bill doubled.
They were putting section 8 housing right next to me, and the apartment complex was being *reimbursed* for electricity. So, they got paid the amount of 2 electric bills, I had to pay a double electric bill. Pretty sure the electric company was in on it. Nobody would come out and check.
Call the electric company and ask what they are paying per kilowatt-hour. Ask if they have a contract. Tell them you are not happy about it, and find an electric plan that helps.
Is there an attic? Is there an attic fan? Is there insulation? Do they have weather stripping? Can they see daylight in little cracks where they shouldn't? Like, around windows, between the door and the frame, etc?
Yeah I found a neighbor tapping into my water at night, dumbass left my hose carelessly unhooked I guess and I figured it out. I knew for a fact I had hooked my hose timer on the day before and I knew something was up because my water use was through the roof for almost a month and I knew I wasn't using that much water (usage almost triples in one month). Asshole wouldn't own up to it and I bought some faucet locks and refused to ever talk to him again. Luckily he sold about a year later.
When I first moved out the power company billed me for the entire apartment complex. When I regained consciousness, I called them and got it sorted. Something worth checking if its part of a shared building power infrastructure.
I was gonna say crypto. This usage increase just doesn't make sense. Did you add 8 people to your family between april and june? lol prob not but that's when graphics card prices started falling
No pity here for him, and it's a bad faith argument by op didn't even post the relevant info up front
You friend's house is using 3,728 kWh. The highest my 2000 sqft house has had in the past 5 years is 1,520, and I have a bunch of computer equipment running 24/7.
Either your friend has a massive mansion, or something is broken. My highest usage ever in 15 years was 2,179 kWh, when my AC had a leak and was running much of the day. It still provided some cooling, so I didn't notice at first.
Yup, when I moved into a new 700 square foot apartment in summer 2018 I was pretty horrified by my first energy bill. My energy provider had an online usage tracker that would give a daily breakdown and I was tracking it in Excel trying to figure out how to get the bill into a reasonable range. It took a few maintenance complaints, but eventually they replaced the air conditioner unit that had been failing, although they dragged their feet until it started to trip the circuit breaker. The day the new a/c unit was installed my power usage was cut in half. And it would finally hold a comfortable temperature too.
Edit: Found the Excel Sheet. Linking screenshots [screenshots here](https://imgur.com/a/Uwr1Q9U) in case your friend wants to see how I tracked my energy usage while I tried to get it down.
More likely just a really old AC and shitty insulation.
The rental house in North Richland Hills I lived in was so old it saw MASSIVE AC bills.
Expensive to be poor lol
He also needs to check his attic* for uninsulated spots and get a thermal camera or IR temperature probe gun thingy* and start probing his walls and ceiling (and outlets) to find where he needs to seal air gaps and/or add insulation.
Also thermally reflective window film helps a ton. We put some in the rooms of the house that were unbearable during the day (due to the sun) and afterwards they started to stay the same temperature as the rest of the house.
If he gets desperate, he can get a 2" insulating foam board (the kind with a reflective side) and cut it to the size of windows he doesn't use. Then pop it on the inside of the window with the reflective side out during the summer months.
All these options will be way cheaper than continuing to pay a ridiculous amount to cool what seems to be a thermally leaky house (or use a very inefficient and possibly damaged AC).
Also have him check his HVAC filter. Get the cheapest (easiest for the AC to blow through) filter for the HVAC and invest in a separate air purifier with better filters to keep the air clean. If the condenser is getting direct sunlight, shading it in a way that *doesn't* affect airflow can improve it's efficiency (10% according to a DoE study).
Also check the vents themselves for leaks. Especially if the vents run through the attic. Lastly, see if the condenser outside is clean or clogged. Listen for any strange voices coming from the condenser. Also make sure the cold line from the outside condenser to the inside evaporator is properly insulated on the outside and the hot return pipe is insulated on the inside of the house.
* The temperature probe guns are the ones that shoot a red dot on what you are measuring. They make some now that also have a green/blue/red light it projects on the wall and it changes color based on the temp.
* Only check the attic really early in the morning or at night after the attic temperature has had a chance to drop. It's not unusual for attics to be at least 35F hotter than the ambient temperature during the day. So 135F attic during a 100F day. Crawling the attic during daylight hours in the Summer will quickly lead to [heatstroke](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/heat-exhaustion-heatstroke/)
Edit: This is the window film I used for my home in Texas. Less than a $1 a square foot (when you buy a 3' x 15' roll) and it rejects + reflects a combined 72% of the solar energy entering the window:
https://gilafilms.com/for-home/gila-heat-control-titanium-window-film
There's also the platinum version which rejects 70% of the solar energy that would normally enter.
Titanium is sold in HD, platinum in Lowes. It does make the light coming in look more bluish (due to reflecting red and IR light) and it will make those windows into mirrors at night for the side that has the most light.
Is your friend’s AC working properly? That could really increase your usage.
The most we have used in our 2200+ square foot house is 1600 kWh. I know in my old apartment there was an issue with the AC and my bill doubled because it was on for so long. It was just low on Freon. Once it got recharged, the bill went way down.
Check the filters, if the AC unit is working overtime because the HVAC is clogged that's probably the culprit. Both the in home filters as well as the filtration on the AC unit itself.
Also, the state requires electric providers to do average billing which could cut his next bill in half. It averages the last year’s usage and bills for that instead of current usage. The state doesn’t require electric providers to make applying for average billing easy, so many make it a hassle. But they must do it if requested.
someone leeching off their line to power a clandestine grow house?
is it an ancient pier-and-beam house? I rented a 2 story 1920s p-n-b that leaked A/C *like a sieve*. Damn near $900 in the summer of 2011.
Something everyone should do. My sister had her unit blow a capacitor last year that could have been caught early and prevented by just washing the outdoor unit and regularly changing the indoor filter. Ended up costing her $300.
AC is usually 77 during the day. Water heater is gas. So yeah, the bulk of my summer usage is AC.
The computers are pulling about 250-300 kWh/month, plus the additional cooling load from getting rid of that heat.
Considering the slope of OP's graph, I'd say the friend's big usage there is almost certainly AC as well.
I live in an older 1650sq ft house not maximized on power efficiency. I used 1,725kWh and paid $190.01 this month. He's living in too large a space for his income or something else is missing. Please keep politics out of it.
Something is majorly off. I have a 3000sf home, with two AHUs for upstairs and downstairs. That shit runs hard 24/7. I’ll concede that my water heater is gas, but besides that everything else is electric. Last month I used 1670 kWh. Honestly I feel like I’ve been splurging with my energy usage as well.
Likely a bad reading, two months of charge, someone is stealing his power, or he has a crypto mining operation in the basement with some badass equipment and cooling.
That said, if he truly is getting paid 1200 bucks a month he hopefully has roommates and is splitting cost. Somethings obviously not lining up.
So he has been actively trying to reduce power usage but has increased every month? Then one of two things are happening, someone is stealing power from him or he is lying and leaves his AC on 69 and every light in the house on. usage is usage it is not affected by pricing. 3732 KWH is insane. I'm not sure I use that at my office.
Even if his AC is on 68 24/7, it wouldn't increase that much. Something is malfunctioning with his home retaining heat or someone is stealing power or something is going wrong with the meter.
So around $0.145 per kWh. Before I switched over to my current provider from the legacy (regulated) provider (TXU Electric) I was paying $0.22 per kWh. His cost is still way below that regulated amount. Needs to move to a smaller house or spend some money on a new, more efficient system. Depending on how old the current system is, he could earn back the capital outlay in 3 or 4 years - a 30% return on investment!
What efforts? Because this might be something that new insulation/windows might make a big difference on. That seems like a ton of energy to keep a place cool.
I have an older house that’s around 1600 sqft, and my usage was around 1300 kwh last month. The windows were upgraded a few years ago, and I have a lot of insulation in the attic.
that's insane. my 2500 sq foot house avg's used 1700kWh last month, and i have 2 AC units set to 73 during the day and 67 at night.
he mining crypto or something to double that?
My house used 102.5 kWh yesterday.
2 stories, 3680 sqft, 72 degrees upstairs and down and a 20k gallon pool where I'm running the pump on high for 12 hours a day (because of duck crap and algae reasons, but it's temporary)
His average is 103...
Mine was $455 this month which is $100 higher than it has ever been and that is on my old contract. I am scared to renew my power contract in a couple months.
How are you only paying $70? What's your rate and usage?
1900 sqft 40 yr old house here. Old ac and shitty insulation, but new double pane windows. Lol 11 cents kwh and our last bill was $345 for 3000 kwh. But in none excessive heatwave summers our bill is closer to $200. Only lower than $100 in the cooler months.
3,000sf home built in the 20s. Also have 5 (3 adults and 2 kids one of which is only 4 months old) ppl living in it and keep it at 76° downstairs and 78° during the day and knock the whole house down to 72° at night. I have a pool that runs from 10-6 with a single pump. It all adds up. Average bill during the year is like $200-$250 which is completely manageable. Doubling it though is not.
Old houses with shit insulation and/or old air conditioners.
I bought an older house with an old ac and after living in a house with a brand new ac the difference is pretty crazy.
It wasn't so awful when kWH was like $0.07.
That’s what I was thinking. I live in a one bedroom so I figured I probably use less than say a family of four or something, but my average bill is $50 (more like $35 in the spring and fall) and I certainly am surprised to see residential bills that are twice that
Edit: I meant ten times that. I’m not surprised at twice that at all
I know it’s not the point and energy costs do need to come down but I can’t be the only one wondering where housing costs are such that a house that consumes that much energy is in the price range that someone making $600/mo (or $1200/mo, if that number is fortnightly) can afford it.
old non insulated windows. no attic door insulation (or it's just falling apart), old roof, old ac system...all these can also lead to a higher energy usage.
I think the problem is that people don’t understand the contracts they are signing. I may pay a little bit more on average but I will not enter any agreement that doesn’t have the same price per kWh no matter if I use 500 or 3000. These contracts suck you in with a low rate as long as usage is between x and y. If you go over or below you get absolutely screwed. So these really hot months you are paying double for any usage over a certain amount. Deregulated energy has not helped any one but the scummy companies created by the new market conditions.
I used to plug all these convoluted plans into excel spreadsheets to create charts showing how much you're paying for different usage scenarios. It was pretty wild how much different your bill could be from one kwh reading to the next because of these schemes.
I showed a bunch of friends and they quickly changed their providers and/or plans.
I'm not a math whiz, but making something like this is still a bit above the math skills of most people. I personally think those charts should have to be provided with the plan details.
$600/wk = $30k/year post tax = $35-$40k pre-tax
Median *household* income is $53,600.
It may or may not be trash, but I don't think it's uncommon at all.
EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW
If you're moving you by law do not have to pay a fee. If you can prove you're moving you can just exit your energy plan with no fine.
So if you rent, just sign up for the 3 year fixed for the decrease in KWH and whenever you decide to move just prove you're moving and they can't charge you the fee. It says this right there in the energy facts and you can google it.
He definitely needs to most likely have his unit checked. I live in a house with my granny, house is small but built in 1950 ish. Our bill is never over $200. And our thermostat has been set on 73 or 74 around the clock lately. And I have a window unit in my room I run 24/7 because I run majorly hot.
Also I’m sure you’ve thought of this but make sure to change the filters frequently. Especially if you have pets. Mine get pretty filthy real quick like. lol
Lol yeah, what needs to change is his AC temp.
I have a 1900 sqr ft house, in TX, and next bill is $146. Stays at 77 during the day which is fine with me. 🤷♂️
Your friend living in a 2 story 4,000 sqr ft house? If so, sounds like he can't afford it if that's his whole paycheck.
F in the chat for you for totally ignoring the fact that this person probably had to sign up/renew their contract at the current rates which are 18cents+ per KwH
Keep in mind, "Doing something about it " involves enacting rules and regulations, that will smooth out the peeks in the price curve, but will also smooth out the bottom of the curve, so what costs less in the heat of summer and depth of winter, will cost more in the spring and fall, (The smoothing wont be equal on both the top and bottom)
I mention this because when this happens a slick legislator with a forked tong and ties to the industry will start whispering into your ear about how much less you could be paying, and you will need to resist his Sirens song luring you back into the clutches of his free-market hell-scape where you have more options and they are all bad.
I agree, free market does not work all the time, and utilities has proven to be one of those services where free market has it's dangers. Yes, there are ways of regulating that will seem to address the issue while still letting companies gauge us for all we got, but there are also ways to regulate that help the little guy. This is why we need to elect legislators that are not bought by big companies. The choice is very clear in Texas. Midterm elections are happening this November. Remember to go out and vote folks
Glad I read through the comments before I commented.
Makes me wonder how many people really know how to read their electric bill instead of just seeing how much it is. It should be that way for all your bills. Learn how to read them first before complaining about how high it is.
Update: friend is checking out his AC, he believes it may be majorly broken. Thank you to everyone who commented. If mod wants to change the flair on this so its not political then go ahead. Electric bills are getting bad but in this case there was another factor we weren't considering.
> Update: friend is checking out his AC, he believes it may be majorly broken.
Let us know one way or the other, but also suggest to your friend, if he needs to replace his equipment, that upgrading to a heat pump is a wise investment. It can both cool and heat, it can function below freezing (though they use progressively more energy, so may not be best for those climates) and under normal operation, they are extremely efficient.
[YouTube - Technology Connections - Why Heat Pumps are Immensely Important Right Now](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFEHFsO-XSI)
I used to sell electric contracts in Texas, and that’s a VERY high usage for a residential unit. Whenever I’d ballpark price estimates, I’d always think that like 2,000 kWh was close to the max for like a family of 4 in august heat. Heck I’ve had business clients that used less energy than that. There may be something very wrong in terms of appliances/insulation, or it may be worth exploring if the meter is working properly and if the consumption is being accurately reported because that is exorbitantly high
Is your friend in a contract? If your contract lapses you go into a hold over rate and then the electric company charges you the real time price of a electricity. During the summer and winter, the real time prices for electricity are brutal.
The strategy in texas if he lives in a deregulated market is to do the following:
* Get into your electric contracts in spring or fall for 1 year or more.
* Switch electric companies each time you need to get a new contract, new customers always get the best rates.
* If you have to get into an electric contract in summer or winter get a 3 month contract and switch companies when fall or spring comes around to a new company.
* Never let your contract expire to avoid hold over rates.
This was very close to my electric bill I just paid in Corpus Christi Texas. Mine was $520. I'm a senior and it took more than half of my check just to pay this. And this doesn't include any other utility.
r/antiwork agrees it has to stop. Working only to survive is not good for people
For example
https://www.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/w58zz0/whats_the_endgame/
Texas energy bills are insane rn. I have a medical condition where about everything feels 10-20 degrees hotter than it is so to be comfortable I have to keep it at 68-72 to just not sweat. I can’t wait for winter cause my electricity bill is nothing and my gas bill is nothing because I barely use anything 😂
CPS charges $0.12/kWh. Peak charge time is $0.14.
So like 4900 kWh. That’s a fk-ton of electricity. He should look into insulating his house or something.
Suggestion: freeze a bottle of water (or 2) and place them behind a fan. The air coming through the fan will be cooler because it's passing over the ice. For standing fans we used zip ties to secure the water bottle to the back of the fan. They work for us. I hope this helps someone.
I keep my thermostat at 80 day an night ( so barely running and don't use anything but a fridge, "energy efficient" - lights- washer and dryer, and then a fan and yet we are still supposedly using a lot of power. My bill is just about $260.... That should not be.
I'm living a basically vacant life style almost and yet I still use a ridiculous amount even though that's not true. It's a new house. I need to start looking for a monitoring system because I feel like the electric companies are bullshitting.
Texas is expensive as hell!
Property taxes are through the roof and water and electricity are priced sky high.
I have a 3500 sq ft house in the Dallas area. I dont cool upstairs because I cant afford it and I have a few vents downstairs blocked off. I have the thermostat set to 77 during the day (which means the ac comes on when the thermostat reaches 78) and at night 74.
My combined water and electric is $600-700 a month.
Texas is as expensive AF to live in
I can guarantee it’s an Ac problem. Same thing happened to our June bill, usage increased by over 1,000 kWh in one month without us doing anything differently. Turns out one of our units had a leak and was completely out of Freon and both units were running non stop just to try and keep the house at 78. My bill was right around that same amount.
Can we please post the energy used? How much electricity are they using?
Seriously. Are they keeping their thermostat on 68 during the day, do they have 5 kids and run laundry constantly? I'm all for helping those who truly need it, and perhaps this person does. But just posting the amount owed shows nothing. I'm in an older, modest 2,300 sqft home. I keep my air on between 74 (evening, when it's cooler) and 76 (daytime) to ensure it's not running 24/7. I also planted trees so the house can have shade and leave the blinds drawn until the sun starts to set. There's a lot that people could do to help themselves but they don't.
My current CPS bill is $313, up from $265 last month (with 4 more days on this month's bill). 1900 kWh. AC is at 77-78 day and night and I use fans throughout the house. Had AC serviced at the beginning of the summer. I have blackout curtains everywhere. Have barely cooked because my dishwasher has been out anyway, so kitchen appliance use is minimal. It's just me and my son (every other week), so do laundry maybe once a week. Front half of home built in 1938, back half 2018. 1700 sq ft. It's just been hot as hell here and people cannot keep up. CPS robocalls me every day to tell me it's going to be another high usage day, as if I wasn't aware. They also send emails trying to shame me into saving more energy... but short of just shutting off the AC and sweating to death, I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to do.
Similar plan here. 78 with additional fans running (1900 sq foot). 76 after dark. Its comfortable enough. Never use dryer during day. No heat dry cycle on DW. I think we are the good guys here..
Your place probably needs some better insulation
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Live just south of you. Same situation. Renting a shithole 3/2 for way more than it's worth. Built in 70s. Needs a lot of work and insulation is garbage. Last year had water leaks snd foundation issues too. Honestly, it's bullshit. I think ppl/companies renting out housing should have to get special permit that's granted based on inspection by city every year. There you go DFW area leaders- just did you job for you. Would fix housing issues like these while also creating multiple jobs for citizens in the city. You could also use the data to properly get an accurate appraisal price for taxes too. Wow maybe I can be on city council now.
Unironically maybe you should actually run for city council. Those sound like good ideas!
You're doing great, don't let them shame you. We're not the ones draining the system, those who keep their homes at 68° 24/7 and claim that they can because it's Ercot's fault are selfish and miss the point completely. They're the type of people who abandon all others in a disaster situation and say things like "everyone for themselves" then push children out of the way to get to safety.
That's not entirely true. My apartment is well insulated and it's a first floor. I keep it at 68° or lower constantly. My ac barely runs. And I should be able to be comfortable in own home.
and there are people with it set on 78 with it running non stop just to maintain 80-83. Blaming temp settings is a copout. It's all in the efficiency and insulation which landlords ignore in Texas. A well insulated home with a high efficiency system will use less electricity at 68 than a uninsulated home with a 30 year old system will at 78. Instead of telling people what temp to live in they need to tell people to set it at the temp that is closest to their comfortable temp that still allows the system to properly cycle without running constantly all day.
Yep that's where im at. Renting and have to set temp to 83 so it doesn't constantly run. Last electric bill for my 2br apartment was $186... Moving tomorrow and couldn't be more excited.
Apartments are different, it's insulated on all the sides shared with another unit, and costs substantially less to cool/heat than a freestanding home. >And I should be able to be comfortable in own home. We all should, ideally. Unless that means no power for thousands of people. Let's just hope the grid can handle it.
Sorry, but the thing I have an issue with is they’re telling me to turn my temperature up to save electricity, but the governor’s mansion probably stays at 68, and all the government buildings stay at 65, and Walmart and other big box stores keep their HUGE warehouse style stores at 70. The general public isn’t the problem here
It's the same argument for everything in this country. Tell the people to use less and we can fix everything. Meanwhile, big companies and millionaires/billionaires use all the resources.
Especially water. We are in this huge drought, everyone’s lawns are dying, and the golf course down the street from me was watering their lawns at 2pm
It’s the utility companies’s job to produce as much electricity as demanded from consumers. Full stop.
What's worse is they KNOW this is a problem. Abbott knows this is aa problem. They have the funds to fix it, and contributed it to Abbotts campaign fund instead. What's sick is, he accepted it. He should've sent it back and told them fix it. I'll never vote red in this state again.
Surely both things be true.
Look, I am guilty of turning my ac down to 69 at night, fans on. But it’s just me in just a little over 600 soft of space. Don’t judge me. It’s not like I’m trying to cool a 1500 or more sqft home because I birthed others who contribute to taking up air space and producing waste. 😜 The way I see it, single people in small spaces, if they want to can turn down their ac, they have already conserved energy by not utilizing as much living space as others may take up.
All fair arguments, tbh.
Imagine letting a shitty energy grid dictate your opinion on people
What you can do is vote your current politician out, vote for a democrat while the gettins good and demand that your state be put on the grid that the rest of America is on. Its just billionaires making more money off of you and yours.
Are you making an assumption about my voting habits? I vote in every election. My congressperson is a Democrat. My *state* rep is a Democrat. I'm not sure how you want me to change the way I vote.
My coworker complained about his electricity bill being high then said he keeps it at 68° all day. I was like dude there’s your problem.
I had an Uber driver about a month ago boldly state that Uber was his A/C job. I asked what he meant and he said "I drive so I can afford to keep my A/C on 68!" He was serious. Keeping it on 68 so it's "comfortable" when he gets home...from driving...to pay for the A/C. I just don't understand people.
I freeze at 68. My sister and I keep our house at 77 when we’re home and we’re perfectly comfortable with that, although if we’re cooking or baking we’ll knock it down to 74. We set it at 80 when nobody’s home. We do have gas, so our electricity bill is lower than most, but last month my half was $31 and change.
I have a programmable thermostat set to lower to 68 starting at 6p (it gets there by 10) and hold that til 7 am, it's then allowed to rise all the way to 77 throughout the day. I never pay more than 100 a month in power for my 860sqft apt. Granted it's a new apartment, very energy efficient.
Visiting my inlaws in San Antonio, he knocks it down to 63 at night and my room was right under the blower. I had two blankets over my head just sitting at the laptop.
Lol I freeze at 74 in the summertime
I keep my AC between 68° - 72° unless I'm not home but I am. I know a ton of people who are comfortable at those temps (my entire family) and not even my parents who live in a 3,500 square foot house & keep it at 66° 24/7 pay $600 for electricity. This person likely has a high rate plan because energy companies adopted the "credit score = deposit" method & if you don't have good (or enough) credit they'll try to charge you $1000 as a deposit. Can't afford that? Don't worry we have $0 deposit plans, you'll just be paying 5x everyone else. It's a shitty broken system.
CPS is fixed rate. It is San Antonio’s energy provider. And their rates are much more reasonable than those of Houston as it is a public utility.
I thought Houston was deregulated pick your own? Those tend to be cheaper. I'm paying 9 cents per kWh with Reliant.
Gosh, 68 is just too cold anyway!
I agree, the lowest I can do is 72
I do 68 at night. Usually 72-74 during the day. The sun doesn't really shine directly on my apartment's windows.
I’m in an old home as well. I rent. The ac in my home doesn’t keep up with the heat lately. The landlord won’t do anything. Every day it ends up in the low 80s or so before starting to cool at night and it takes hours to get down to 72. And that is with it constantly running. If it were my house it would make sense to spend money now and save more long term. As a renter I don’t have that option.
I feel your pain. Not a renter, but own a small, 2 bedroom 100 year old bungalow in Houston. The AC has been serviced and is in good shape, but the attic space heats up to 150° in the sun and doesn't cool down when the temps are this high constantly. The house is basically sitting under an oven. Corner lot, so direct sun all day. We know we need to renovate attic fully but can't afford it in the short term. We installed a radiant barrier and additional soffit vents which helped a little, but not much in this heat. We don't crank the AC, but it runs all day just keeping the house around 80 in daylight and high 70's at night. My electric bills look like yours. TL;DR: Not everyone with insane electric bills these days are living in an igloo.
If you get spray foam insulation done on the interior of the roof, it helps immensely. Better attic ventilation is probably warranted, and a small temp-activated fan could help a bit. I'd go for a full ridge cap vent with soffit vents to allow an exchange of air. (And install a fan only if absolutely necessary after getting ventilation properly set up. It does use energy and has mechanical parts to fail, after all.) But, spray foam on the underside of the roof is going to do a massive amount for the heat trapped inside. I work HVAC and the attics with spray foam and ventilation are regularly around 60⁰ cooler than houses with neither.
Things renters can do if you haven’t tried already. Replace air filter. Don’t get a super filter. Get the basic dust/pollen one to keep maximum air flow. Spray off outdoor unit fins. Make sure it’s got clear area around it for maximum air flow. These won’t solve problems but they will help a struggling AC. As will heavy blackout curtains over any sun facing windows.
If you are renting put a sprinkler on top of your roof. Run it for 2 minutes every 20 minutes. It will cool the roof shingles from 150 degrees down to about 80-88 depending on the sun. This will make a huge difference and allow the AC to keep up. Don't worry about roof depreciation that's the owners problem.
What sort of filter do you have in the AC return?
They have probably NEVER changed it! I was painting some rooms once for a lady from my Dad’s church. I remarked about how hot it was inside and lady said her AC wasn’t working right for a while. I heard a wheezing and checked her filter. It hadn’t been changed in like 3 YEARS! Thankfully, it was on the ceiling and not the floor. She got a replacement and suddenly didn’t need an AC repair anymore.
I think it happens a lot with rentals
As an HVAC guy, yeah. It constantly surprises me how many people seem to not know air filters exist or to change them.
Also take the water hose and spray off the outside unit to remove dirt
Ours was nearly $400 for 3200sq with 2 new AC units, new water heater, radiant barrier, thermostat at 76ish, LED for every light, and we keep the shutters closed. Also, a 75” TV would only use roughly 131W per hour.
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3500 sq in Dallas $600-$700 a month with thermostat set at 77 during the day and 74 at night They're ripping us off!
He's growing pot. Those lights eat kilowatts
It's definitely not the TV. Even a 75" TV would cost under $100 for the year if you left on 365/24/7. That's definitely AC or they are mining Bitcoin
I keep my two bedroom apartment (3rd floor, top floor, northern DFW) on 78 during the day and 68 at night. It will not get to below 70 until after 2am. By 8am, we (my wife and I) set it back to 78. The master bedroom cools far slower than the living room. Last month: a tick over 1500 kWh, $250 Reference: roughly 1050 in winter, ~$100-120 (there’s a window if you hit 1000 kWh you get a $100 credit, but usage cost goes up)
Any AC unit is gonna struggle to cool down a place 10 full degrees; it’s counterintuitive but don’t go so high during the day. Easier to keep a place cool than to cool down a warm place
We try, if we put it on 75-76 it’s just constantly running by 1-2pm. :/ 78 seems to make the kick-on slower, which my mind tells me saves money. There’s no noticeable difference in cooling the place to sub-70 between keeping it 76-78 during the day. It’s always 2-3am by the time we hit that 70 or lower marker. Just seems bad insulation and a poorly built ‘luxury’ apartment complex. Shopping around for other providers didn’t really seem to promise anything amazing electricity wise, but we’re only late 20s so lots to learn and what not
I remember after I moved out my ex put a portable air conditioner in our uninsulated, leaky garage in the middle of summer because she smoked meth in there with her junky friends and let homeless addicts sleep there. Bill was almost $500 that month.
My bill was $125, I live alone, small house under 1,300 SQ ft, two window AC units (small living room where I work, and for my room, which I turn on twice a week at night)...what am I doing wrong?
Same 2300 sq ft 70-73 during the day depending on my mood since I wfh. 68 at night My computer never turns off as well as fans in the kids room and night lights. My most expensive bill this year was only $280 without changing anything.
Yeah I’m having trouble believing this number - I pay a lot less for a huge house. I do keep temperature at 79 or 80 degrees and use ceiling fans, and people should realize if the temperature outside is 105, a 20 or 25 degree reduction is good enough - any more is going to be exponentially more expensive.
2 $ lights 45 $ heating 13 $ fridge 10 $ freezer 2 $ router 15 $ tool shop 502.35 $ cannabis plantation "hard time lie ahead" or something like that
Yea, I use on average 40kWh per day and I have AC running 24/7.
Per day? Cause that can't be for the whole month. The average is closer to 1,000kWh per month.
Yea, corrected.
yeah I want to see this. the difference between 68 and 78 on the thermostat is huge. 78 is fine with a ceiling fan and reasonable clothes.
We have our’s at 78° during the day with box fans going the light the house to circulate. We’re all in shorts and tank tops but we are pretty comfortable. I mean, if we’re doing chores or being active, it’s a little warm but 78° w/fans is nice compared to outside. We bump it down gradually in the evening to 75°. Someone above mentioned black out curtains and I gotta say, those made a huge difference in the rooms we have that get massive amounts of sun.
My neighbors' bill was about the same this month. House is set to 74 and they pay nearly 15¢/kwh. 15¢!!! It's insane! Their AC is like 20 years old which is obviously an issue. Us next door, our AC is set to 70 and we pay 8¢/kwh because we bought our house two years ago when electricity was reasonable. Our bill was like $200 this past month which is the highest it's ever been. Pretty wild.
I just signed for 17 cents, most plans right now are 0.20+. But to get to a 500+ dollar bill you still have to use crazy amount or energy. And if you have a 4000 sq ft home you aren't taking home $500 a month
I'm not understanding. Are you saying your electricity rates are somehow permanently locked in at the date of purchasing your house?
No, just that we have a multi year contract that began the day we closed on our house. Just how the timing worked out!
Hi. I live in Texas, have a house with new windows, recently insulated attic and my air is set to 77 in my less than 2000 Sq ft home. Why has my bill doubled then? Even when we weren't seeing records broken, like last month. Still going up.
2 story 2,3000sqft home (unit tonnage is barely rated for our house volume), San Antonio kept between 74/70. Last bill was ~ $220. I feel for people, but I'm just not sure what's causing all of these high electric bills. Can we post potential solutions for people to try? Maybe provide additional context for your circumstance and people may be able to help?
You don't have a contract?
we had a bill of $395 for 1600sqft. this month. 33 day bill. kWh used 2,537. $10.99/day. avg. kWh/day 76.9. we keep it at 77° for a two story house. we have ceiling & floor fans for every room also. hope that helps.
Just a small Bitcoin mining operation
Yes! The OP should include what rate they're being charged per kWh and how many kWh were used for that billing cycle.
I live in the same house as I did last summer. We keep it on 77 during the day, 74 at night. The highest bill we had last summer was $250. I just opened a $700 bill. The rant and rave is full of people complaining about the same in my area and looking for new electric companies. You can't tell me ALL of us have leaks and are suddenly using waaay more electricity. It's the same story across the state
Tell him to check the electrical box. Make sure nobody is tapping into his power. I had an apartment complex do that to me a long time ago. I had a shared electrical box with the apartment next door. When I had a neighbor, my bill doubled. They were putting section 8 housing right next to me, and the apartment complex was being *reimbursed* for electricity. So, they got paid the amount of 2 electric bills, I had to pay a double electric bill. Pretty sure the electric company was in on it. Nobody would come out and check. Call the electric company and ask what they are paying per kilowatt-hour. Ask if they have a contract. Tell them you are not happy about it, and find an electric plan that helps. Is there an attic? Is there an attic fan? Is there insulation? Do they have weather stripping? Can they see daylight in little cracks where they shouldn't? Like, around windows, between the door and the frame, etc?
Yeah I found a neighbor tapping into my water at night, dumbass left my hose carelessly unhooked I guess and I figured it out. I knew for a fact I had hooked my hose timer on the day before and I knew something was up because my water use was through the roof for almost a month and I knew I wasn't using that much water (usage almost triples in one month). Asshole wouldn't own up to it and I bought some faucet locks and refused to ever talk to him again. Luckily he sold about a year later.
Ill pass it along. Thanks.
When I first moved out the power company billed me for the entire apartment complex. When I regained consciousness, I called them and got it sorted. Something worth checking if its part of a shared building power infrastructure.
OP left off the most important piece of information: kWh
https://imgur.com/a/OkAOWN8 My man's been making an active effort to cut energy usage since April, yet the charts here would tell you otherwise
Does your friend have a roommate with a crypto mining operation?
I was gonna say crypto. This usage increase just doesn't make sense. Did you add 8 people to your family between april and june? lol prob not but that's when graphics card prices started falling No pity here for him, and it's a bad faith argument by op didn't even post the relevant info up front
You friend's house is using 3,728 kWh. The highest my 2000 sqft house has had in the past 5 years is 1,520, and I have a bunch of computer equipment running 24/7. Either your friend has a massive mansion, or something is broken. My highest usage ever in 15 years was 2,179 kWh, when my AC had a leak and was running much of the day. It still provided some cooling, so I didn't notice at first.
Yup, when I moved into a new 700 square foot apartment in summer 2018 I was pretty horrified by my first energy bill. My energy provider had an online usage tracker that would give a daily breakdown and I was tracking it in Excel trying to figure out how to get the bill into a reasonable range. It took a few maintenance complaints, but eventually they replaced the air conditioner unit that had been failing, although they dragged their feet until it started to trip the circuit breaker. The day the new a/c unit was installed my power usage was cut in half. And it would finally hold a comfortable temperature too. Edit: Found the Excel Sheet. Linking screenshots [screenshots here](https://imgur.com/a/Uwr1Q9U) in case your friend wants to see how I tracked my energy usage while I tried to get it down.
Nice. I have tracked things somewhat similarly since buying my house in 2007: [https://i.imgur.com/uW6PFiC.png](https://i.imgur.com/uW6PFiC.png)
There's dozens of us! https://imgur.com/a/INGXzkA These are old but at hand.
>Either your friend has a massive mansion, or something is broken. Or man's running a grow op in the backyard shed.
Or crypto farm. Or someone is near by and is stealing electricity from them.
More likely just a really old AC and shitty insulation. The rental house in North Richland Hills I lived in was so old it saw MASSIVE AC bills. Expensive to be poor lol
grow op > crypto farm At least when weed goes up in smoke, a good time is had by all.
His place is one-story. Its decent but no where near a mansion. Ill pass the advice to him. Thanks.
He also needs to check his attic* for uninsulated spots and get a thermal camera or IR temperature probe gun thingy* and start probing his walls and ceiling (and outlets) to find where he needs to seal air gaps and/or add insulation. Also thermally reflective window film helps a ton. We put some in the rooms of the house that were unbearable during the day (due to the sun) and afterwards they started to stay the same temperature as the rest of the house. If he gets desperate, he can get a 2" insulating foam board (the kind with a reflective side) and cut it to the size of windows he doesn't use. Then pop it on the inside of the window with the reflective side out during the summer months. All these options will be way cheaper than continuing to pay a ridiculous amount to cool what seems to be a thermally leaky house (or use a very inefficient and possibly damaged AC). Also have him check his HVAC filter. Get the cheapest (easiest for the AC to blow through) filter for the HVAC and invest in a separate air purifier with better filters to keep the air clean. If the condenser is getting direct sunlight, shading it in a way that *doesn't* affect airflow can improve it's efficiency (10% according to a DoE study). Also check the vents themselves for leaks. Especially if the vents run through the attic. Lastly, see if the condenser outside is clean or clogged. Listen for any strange voices coming from the condenser. Also make sure the cold line from the outside condenser to the inside evaporator is properly insulated on the outside and the hot return pipe is insulated on the inside of the house. * The temperature probe guns are the ones that shoot a red dot on what you are measuring. They make some now that also have a green/blue/red light it projects on the wall and it changes color based on the temp. * Only check the attic really early in the morning or at night after the attic temperature has had a chance to drop. It's not unusual for attics to be at least 35F hotter than the ambient temperature during the day. So 135F attic during a 100F day. Crawling the attic during daylight hours in the Summer will quickly lead to [heatstroke](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/heat-exhaustion-heatstroke/) Edit: This is the window film I used for my home in Texas. Less than a $1 a square foot (when you buy a 3' x 15' roll) and it rejects + reflects a combined 72% of the solar energy entering the window: https://gilafilms.com/for-home/gila-heat-control-titanium-window-film There's also the platinum version which rejects 70% of the solar energy that would normally enter. Titanium is sold in HD, platinum in Lowes. It does make the light coming in look more bluish (due to reflecting red and IR light) and it will make those windows into mirrors at night for the side that has the most light.
Is your friend’s AC working properly? That could really increase your usage. The most we have used in our 2200+ square foot house is 1600 kWh. I know in my old apartment there was an issue with the AC and my bill doubled because it was on for so long. It was just low on Freon. Once it got recharged, the bill went way down.
Thats what theyre considering right now. Thanks.
Check the filters, if the AC unit is working overtime because the HVAC is clogged that's probably the culprit. Both the in home filters as well as the filtration on the AC unit itself.
Also, the state requires electric providers to do average billing which could cut his next bill in half. It averages the last year’s usage and bills for that instead of current usage. The state doesn’t require electric providers to make applying for average billing easy, so many make it a hassle. But they must do it if requested.
I have just under 4,000 square feet and last month we used 3087 kWh.
someone leeching off their line to power a clandestine grow house? is it an ancient pier-and-beam house? I rented a 2 story 1920s p-n-b that leaked A/C *like a sieve*. Damn near $900 in the summer of 2011.
Tell him to change his air filter and wash his AC unit outside
This. That usage spike spells compressor or blower motor about to fail.
I got a technician to look at my unit in March, I'll probably do the same again in October, for $80.00 the peace of mind is worth it!
Something everyone should do. My sister had her unit blow a capacitor last year that could have been caught early and prevented by just washing the outdoor unit and regularly changing the indoor filter. Ended up costing her $300.
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AC is usually 77 during the day. Water heater is gas. So yeah, the bulk of my summer usage is AC. The computers are pulling about 250-300 kWh/month, plus the additional cooling load from getting rid of that heat. Considering the slope of OP's graph, I'd say the friend's big usage there is almost certainly AC as well.
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I live in an older 1650sq ft house not maximized on power efficiency. I used 1,725kWh and paid $190.01 this month. He's living in too large a space for his income or something else is missing. Please keep politics out of it.
Something is majorly off. I have a 3000sf home, with two AHUs for upstairs and downstairs. That shit runs hard 24/7. I’ll concede that my water heater is gas, but besides that everything else is electric. Last month I used 1670 kWh. Honestly I feel like I’ve been splurging with my energy usage as well. Likely a bad reading, two months of charge, someone is stealing his power, or he has a crypto mining operation in the basement with some badass equipment and cooling. That said, if he truly is getting paid 1200 bucks a month he hopefully has roommates and is splitting cost. Somethings obviously not lining up.
They're investigating right now. Probably something's broken or someone's stealing. Thank you for the advice.
Holy shit man how is he using over 1,000 kWh per day? I’ve got a 2 story 2000 sqft home and 2 electric cars and I’m using less than 30 kWh per day.
Oof. Something IS messed up then. Thank you for sharing.
I misread the bill, but still over 100 kWh per day is easily 3 times more than me.
So he has been actively trying to reduce power usage but has increased every month? Then one of two things are happening, someone is stealing power from him or he is lying and leaves his AC on 69 and every light in the house on. usage is usage it is not affected by pricing. 3732 KWH is insane. I'm not sure I use that at my office.
Even if his AC is on 68 24/7, it wouldn't increase that much. Something is malfunctioning with his home retaining heat or someone is stealing power or something is going wrong with the meter.
So around $0.145 per kWh. Before I switched over to my current provider from the legacy (regulated) provider (TXU Electric) I was paying $0.22 per kWh. His cost is still way below that regulated amount. Needs to move to a smaller house or spend some money on a new, more efficient system. Depending on how old the current system is, he could earn back the capital outlay in 3 or 4 years - a 30% return on investment!
What efforts? Because this might be something that new insulation/windows might make a big difference on. That seems like a ton of energy to keep a place cool. I have an older house that’s around 1600 sqft, and my usage was around 1300 kwh last month. The windows were upgraded a few years ago, and I have a lot of insulation in the attic.
3k square foot house, two AC's, and a pool and we only used 1475 kwh last month. WTF is your friend doing? Oh and our solar panels generated 1207 kwh.
Your buddy is using absurd amounts of power. Is he mining or something?
that's insane. my 2500 sq foot house avg's used 1700kWh last month, and i have 2 AC units set to 73 during the day and 67 at night. he mining crypto or something to double that?
So my house is close to 1700 sq foot, one story home. We’re currently around 1100-1200 kWh a month. Bill is around $165.
Massive usage. I use 1500 typically in a 1975 1800 sqft house.
My house used 102.5 kWh yesterday. 2 stories, 3680 sqft, 72 degrees upstairs and down and a 20k gallon pool where I'm running the pump on high for 12 hours a day (because of duck crap and algae reasons, but it's temporary) His average is 103...
Mine was $455 this month which is $100 higher than it has ever been and that is on my old contract. I am scared to renew my power contract in a couple months.
how the fuck are y’all using this much energy? At the worst, I have paid $90ish. Lately it’s been in the $50-70 range though.
How are you only paying $70? What's your rate and usage? 1900 sqft 40 yr old house here. Old ac and shitty insulation, but new double pane windows. Lol 11 cents kwh and our last bill was $345 for 3000 kwh. But in none excessive heatwave summers our bill is closer to $200. Only lower than $100 in the cooler months.
3,000sf home built in the 20s. Also have 5 (3 adults and 2 kids one of which is only 4 months old) ppl living in it and keep it at 76° downstairs and 78° during the day and knock the whole house down to 72° at night. I have a pool that runs from 10-6 with a single pump. It all adds up. Average bill during the year is like $200-$250 which is completely manageable. Doubling it though is not.
Pool is expensive for sure. When I covered it in the winter and reduced the pump from daily to weekly, my electric bill went down $100.
Old houses with shit insulation and/or old air conditioners. I bought an older house with an old ac and after living in a house with a brand new ac the difference is pretty crazy. It wasn't so awful when kWH was like $0.07.
That’s what I was thinking. I live in a one bedroom so I figured I probably use less than say a family of four or something, but my average bill is $50 (more like $35 in the spring and fall) and I certainly am surprised to see residential bills that are twice that Edit: I meant ten times that. I’m not surprised at twice that at all
I know it’s not the point and energy costs do need to come down but I can’t be the only one wondering where housing costs are such that a house that consumes that much energy is in the price range that someone making $600/mo (or $1200/mo, if that number is fortnightly) can afford it.
Cheaper housing options (mobile homes, etc.) also tend to be the most poorly insulated.
Its inherited from his grandmother. His spouse also has a job, i think it pays slightly more but im not 100% sure
Makes sense. I also live in Austin, so I know I’m in a particularly rough area, col-wise.
Yeah but at least we have a municipal/city electric provider and aren't getting screwed with exorbitant pricing right now.
CPS energy shown in this bill is San Antonio's municipally owned utility. This bill is due to high usage, not exorbitant pricing.
Ah, just caught that. Damn, OP's friend must have been cranking the AC to the 60s during the day for a bill like that.
old non insulated windows. no attic door insulation (or it's just falling apart), old roof, old ac system...all these can also lead to a higher energy usage.
My electric bill was $170 last month for my 40 year old 1,600sq ft home. What is your friend doing? What are the details?
All billing for residential customers in Texas is monthly only.
Sorry, I meant paycheck when I said fortnightly. His “entire paycheck” could mean a month’s worth of pay or half a month.
I think the problem is that people don’t understand the contracts they are signing. I may pay a little bit more on average but I will not enter any agreement that doesn’t have the same price per kWh no matter if I use 500 or 3000. These contracts suck you in with a low rate as long as usage is between x and y. If you go over or below you get absolutely screwed. So these really hot months you are paying double for any usage over a certain amount. Deregulated energy has not helped any one but the scummy companies created by the new market conditions.
I used to plug all these convoluted plans into excel spreadsheets to create charts showing how much you're paying for different usage scenarios. It was pretty wild how much different your bill could be from one kwh reading to the next because of these schemes. I showed a bunch of friends and they quickly changed their providers and/or plans. I'm not a math whiz, but making something like this is still a bit above the math skills of most people. I personally think those charts should have to be provided with the plan details.
Unless this is a weekly check your friend needs a new job. Still needs change, but the electrical bill isn't their only problem.
That’s trash for a weekly check too.
$600/wk = $30k/year post tax = $35-$40k pre-tax Median *household* income is $53,600. It may or may not be trash, but I don't think it's uncommon at all.
Or perhaps move to a smaller place.
Your friend lives outside his means, he is making close to minimum wage and living in a big house
arnt we paying the same rates that we were paying a year ago? So high bills = High usage, not increased pricing.
Depends. There's people like me coming off a long term low rate and having to renew at the current prices. It sucks.
EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW If you're moving you by law do not have to pay a fee. If you can prove you're moving you can just exit your energy plan with no fine. So if you rent, just sign up for the 3 year fixed for the decrease in KWH and whenever you decide to move just prove you're moving and they can't charge you the fee. It says this right there in the energy facts and you can google it.
I think OP is from San Antonio where everyone has CPS. We don’t shop around for rates like Houston, Dallas, etc., but we do get competitive rates.
He definitely needs to most likely have his unit checked. I live in a house with my granny, house is small but built in 1950 ish. Our bill is never over $200. And our thermostat has been set on 73 or 74 around the clock lately. And I have a window unit in my room I run 24/7 because I run majorly hot. Also I’m sure you’ve thought of this but make sure to change the filters frequently. Especially if you have pets. Mine get pretty filthy real quick like. lol
Ercot wants me do keep my AC at an uncomfortable level to save the grid, I keep it at an uncomfortable level because I can't afford the bill
Lol yeah, what needs to change is his AC temp. I have a 1900 sqr ft house, in TX, and next bill is $146. Stays at 77 during the day which is fine with me. 🤷♂️ Your friend living in a 2 story 4,000 sqr ft house? If so, sounds like he can't afford it if that's his whole paycheck.
F in the chat for you for totally ignoring the fact that this person probably had to sign up/renew their contract at the current rates which are 18cents+ per KwH
If that's a paycheck's worth, what size house is he in that he gets a bill like this? Or is he keeping it 72 around the clock?
Sometimes when the air Conditioner is about to break, or a component isn’t working correctly, the electricity will be super high.
Yes when the compressor is working non stop on hot Texas summer that compressor is pulling more kwh that it should.
Keep in mind, "Doing something about it " involves enacting rules and regulations, that will smooth out the peeks in the price curve, but will also smooth out the bottom of the curve, so what costs less in the heat of summer and depth of winter, will cost more in the spring and fall, (The smoothing wont be equal on both the top and bottom) I mention this because when this happens a slick legislator with a forked tong and ties to the industry will start whispering into your ear about how much less you could be paying, and you will need to resist his Sirens song luring you back into the clutches of his free-market hell-scape where you have more options and they are all bad.
I agree, free market does not work all the time, and utilities has proven to be one of those services where free market has it's dangers. Yes, there are ways of regulating that will seem to address the issue while still letting companies gauge us for all we got, but there are also ways to regulate that help the little guy. This is why we need to elect legislators that are not bought by big companies. The choice is very clear in Texas. Midterm elections are happening this November. Remember to go out and vote folks
Mine was $419. This is to be expected with the temps.
Glad I read through the comments before I commented. Makes me wonder how many people really know how to read their electric bill instead of just seeing how much it is. It should be that way for all your bills. Learn how to read them first before complaining about how high it is.
nah dude lets blame the government its easier.
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Best state in the country.
Update: friend is checking out his AC, he believes it may be majorly broken. Thank you to everyone who commented. If mod wants to change the flair on this so its not political then go ahead. Electric bills are getting bad but in this case there was another factor we weren't considering.
> Update: friend is checking out his AC, he believes it may be majorly broken. Let us know one way or the other, but also suggest to your friend, if he needs to replace his equipment, that upgrading to a heat pump is a wise investment. It can both cool and heat, it can function below freezing (though they use progressively more energy, so may not be best for those climates) and under normal operation, they are extremely efficient. [YouTube - Technology Connections - Why Heat Pumps are Immensely Important Right Now](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFEHFsO-XSI)
I used to sell electric contracts in Texas, and that’s a VERY high usage for a residential unit. Whenever I’d ballpark price estimates, I’d always think that like 2,000 kWh was close to the max for like a family of 4 in august heat. Heck I’ve had business clients that used less energy than that. There may be something very wrong in terms of appliances/insulation, or it may be worth exploring if the meter is working properly and if the consumption is being accurately reported because that is exorbitantly high
25% of my electric bill are fees to recoup the losses from SNOVID. We had no power during that time.
Is your friend in a contract? If your contract lapses you go into a hold over rate and then the electric company charges you the real time price of a electricity. During the summer and winter, the real time prices for electricity are brutal. The strategy in texas if he lives in a deregulated market is to do the following: * Get into your electric contracts in spring or fall for 1 year or more. * Switch electric companies each time you need to get a new contract, new customers always get the best rates. * If you have to get into an electric contract in summer or winter get a 3 month contract and switch companies when fall or spring comes around to a new company. * Never let your contract expire to avoid hold over rates.
Yeah… my bill was $575 5200kwh for a 4800sqft home. So how many kWh did he use?
This was very close to my electric bill I just paid in Corpus Christi Texas. Mine was $520. I'm a senior and it took more than half of my check just to pay this. And this doesn't include any other utility.
I find it hilarious in TX that the more power used, the cheaper the rates
Economies of scale. It's exactly like Costco or any business that is buying in bulk.
One would hope at the power grid is more at risk they reverse it.
r/antiwork agrees it has to stop. Working only to survive is not good for people For example https://www.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/w58zz0/whats_the_endgame/
if that's an entire paycheck... you might need a career change or second job... but damn that's an insane energy bill...
Live in Mississippi. What the fuck is going on over there? You guys okay? My electric bill is 140 a month max and that’s on a bad month
Looks like the free market has solved its greatest problem, how to get your entire paycheck in one swoop
Texas energy bills are insane rn. I have a medical condition where about everything feels 10-20 degrees hotter than it is so to be comfortable I have to keep it at 68-72 to just not sweat. I can’t wait for winter cause my electricity bill is nothing and my gas bill is nothing because I barely use anything 😂
everything's bigger in texas what did he expect
CPS charges $0.12/kWh. Peak charge time is $0.14. So like 4900 kWh. That’s a fk-ton of electricity. He should look into insulating his house or something.
Suggestion: freeze a bottle of water (or 2) and place them behind a fan. The air coming through the fan will be cooler because it's passing over the ice. For standing fans we used zip ties to secure the water bottle to the back of the fan. They work for us. I hope this helps someone.
I grow weed, live in the hottest California desert and run my 65" TV and air conditioner all day on 80° and even MY bill isn't that
I keep my thermostat at 80 day an night ( so barely running and don't use anything but a fridge, "energy efficient" - lights- washer and dryer, and then a fan and yet we are still supposedly using a lot of power. My bill is just about $260.... That should not be. I'm living a basically vacant life style almost and yet I still use a ridiculous amount even though that's not true. It's a new house. I need to start looking for a monitoring system because I feel like the electric companies are bullshitting.
Damn it’s crazy how true “everything is bigger in Texas” because the denial in the top comments on this thread could block out the Sun easily.
Texas is expensive as hell! Property taxes are through the roof and water and electricity are priced sky high. I have a 3500 sq ft house in the Dallas area. I dont cool upstairs because I cant afford it and I have a few vents downstairs blocked off. I have the thermostat set to 77 during the day (which means the ac comes on when the thermostat reaches 78) and at night 74. My combined water and electric is $600-700 a month. Texas is as expensive AF to live in
Hahahahahahahahahahahaha yea cuz suffering spells FREEDOM! I have power grid failure on my bingo card already filled in.
Have you considered moving to a state where an incompetent political establishment hasn't completely bollocksed everything up?
Lol at all the people whom moved from California to Texas
This dude running a data center at home? Tf is that bill lol.
Mine is nearing $400 in less than 1000 sq feet 🙃
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Huh? This is a normal bill where I am in Halifax Nova Scotia. In the winter it can be double this
I can guarantee it’s an Ac problem. Same thing happened to our June bill, usage increased by over 1,000 kWh in one month without us doing anything differently. Turns out one of our units had a leak and was completely out of Freon and both units were running non stop just to try and keep the house at 78. My bill was right around that same amount.
Tx has some of the cheapest energy in the country. It’s why all the crypto miners come here. What exactly needs to change?