Outrageous electric bill - anyone with a big house to compare (+3000sq feet) ? (San Diego: credit, purchase)

[LuvSouthOC]

I see many causes for alarm up here in coastal south Orange County. That's right, south OC, all the way up to South Laguna, the only region outside of San Diego County that is also served by that expensive electricity utility company we are discussing.

See map of SDG&E's area of service...
https://backcountryvoices.files.word...pg?w=700&h=525

I have solar panels on my home, a fact I am proud of. A few months ago, I was informed in a letter some months ago that a battle had taken place and that SDG&E, among other CA utilities, wanted to change the pay structure for those of us with solar panels. Ultimately, they failed and their plan and the agreements we have as solar panel owners were to be kept in place for another 20 years. Not content with this, SDG&E seems to still be trying to circumvent this agreement and trying desperately to change to a time variant cost scale as a means of raising the electric bills of customers who have grandfathered billing systems.

During the last two billing cycles, I have also seen a steep increase in my bills. While it is true that my immediate area saw temperatures that sometimes were as high as 19 degrees above average, and thus a lot more AC was needed, the increases were jaw dropping nonetheless. And this is just with the current structure and the most recent increases. Rates are sure to skyrocket in the future.

Not just solar customers -- all customers -- can expect much higher rates every year hereafter based on SDG&E increases; seeing fees to pay for closing San Onofre and San Diego's effort to reduce C02 emissions while pushing for time-based usage model on the "need" for some customers to charge their electric vehicles cheaply at night (how many of these customers are there, really).

See how SDG&E explains their desired changes (SDG&E Customers Challenge Plans To Change How They Are Billed): SDG&E Customers Challenge Plans To Change How They Are Billed | KPBS


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK0XYZO10MY

Miscellaneous...

Regarding the fees we have to pay for the closure of San Onofre:

Electricity refund? Not in California | San Diego Reader
Victory! San Onofre settlement deemed unfair | San Diego Reader

While the settlement was better for consumers than SDG&E wanted, you can be sure they want to milk us dry in fees to recoup the costs.

Regarding the imminent elimination of the old solar agreements for new customers, please see this:
Window closing on solar super-incentive in California. | UTSanDiego.com

[The Flying Dutchman]

$188 dollars for a 1000sf condo here.

[USAGeorge]

You can't have it all and then complain about electric bills...Sort of like spiting in the wind and then cursing mother nature. Get an energy audit..They will break down cost solutions on a return of investment basis for your particular use and applicable solutions....Solar is regional, heat pump vs. stand alone A/C units///radiant electric baseboard ect.
Using shades when a lot of windows are south oriented in summer to not using those shades during the winter days....Way to many variables,,,get an expert ,,worth the money....

[ShelbyGirl1]

Received our SDG&E bill yesterday. $-38.42! Negative! Solar in a 3200 sq foot home ...no AC running this month, but pool running. We figure, with the increases, the Solar will payoff itself in 4-5 years.

[Cardiff Kook]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGirl1

Received our SDG&E bill yesterday. $-38.42! Negative! Solar in a 3200 sq foot home ...no AC running this month, but pool running. We figure, with the increases, the Solar will payoff itself in 4-5 years.

That's pretty killer. My parents are strongly considering putting solar on their 2600 sq ft home. If it pays itself off in a few years it sounds like a good investment

[tstieber]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGirl1

Solar here! $-5.42! AC running and pool are our biggest electricity suckers. We went from $380 ish bill to this.

by comparison, how much are you paying each month for the solar lease or financing?obviously, the panels aren't free, so it would be interesting to know how much you're saving in total. Thanks!

[ShelbyGirl1]

We bought our panels outright...we also went full tilt on getting 100% return. DH has a new I8 on order, and we wanted that charging full capacity to be covered as well. We have 28 panels, which cost us around $30,000... But that does NOT include all the tax incentives or rebates. As you can see in my last post of this morning, this month bill was -$38.42, down from close to $400

[ShelbyGirl1]

Originally Posted by GMUAlum08

That's pretty killer. My parents are strongly considering putting solar on their 2600 sq ft home. If it pays itself off in a few years it sounds like a good investment

We also figured it would help in resale, making the home that much more marketable.

[T. Damon]

We keep on pondering whether is would be worth it to go solar- 1800 s.f. house, coastal zone. We probably have the roof square footage and available orientation- mostly flat roofed house, but our electricity usage is always below 3rd tier pricing so, about $60-80 before you get into all the required fees and taxes (solar or not).

Beyond the potentially awkward/ugly array of panels on our handsome and often complimented about 1928 Spanish Revival, I just don't think our payback would happen until way in the future- about the time the panels start to loose their efficiency in producing.

But if I lived in a big house out in East County with AC and a pool it would seem to be a far easier proposition to make the jump.

[ShelbyGirl1]

Originally Posted by T. Damon

We keep on pondering whether is would be worth it to go solar- 1800 s.f. house, coastal zone. We probably have the roof square footage and available orientation- mostly flat roofed house, but our electricity usage is always below 3rd tier pricing so, about $60-80 before you get into all the required fees and taxes (solar or not).

Beyond the potentially awkward/ugly array of panels on our handsome and often complimented about 1928 Spanish Revival, I just don't think our payback would happen until way in the future- about the time the panels start to loose their efficiency in producing.

But if I lived in a big house out in East County with AC and a pool it would seem to be a far easier proposition to make the jump.

Our roof was also my concern. They can not insert solar panels onto any type of tile roof. Since we had the room, we opted to do a ground setup...the panels sit way back of our property and we don't see them all. This was actually cheaper than a roof Setup. I think the guy quoted an additional $8000 for the roof set-up. We paid a tad more in manual labor since trenches had to be dug to run conduit back up to one of the garages. But it was minimal, and included in the $30,000 total. FYI our panels are guaranteed 25 yrs.