extremely high electric bills--Any ideas??? (Houston, Dallas: rental, Home Depot, live in)

[javak]

Yes , we are on Tri-County Co-Op . Our current rate is 10.5 cents per KWH . You can also get that same rate with Ignite/ Stream Energy .

Last month we used 1392 KWH and our bill was $149.50
We used 5,137 KWH for a $560. bill last August .

[ceyko]

Originally Posted by javak

Yes , we are on Tri-County Co-Op . Our current rate is 10.5 cents per KWH . You can also get that same rate with Ignite/ Stream Energy .

Last month we used 1392 KWH and our bill was $149.50
We used 5,137 KWH for a $560. bill last August .

See, that's what sucks. My house is 2600 sq ft, 2 fridges...electric dryer.

Last month at 14.9 was 1581 for 245 dollars

Now granted, last month I did not have redone insulation and new caulking up. We shall see. :jealous:

[jcamber]

Originally Posted by ceyko

I was curious if anything further came from the OP or others. One person posted how the KwH usage per month never went down regardless of how much was done. I'm in the same boat and am going to call the electric company. What I've done...

Solar Screens
Upgraded outside AC unit (5 ton)
Upgraded coils
Attic fan - installed
Attic vents - added more
refreshed all attic insulation (blow in and some batts)
New Door Seals
Recaulked whole house
Unplugged everything not in use, careful with stuff that is
CFL bulbs everywhere
Use ceiling fans instead of dropping thermostat
Insulated garage/garage door
Socked/wall switch - exterior - insulation
Closed off unused rooms (door/ac vent)
Duct work checked by HVAC company (2), myself and father (builder in PA)

We have gas water heater, furnace and stove. Electric oven and dryer (dryer just replaced with new)

I'm out of ideas as my electricity usage appears to not go down and 600-700 dollar electric bills are whooping me. Like the OP, during the winter I'm at 350 with gas heat.

Edit: Also, this is in Plano, TX, 2600 sq ft home @ 14.9 kw cents per hour.

WOW. I would be freaking out if I'd paid that. I have a 3,500 sqft home and I pay roughly $70-80 in the spring, fall and winter and I think my highest bill last year was $210 in the dead heat of the summer. Thermostats were kept at 80F downstairs and 83F upstairs.

I did install ridge vents all over my roof for $400 last years and the house is 1 year old so pretty sure it's very efficient.

[LQQKOUT]

Get on some type of level plan, I have an all electric house...which I didn't want...but owell and it's roughly 2800 sg ft.

I replaced the outside ac/heat pump unit. Then I put in the energy saver lights. And I changed to a level pay plan. Where my electric company looked at my overall use for one year and then gave me a flat rate to pay every month no matter how much or little I used.

I have a locked in rate of 10.5 kh and a flat pay plan of $291.00 per month.

My bill last year was as high as $650.00 and as low as $250.00 throughout the whole year.

[loves2read]

article in FTW paper sunday I think about electric providers--rates are down--but remember if there is some crisis and price goes up--the company can keep your rate the same but charge you a fee based on what it costs them to get electricity off the grid...
bownouts in CA--remember the prices that summer--and they just rigged the game--companies took power off the grid for supposedly legitimate reasons but in reality on days when weather was the hottest and they knew power was peaking...

[Pontificator]

Oh happy day!!!! Have to report, our energy usage was slashed by installing tons of those little corkscrew, peace & love CFL bulbs all over the place. They're not my "favorite" light, but oh what a difference. Our previous all-time low kWh usage was 1600, this month: 1000. The light bulbs are a little more expensive up front, but our savings in a single month recoups the outlay. Probably the biggest difference was replacing our 90 watt outdoor flood lights with the CFL's that provide the same light using only 23 watts.

[rcrdoeva]

ponti, i am glad to hear that. i can't belive how much your floodlight was chewing. good luck.

[Pontificator]

Originally Posted by rcrdoeva

ponti, i am glad to hear that. i can't belive how much your floodlight was chewing. good luck.

ALL my lights were.....we'd had an "energy audit" after receiving our first bill for this new construction home. The electrician said that lights "don't use much." Ha!! Shouldn't have listened to that gem of advice. We also slashed our usage by eliminating a second water heater, and putting CFL's in any light fixture used multiple hours per day. CFL bulbs are suddenly available in a broader array, so we gave them a try. Bottom line: more expendable cash to enjoy touring Texas!!

[Mckellyb]

As bad as this is, be glad you're not in Vegas, where electricity rates vary depending on the time of day.

Of course, during the heat of the day, y'know, from 10A-5P, it's highest...although, during the summer months, there is about a six week long time period during which the ambient outdoor temperature does not drop below 100°F, regardless of what the Weather Channel says. 107F at 1 AM is truly an odd experience the first couple of times....

[Pontificator]

Originally Posted by Mckellyb

As bad as this is, be glad you're not in Vegas, where electricity rates vary depending on the time of day.

Of course, during the heat of the day, y'know, from 10A-5P, it's highest...although, during the summer months, there is about a six week long time period during which the ambient outdoor temperature does not drop below 100°F, regardless of what the Weather Channel says. 107F at 1 AM is truly an odd experience the first couple of times....

What kind of rates do you pay per kWh, if you don't mind? We had a terrible "bargain-at-the-time" rate of 15 cents, just got it down to 10 cents. I feel for you -- I'm grateful for just 90's at night in these parts!