Average Electricity Bill in Mojave Desert (Irvine, Costa Mesa: apartment, how much, house)

[DsrtEngnr]

Hi All,

I just moved to Ridgecrest, CA from Phoenix, AZ about 2.5 months ago (May 2010), where I used to live in an apartment where utilities were included in the rent. My latest electricity bill was about $290, and I was wondering if anyone could tell me if this sounds about right or not for the summer? I personally think it's too much, but then again I haven't really had to worry about it before. I live in a 2 story, 2 bed, and 2 bath apartment with Central AC cooling. I am not sure about the square footage but I would estimate it to be around 1000-1500 sq ft. Thanks for your help/comments in advance.

[SickOfCalifornia]

Depends on the size of the place, what you keep the A/C set to, how well the house is insulated, what type of windows you have, etc. But I'll tell you one thing - it won't be cheap!

[EscapeCalifornia]

Keep in mind that electricity is expensive in California and the more you use, the more expensive each unit is. How many KhW did you use?

[Count David]

From 2004-2007, I lived in a 3 bed/2 bath house (1400 sq ft) in Ridgecrest and paid about $100/mo for Edison (during summer too).

If you have a swamp cooler, use it. Otherwise, set your A/C no lower than 78, and use fans religiously. That bill redefines the word "ridiculous".

[ryanst530]

I have a 2 bedroom apartment with a great A/C, keeping the temperature at 75 degrees year round. The average bill in the winter is around $45. In summer, around $100-120.

Pretty normal really.

[Brenda-by-the-sea]

If your landlord got residential electric service from SRP in Phoenix, he probably paid 7.8 cents per kWh from November to April, and around 11 cents per kWH the rest of the year, depending on his plan (he may have qualified for a commercial rate).

If you're now getting residential electric service from SCE and stay below your Tier 1 allocation, you're probably paying around 12 cents per kWh on an annual average. If you exceed your allocation the rates go way up. SCE has an extremely complicated tariff schedule and is much cagier about revealing exactly how much your electricity costs. You may be using less electricity in California, but you're paying more per kWh than you did in Phoenix. You're also paying a higher base meter fee. It's possible that you could lower your bill a little bit by choosing a different plan.

[Soccersupporter]

Originally Posted by Brenda-by-the-sea

If your landlord got residential electric service from SRP in Phoenix, he probably paid 7.8 cents per kWh from November to April, and around 11 cents per kWH the rest of the year, depending on his plan (he may have qualified for a commercial rate).

If you're now getting residential electric service from SCE and stay below your Tier 1 allocation, you're probably paying around 12 cents per kWh on an annual average. If you exceed your allocation the rates go way up. SCE has an extremely complicated tariff schedule and is much cagier about revealing exactly how much your electricity costs. You may be using less electricity in California, but you're paying more per kWh than you did in Phoenix. You're also paying a higher base meter fee. It's possible that you could lower your bill a little bit by choosing a different plan.

Is it really 12 cents per kWh? I thought my 10 cents per kWh in TX was bad. I don't remember SCE being that high when I lived in Irvine just a couple of years ago.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by Soccersupporter

Is it really 12 cents per kWh? I thought my 10 cents per kWh in TX was bad. I don't remember SCE being that high when I lived in Irvine just a couple of years ago.

From my current bill in Costa Mesa:

Tier 1: $0.13/kWh (285 kWh used)
Tier 2: $0.15/kWh (86 kWh used)
Tier 3: $0.24/kWh (188 kWh used)
Tier 4: $0.27/kWh (none)
Tier 5: $0.31/kWh (none)

That's for an apartment with two people, no fish tanks, no plasma TVs, maybe two afternoon's worth of AC usage, two computers, and an electric water heater which accounts for about half the usage for a grand total of $94.

[esmith143]

Originally Posted by Soccersupporter

Is it really 12 cents per kWh? I thought my 10 cents per kWh in TX was bad. I don't remember SCE being that high when I lived in Irvine just a couple of years ago.

SDG&E is even higher.

It's nice to have all this weather, but, in addition to the "sunshine tax", we coastal Californians (and San Diegans in particular) happen to pay some of the highest electricity and water rates in the country.

And, in Mojave Desert, you get high utility rates but not the weather...

Depends on the size of the place, what you keep the A/C set to, how well the house is insulated, what type of windows you have, etc.

Also depends a lot on the layout of the place. Given the same square footage, a south facing apartment on the top floor can require several times more electricity to keep it cool than a north facing apartment on the ground floor in the same building.

[steel7]

I would expect water to be high in ca due to lack of rain but why electricity ? It seems were always being screwed here.