House electricity bills sky high - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

lifetime_flamesfan · 02-13-2015, 09:28 AM

Hey there guys,

The wife and I are looking for a little insight regarding our electricity (Enmax) bill. We are at a loss for why our bill is so high every month. We did test the breaker to see if anyone was hooked in.

Just for some context, My wife and I built the house 3 years ago with Home by Avi. Its approx. 2100 sq ft with an electric water heater. We have three TV's, three blue ray players, three PVR's and two gaming systems. Our electricity bills show that we are using 1200 Kw/h (on a good month) to our most recent bill of 1800 Kw/h, and probably averages around 1400 Kw/h.

Now with that said, my brother-in-law has a house two blocks away, maybe 50 sq ft larger, same brand water heater, same age and same builder, they have two kids (4 & 7) and their usage is usually half that of ours.

When we compared one bill with each other, we had 1600 Kw/h and they had 711 Kw/h.

We've had an electrician come in and test our breaker box for abnormalities and that came up empty. I talked with the company that install the water heater and they commented that it seems as though the water heater is operating normally (didn't check it out, just based on the info I provided).

We are currently swapping in LED lights right now. But again the brother-in-law doesn't have LED light either.

Any thoughts or recommendations would be a great help and very appreciated.

chedder · 02-13-2015, 09:39 AM

Same wattage water heater too? I have electric boiler for in floor heating and know its a big user of juice when it's on. I'd bet your water heating is the culprit. does your family bath/take long showers like mine (all girls except me). Lots of clothes washing/drying?

DoubleK · 02-13-2015, 09:40 AM

That is insanely high.

Do you use any electric heaters or heating blankets?

Ace · 02-13-2015, 09:43 AM

Electric heat sources are your biggest uses. So in comparison see if you have an electric range and your bro in law has gas; do you use the oven more than him? Space heaters, Irons? Maybe your family simply uses more hot water, or perhaps you have yours set to a higher temperature. Do you have an electric heated floor in a bathroom?

Those are the places i'd look first.

Street Pharmacist · 02-13-2015, 09:43 AM

I had something similar happen when I was younger. Finally realized it was a heater for my roommates water bed

OMG!WTF! · 02-13-2015, 09:50 AM

If your bills are way higher in the winter you might want to check your furnace too. Maybe the fan is not adjusting its out put or is stuck on high all the time. Or maybe you're losing heat somewhere and running the furnace more.

Jimmy Stang · 02-13-2015, 09:51 AM

Lighting doesn't typically account for much of your electricity bill. Obviously LED or CFL will use less than incandescent or halogen lights, but not to the extent that would make such a difference.

Are your major appliances similar to your brother-in-law's? The fridge, for example, is a big culprit.

Another potential source is "vampire power" which is the energy that your devices use when they are supposedly off. Standby modes often drain a bunch of power, but it is impractical to cut power (with a lower bar switch) fully to things like your cable box as you could have to wait for your guide to re-load each time you use it (for example).

I have a device similar to this one (http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/ha...-0529208p.html) that can help you find out how much energy each appliance, device, etc. uses. You can obviously plug your whole power bar for your TV, cable box, Blu-Ray, receiver, etc. into it to see how much each collection of devices uses.

Your fridge and washer you could also measure in the same way, but it is probably easiest just to use the government energy ratings for your major appliances to see how efficient they are.

GGG · 02-13-2015, 09:55 AM

Does your Brother in Law house use an electric water heater?

Also why an electric water heater over gas?

ken0042 · 02-13-2015, 09:58 AM

In order of things that draw power, check devices that generate heat, followed by devices with motors. If you have an old fridge, that can be using more power than anything else. For example a 20 year old fridge in your garage or basement keeping a dozen beer cold will cost you more in power over 6 months than the cost of buying a small beer fridge.

Don't rule out lighting either. If you have a fixture with two 100 watt bulbs that runs 24/7, switching it to 23 watt CFLs will save you 100 kw/h per month.

Drummer · 02-13-2015, 09:59 AM

Brookfield uses electric hot water heaters in all of the townhomes they've built in the past 5 years.

DoubleK · 02-13-2015, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drummer

Brookfield uses electric hot water heaters in all of the townhomes they've built in the past 5 years.

That doesn't make it a good idea.

Ace · 02-13-2015, 10:33 AM

^it seems to be the new fad.

The idea is they don't need to vent the same as gas so you save up front on the install. I believe one builder said if you're in your house for 7 years or less then electric will be "cheaper" for you all things considered. I suppose it's true, your house isnt really going to lose value with an electric vs. gas.

To Be Quite Honest · 02-13-2015, 10:37 AM

Do you have a garage? Is someone hooked up to your home somehow? It's odd that the usage is double.

The Yen Man · 02-13-2015, 11:00 AM

I absolutely hate electric water tanks. Mine came standard with a 70 gallon electric tank, and I live by myself. So this thing has 2 electric elements at 3000W each. Reading online, your water tank is normally on for about 4 hours per day. If you calculate that in KWH, that means 6KW x 4hours x 30 days, which is 720KWH per month. That's over half my electricity usuage on that stupid tank. I really need to switch it out...

photon · 02-13-2015, 11:05 AM

I'd say "so what" to it being half your electricity usage; a better question would be how much does that electricity cost compared to the savings from not using natural gas to heat the water. If it costs more than natural gas then yeah it doesn't make sense. If it saves money overall then who cares if its half the electricity bill.

DoubleK · 02-13-2015, 11:08 AM

Has anyone looked at tankless lately?

I looked hard when I built in 2008, the math didn't work out then. I'm wondering if things have changed in seven years.

The Yen Man · 02-13-2015, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by photon

I'd say "so what" to it being half your electricity usage; a better question would be how much does that electricity cost compared to the savings from not using natural gas to heat the water. If it costs more than natural gas then yeah it doesn't make sense. If it saves money overall then who cares if its half the electricity bill.

It costs more. My cousin lives down the block, same size house, similar utilities usage, I pay between 30 to 50 dollars more a month as a result of me having an electric tank and he having a gas one. My bill has never been lower than his in the 4 years we've lived there.

FlamesAddiction · 02-13-2015, 11:16 AM

Are you plugging in vehicles with block heaters? I heard that hydro bills can spike if you do that. If so, you should consider putting them on a timer.

LanceUppercut · 02-13-2015, 11:20 AM

I'd ask your neighbor how their grow op is doing.

Slava · 02-13-2015, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DoubleK

Has anyone looked at tankless lately?

I looked hard when I built in 2008, the math didn't work out then. I'm wondering if things have changed in seven years.

I haven't, however I'm fairly sure that a new hot water heater is due for me, so I want to know this as well. I think it would make some sense or at least have some benefits, although economically it might still not work out.