APS Electric (refrigerator, shop, bill)

[DetroitN8V]

Get on the Combined Advantage Plan and get an understanding of the demand structure. Your "unbelievable" first bill was likely not on a time of use plan.

[jdg1724]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

Get on the Combined Advantage Plan and get an understanding of the demand structure. Your "unbelievable" first bill was likely not on a time of use plan.

I would have to agree that you are correct as the OP...the "peak time" is between 12-7 they said and really not understanding that we just did the normal things like we would have back in Ohio. We have since adjusted not doing the laundry during that timeframe, dishwasher etc and making sure fans are turned off in rooms not being in. All stuff that didn't matter in Ohio which obviously do here in AZ.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by jdg1724

I would have to agree that you are correct as the OP...the "peak time" is between 12-7 they said and really not understanding that we just did the normal things like we would have back in Ohio. We have since adjusted not doing the laundry during that timeframe, dishwasher etc and making sure fans are turned off in rooms not being in. All stuff that didn't matter in Ohio which obviously do here in AZ.

I went through the same thing when we moved from MI. We never had to consider when we used power there. It's a short learning curve though and pretty easy to make adjustments to get the bill back down to reasonable territory.

[HDL]

OP, I don't see you answering yet what your house size is, square footage, single or two story and how many people occupy the home. That type of information will really get you the best idea of whether your bill is crazy high $$$$ or not.

I made it through my first summer here in 2016. I had approx. 3 months of high bills during June thru August (~$200 a month) and the rest of the years' bills were somewhat reasonable. APS set me up on the TOU plan of peak 12-7 and I just try to adjust my usage accordingly.

My house is in the North Peoria/Sun City area. It is a 20 yr old, single story home, 1500 sq ft, 1 person, home during the day. In all my many years of home ownership, I have never seen such outrageous, nonsensical, fees attached to my electrical bill. Not even in CA and definitely not in ID! My highest electric bill for my 3400 sq ft home was $187.

I believe that APS gets away with all this nonsense because there are so many snowbirds and investment rentals that are unoccupied during ~5-6 months of the year. This is APS' way of getting revenue for all those empty homes that they can't get money from during their peak season for electric use.

Last year I tried to fight a bill where I was gone half the month and got charged exactly the same bill as the identical month earlier. This year I decided the heck with trying to conserve and turned my temps down to 75/76 instead of 78. My bill was higher by first $10 in June and now this new bill $25 for July. Totally worth it to me. When I spoke to my neighbors, their bills are higher this year also, so who knows exactly what's going on.

Welcome to Surprise !!!

Originally Posted by jdg1724

Good morning to you. We recently moved to the Surprise area from Ohio for a job relocation and received our first AZ electric bill, which was unbelievable. Now...its what we'd see in Ohio in the winter months but the amount of surcharges we noticed on the bill was like something we have never seen before. Is there an alternative source for electric here in AZ or is APS the only option we have?

[kell490]

I don't understand why people move here and run their AC 24/7 from June-September not understand it's going to cost a lot of money you live in a hot desert it's going to cost you. Most older homes are poorly insulated and have leaking ducts if you find a home which is energy star rated home they will cost much less. My July-aug bill is $400 I like my home on the colder side. I have lot of computers running they cost money to run I just save up the money during the winter when my bill is cheap.

[man4857]

And.... Will your power bill go up? Company wants to increase bills - ABC15 Arizona

APS is planning to increase rates. What the heck. Amazingly, SRP this year actually DECREASED power rates. Something doesn't line up.

[Potential_Landlord]

Originally Posted by man4857

And.... Will your power bill go up? Company wants to increase bills - ABC15 Arizona

APS is planning to increase rates. What the heck. Amazingly, SRP this year actually DECREASED power rates. Something doesn't line up.

Didn't they just get a 4.5% rise in the rates and that's not enough? They have to rise fees again???

[Ponderosa]

The APS rate case (which is a rubber stamp item on the corporation commission) goes to a vote tomorrow. It will change the peak time on time of use rates from noon to 7pm to 3 to 8 pm. One more hour we will need to suffer in the evenings before we can crank down the a/c.

Of interest to newcomers is that you will be forced to use a time of day demand plan for your first 90 days. I guess this is a way of "training" you. I have had a demand rate for over 20 years and like it, but you need to be very careful how you use electricity during periods where the demand is tracked or you will be staggered when you get your bill.

[Bird Street]

I used EC-1, ECT-1, and ECT-1R and finally combined advantage rates for decades when I had APS. I loved those rates but could never explain to people what the rates were. They worked best with a load controller or dual energy. I maintained temperatures somewhere between a trauma center and a meat locker. I now have SRP and use the standard rate because their plans aren't worth the bother. I think that APS has tweaked the rate structure over the years and make you work a lot harder now to save less money. A cold house was (and is) more important to me than dining out and satellite TV. My secret to using the rate was all natural gas appliances and a high efficiency heat pump. Insulation helps, too.

[kell490]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

The APS rate case (which is a rubber stamp item on the corporation commission) goes to a vote tomorrow. It will change the peak time on time of use rates from noon to 7pm to 3 to 8 pm. One more hour we will need to suffer in the evenings before we can crank down the a/c.

Of interest to newcomers is that you will be forced to use a time of day demand plan for your first 90 days. I guess this is a way of "training" you. I have had a demand rate for over 20 years and like it, but you need to be very careful how you use electricity during periods where the demand is tracked or you will be staggered when you get your bill.

The demand charge has increased substantially over the last 10 years I used to have their combined advantage plan 9 to 9 for years one day I called them they said I should go with the noon to 7 that's when my winter demand charges went up. When I wanted to go back to the old plan they said I couldn't because it was an old rate plan I had been grandfathered which they never told me that would happen. That's when I saw my winter bills over $200 I didn't once turn on my heat pump all winter.