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hey guys,
i need your input on something.
at my previous apartment (very large pre-war one bedroom in the UWS with two people living there total), my electricity bills were coming to maximum $30-$40 per month with usage of 30-60kwh per month at the most. both of us spent most of our evening hours at home with no TV in the unit but laptops and such.
I am now living alone, in a junior one bedroom near Yeshiva University (also a pre-war) and they say my usage is 160 kwh/month! with an electricity bill of $60/month and gas $20/month (just my stove, which I only use for simple cooking and most of the bill is a basic flat fee for just providing me with gas, regardless of what my usage is, and has been 0 for like 2 months ).
So the CON ED lady over the phone said the average apartment bill is in the range of 90-140 kwh per month...and that there was probably "something wrong" with the meter at my old apartment (even IF, when I first moved into my OLD apartment, I caught them charging me based off of an ESTIMATE that was far far off the actual meter reading and overcharging me by about $50/month, which they quickly admitted and corrected).
I have yet to find the meter at this apartment complex, but until then...
I do have TV at this unit but I watch it maybe once a week. The cable box and TV remain plugged in (the lady over the phone mentioned I could try to unplug everything but my fridge when not home, but I never had to do that before!)...Also, I'm a starving student and in California the electricity company gave us breaks but I guess out here things just keep getting more and more ridiculously expensive.
do you guys know how much you use (for what size apartment) and pay? I just have a gnawing feeling I'm getting screwed over somehow...Yes, I know prices have gone up, but I really can't understand how my usage went from 34kwh last year at this time to 159kwh this month (keep in mind I had AC units and an electric stove at my old place too). i wouldn't be surprised if someone in my building was messing with meters either, but still...
My bill is usually $60-$90 for a large one-bedroom.
One thing to check is the efficiency of your applicances - I think this can make a big difference. For instance, how old is the refrigerator at your new place vs. your old?
Also, when did you stop living in the old place? There was a big hike in rates during the summer - August, I think.
My bill is usually $60-$90 for a large one-bedroom.
One thing to check is the efficiency of your applicances - I think this can make a big difference. For instance, how old is the refrigerator at your new place vs. your old?
Also, when did you stop living in the old place? There was a big hike in rates during the summer - August, I think.
i moved here in september...the unit i just moved into was renovated from ceiling to floor and the fridge looks new IMO. i hear there's a device called "kill-a-watt" that can detect what's hogging most of the electricity. the only other thing i can think of is my laptop battery giving out so that i have the laptop plugged in to the wall post of the day...but even still...i guess it is possible the meter at my old unit was broken and registering way lower than normal but i'll have to wait to see this meter with my own eyes.
Given that the big Con Ed hike was in the summer (July/August), the fact that you are seeing higher bills in the new place that you presumably moved into on Sept. 1 makes sense to me, though I guess your last bill from the old place in August should have been higher as well.
On April 5th 2010 Con Edison came to read my meters. I have to take a day off from work for Con Edison to read my meters because they are inside, so some times I am not there to let them in. I call in the meter readings and when I receive the bills in the mail, the readings are accepted by the ""COMPUTER"" or rejected and the nice letter from Con Edison lets me know it. On April 5th 2010 Con Edison came to read my meters. When I received the bills, I received an estimated bill on the meter on which I started a new account. I have not contacted Con Edison yet thinking Con Edison will correct this.The most you could expect from Con Edison as far as correcting any damage to life limb or property would be an expediting push to Con Edison from your Government, local, state or federal.I am interested in learning about any suits brought against Con Edison from the injured community.The “””MASTER COMPUTER””” directs con Edison and any hope of getting a compassionate response is next to nil.
Gas meters not read for four months in our building. A card is left under the door requesting the tenant to read the meter and call in the reading or submit it online.
My bill is usually $60-$90 for a large one-bedroom.
One thing to check is the efficiency of your applicances - I think this can make a big difference. For instance, how old is the refrigerator at your new place vs. your old?
Also, when did you stop living in the old place? There was a big hike in rates during the summer - August, I think.
CON ED lady over the phone said the average apartment bill is in the range of 90-140 kwh per month
That applies only to apartments whose residents are DEAD! The lady on the phone HALF qualified...she was BRAIN dead.
I have a 22 year record and only ONCE (October 1989) was I under 300 Kwhr for a 1 bedroom apartment and that was 291 Kwhr.
Over the 22 years, my average use was about 400 Kwhr/month and I did NOT waste electricity. My only atypical extra was a chest freezer.
I used air conditionin when I had to but switched to wiindow fans if the temperature fell to less than unbearable.
Quote:
my electricity bills were coming to maximum $30-$40 per month with usage of 30-60kwh per month at the most.
Those number don't jibe. Thirty Kwhr cost $8.70 and 60 Kwhr costs $17.40.
Last edited by Kefir King; 05-12-2012 at 07:03 AM..
Con Ed is regulated by the Public Service Commission, who has an excellent web site where they explain how you can initate an inquiry. They generally want you to attempt to resolve your issue with Con Ed before filing a complaint. You can also read the Home Energy Fair Practice act or Section 11 & 12 of NYCRR Title 16 that explains the residential billing rules. You cannot "sue" Con Ed over a billing complaint as it's the PSC's role to adjudicate consumer billing complaints.
If Con Ed didn't secure a final read from the prior account holder, or there was a lag time and energy not related to your use accumulated on the meter, they may have been doing you a favor.
I don't have enough details to specifically advise you. But note that an estimate is not accurate and actual metered usage - and could be low as well as high. However, if estimates continue there may be an access issue or problem with the meter that should be corrected.
Contact me if I can be of further assistance.
LAK
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paulad718
On April 5th 2010 Con Edison came to read my meters. I have to take a day off from work for Con Edison to read my meters because they are inside, so some times I am not there to let them in. I call in the meter readings and when I receive the bills in the mail, the readings are accepted by the ""COMPUTER"" or rejected and the nice letter from Con Edison lets me know it. On April 5th 2010 Con Edison came to read my meters. When I received the bills, I received an estimated bill on the meter on which I started a new account. I have not contacted Con Edison yet thinking Con Edison will correct this.The most you could expect from Con Edison as far as correcting any damage to life limb or property would be an expediting push to Con Edison from your Government, local, state or federal.I am interested in learning about any suits brought against Con Edison from the injured community.The “””MASTER COMPUTER””” directs con Edison and any hope of getting a compassionate response is next to nil.
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Con Ed Compliance
