High Utility bills (Westmont: 2013, apartment, appliances)

[Tanithra]

Hi,

I just moved to an apartment at Westmont in November 2013 from Singapore (Tropical climate), and I am trying to understand why my utility bills are so high.

- It's a 750sf apt.
- It is just me and my dog.
- I am usually out of the house 10 hours a day Monday to Friday because of work.
- I am generally judicious about turning off lights and appliances when I am not using them. (Even more so after my first utility bill)
- I unplug the appliances I am not using.
- I don't usually cook at home. I usually eat out.
- I don't even have a TV at home because I rarely have time to watch anything. When I am at home, I am usually catching up on my work. So I am just at my desk (on my computer or reading)
- Have a power strip for my computer and monitor, which I make sure to turn off before I leave the house, and before I go to sleep.
- Heating in the apartment is electric though.

The electric bill for December was $346.23 with the bill stating that the usage was 3049kWH. I felt it was high, but figured my thermostat setting might have had something to do with it. My thermostat had been set at 65 throughout the day during that period, and I figured it might be causing the higher bill.

So I set the timer on my thermostat so that it is at 60F from 6am to 9am on weekdays, 65 from 5pm to 10pm, and 55F the rest of the time.

Weekends, it is 65F from 8am to 10pm, and 55 through the night.

I would have hoped that reducing and setting such a schedule would have perhaps brought down the bill a tad.

Just got the bill for the January period and it is $428.66 with the bill stating that the usage was 3880kWH

Still don't understand how the utilization can be as high as it is for a single guy who is not at home most of the time.

Any ideas of whether the rates I am seeing are normal for this area/time and anything else I should be looking at to bring my utilization down ?

[myrc60]

Heating by electricity is expensive. Air temps have been well below normal for a lot of that time. If you're on the ground floor that will add to your bill too. Heat rises so if you plan to move seek out a 2nd or 3rd floor apartment or an apartment heated with natural gas. Gas heat is a lot cheaper.

If you have access to the air filter you should check and change it if its dirty. A dirty air filter makes your heat work harder and will raise your bill.

[sfcambridge]

That is crazy high! I would definitely talk with your landlord and call the electric company to compare with prior years. Talk to your neighbors and ask what their bill is to be sure you aren't being accidently billed for the whole building!!

Even for electric heat that sounds high, especially considering your December bill and how careful you are with your heat/electrical use.

I live in a similar sized apartment and my electric is $35 per month, and when I have been using a space heater it bumps in less then $20. Hopefully others who have all electrical heat will post with their bills.

[seeking4]

Looks like a billing or metering issue. Perhaps you are paying for others. You can install cheap meters on your outlets to see your own usage. Unfortunately you may have a legal issue to deal with.

[mrupsidedown]

Move.......................