Anyone would feel stressed and helpless with having a high electricity or gas bill. Many people often think that high electric bills are due to an electricity leak, an incorrect utility meter, a faulty appliance, or even a neighbor stealing power supply.
However, based on actual data and energy audits from homes and businesses all around the country, high power bills are caused by two main things: actual high usage and billing issues. A combination of these factors can often lead to a high electricity bill.
We've provided a guide below covering these two actual reasons for a high electricity bill and how to resolve these issues. Read on, and you'll never face an overly expensive electricity bill again.
Actual High Usage
Your actual electricity bill depends on how you use and manage your appliances that require electricity. These include ducted air conditioning, refrigeration, electric water heater and water pumps, lighting, and ventilation fans. They are the most common high-using electrical appliances in most homes.
Having one or a combination of these appliances will cause you a higher electric consumption.
- Ducted air conditioning makes up over 50% of electricity bills in a household or a business establishment because ducted air conditioners have a high input power rating.
- Refrigerators are exceptionally energy-efficient, but it will become a problem if you own more than one unit. Households with high electricity bills often have two or more refrigerators. If you have a fridge, freezer, and chest freezer, it's no wonder why you have a large electricity bill.
- Electric water heaters and pump systems typically account for about 13% to 30% of household energy usage. Regardless of the type, it will consume a lot of energy as these systems run for 8 hours or more per day.
- Lighting contributes to high energy as well. You'll mostly have problems if you are using old lighting units as they consume more energy, which also has higher maintenance costs. You'll also have problems if you'll leave the lights on when they're not needed or have too many units in a rarely used space.
- Lastly, ventilation or extractor fans contribute to high energy bills. These are significant but invisible energy users. Ventilation fans usually operate for 24 hours a day at full speed. These fans can also work against other energy-using systems. For example, if you're trying to cool a room with an air conditioner, an extractor fan removes the air it produces. This can indirectly shoot up your heating and air conditioning costs.
Billing Issues
Aside from actual high power usage, having billing issues will cause you a high electricity bill. You can either have an estimated electricity bill or alarming electricity bill rates.
- Estimated electricity bills often happen when your utility company sends an estimated account instead of an actual account. Keep in mind that energy companies are allowed to estimate your power usage. However, some of these estimates are sometimes inaccurate. When the corrected bill arrives, it may include some additional fees that make it unusually high.
- Another billing issue is bad electricity bill rates. You will most likely have this issue if you are not familiar with your electricity bill or didn't shop for better energy rates. Remember that there are plenty of electrical providers, and their rates and tariffs vary.
How To Have Better Electricity Rate
No one wants to have a high energy cost. To ensure that you are efficient with your energy usage, try these tips:
- Use timers or controllers to reduce electricity usage over your air conditioning units, water heaters, pumps, and ventilation units.
- Set your thermostat higher in summer and lower during winter.
- Check for any damages or leaks in any of your electrical units. Fix any issues as needed.
- Use energy-efficient units. Split system air conditioners are more energy-efficient than ducted systems, while tap aerator inserts can reduce hot water consumption. For lighting, LEDs are considered the most energy-efficient.
- Consolidate the number of units you are using. Instead of having multiple partially full fridges, use one to maximum capacity.
- If you keep getting estimated readings, request for actual reading. You should have an existing electric meter reading at least once a year.
- Use an energy monitor to track your energy usage between bills. This way, you'll have an idea of how much your account might be.
- Review your rates annually. You can check in any government websites or private companies to compare rates. You can also compare rates where you live. For example, if you live in a deregulated state like Pennsylvania, you can check Pennsylvania electric rates from different companies. This practice can be done in other deregulated states, such as New York, Ohio, Texas, etc.
Takeaway
High electrical charges will mostly cause a set back on your finances. Learn how to read your electricity bill and understand where most of the cost is coming from. This way, you'll have better energy-saving actions.
