CL&P Electric Bill Insanity!!

[peanutgallery 0]

CL&P=Connecticut Light and Power-the monopoly electric supplier of CT.
Here's the story: I moved into a new apartment, its one half of a duplex house. I live alone and am very energy conscious. I have natural gas heat, I unplug the computer and all small appliances during the day, I do two loads of laundry a week and run the dishwasher once a week. I'm hardly ever home and the lights are hardly ever on. Basically, I couldn't possibly use LESS electricity. My electric bill is close to $150/month!! I moved from a place twice the size WITH a roommate and my bill there with the same company was about $70/month. I've talked to some friends in the area and they can't understand it. One of my friends lives in a 2000sq.ft house with two kids and they have about 10 animal cages running all day, he does laundry and runs the dishwasher everyday and his bill is only slightly higher than mine. Another friend lives alone and probably uses about the same as i do and his bill is about $60/month. My usage itself is about $85 and i'm getting charged $59 delivery charges. When I call they can't explain it, they just say you can't compare one house to another and "just try to conserve as much as possible." It doesn't make any sense to me! Any thoughts???

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke

[mx757 4]

bad meter? or meter reader...?

[squirrel 0]

Quote

its one half of a duplex house.

turn off the main breaker, and see if your neighbor looses any power? it would be nice to ask your neighbor first, the structure could be wired incorrectly. if they do, then track in down breaker by breaker. *

*if only to be perform by electrician for safety.

________________________________
Where is Darwin when you need him?

[billeisele 122]

if few thoughts from an energy auditor, start with the simple stuff:
- go read the meter and compare it to the reading on the bill, this should not be a problem but you never know
- since I don't know what kind of meter you have, look at the meter to see how it works, the dial should be turning or (if digital) the numbers changing, now go to the main breaker panel in the apartment and open the main breaker, the meter should stop, if not then something in the adjacent unit is wired to your meter - we see this all the time
- if all that is OK, call the company and ask to have the meter changed or tested, if they balk just tell them you plan to call the Public Service Commission or whatever the regulatory agency is that governs them - in this case the squeeky wheel gets the grease
- ask if they have people to come to the house and help with "high bill complaints" or to do an audit
- after this, start looking at the meter at the same time each day and record the readings
- what is the electric rate?, gas rate?
- how old is the frig?
-how old is the heating/cooling unit? brand?
- what temp do you set the t-stat on? do you change it during the day or night? if so provide info?
- gas or electric water heater? size water heater? temp setting on water heater?

I could ask a ton more questions but if you can provide the info above that is a good start.

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[Beerlight 0]

That does seem on the high side. What's per/Kw charge?

Here in TX, I'm paying .12 cents per Kw, and my bill last month for a 2000 sq/ft home = $75.00.

[squirrel 0]

and, unplug everything in your side of the house, i mean everything. then go see if your meter is still spinning.

________________________________
Where is Darwin when you need him?

[peanutgallery 0]

Thanks for trying to help! Please excuse my ignorance with this stuff...

My water heater is an A.O.Smith energy saver 50gallon, electric, I don't know what temp it's set at. I think it's 2 years old.
The fridge is fairly old, not sure of the year.
The apartment next door is vacant, it is supposed to be being renovated but nobody has touched it since November.
The thermostat is set around 63-65 when I'm home (only about 4-6 hours a day) and about 58 at night and when I'm at work during the day.
On the bill it says 713.00KWH x $0.122170 =$87.11 Supplier Services
But on the back I have all these crazy delivery charges which adds another $56.84 to the bill.
The meter is digital (icon) and it read 24394KWH just now, I watched it for a bit and it didn't change. The other meter for next door read 628KWH and also didn't change. The reading on my bill says 24047 then it says actual usage =713

Any conclusions based on that info??

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke

[Broke 0]

Call the electric company and bitch them out.

Divot your source for all things Hillbilly.
Anvil Brother 84
SCR 14192

[davelepka 4]

***I moved from a place twice the size WITH a roommate and my bill there with the same company was about $70/month.


My usage itself is about $85 and i'm getting charged $59 delivery charges***

This is what sounds odd to me. If delivery charges are $59, does that mean that you and your old roomie only used $11 worth of electricity?

How is it that your other buddy has a total bill of $60, and you pay $1 less just for 'delivery'?

I would follow the advice from a previous post, and either go directly to the appropriate regulatory agency and file a complaint, or call the power company one more time and mention that you are about to file a complaint unless you can get an explanation, and some sort of resolution.

[davelepka 4]

Quote

On the bill it says 713.00KWH x $0.122170 =$87.11 Supplier Services

Ok, I just read this more closely.

Is it possible that you're involved in one of those situations where your electric is supplied by an outside vendor, and then delivered by the local power company?

I know they started this practice in an effort to break 'monopolies', and give consumers a choice. I have choices in my area for electric and gas providers, but all of it is carried via the wires and pipes of the existing companies, and they charge for the delivery of the 'product'.

Ideally, the alternate suppliers can offer a rate for the product that when combined with the 'delivery charges' works out to be about that same as using the power company for product and delivery.

In your case, maybe your getting a shit rate from the power supplier, and then paying extra 'fees' for the delivery from the power company.

[jonstark 8]

Find out whether you are being billed for actual use or an average of what the apartment has used historically. If the latter you should expect an adjustment when they do an actual meter read at the property.

You may be able to get an audit from the electrical company. They are as interested as you are in conservation.

If your bill, as high as it is, is based on actual use figures someone may be poaching your power. Do as previously advised by killing your power with the neighbor around to see if they lose anything and if your meter is still spinning like a Frisbee.

jon

[peanutgallery 0]

Yes, that is the case with the delivery charges. I dug up some old bills from the old apartment with the roommate and we were paying about $35 for usage and about the same for delivery for a total bill of $70. There is no way in hell I am using $85 of electricity by myself just in usage. Everything on the bill looks okay besides the fact that the usage is extremely high. Last march is the other place I used 9kwh and this March in the new place I used 22kwh! Totally impossible.

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke

[billeisele 122]

Quote

Thanks for trying to help! Please excuse my ignorance with this stuff...

My water heater is an A.O.Smith energy saver 50gallon, electric, I don't know what temp it's set at. I think it's 2 years old.
The fridge is fairly old, not sure of the year.
The apartment next door is vacant, it is supposed to be being renovated but nobody has touched it since November.
The thermostat is set around 63-65 when I'm home (only about 4-6 hours a day) and about 58 at night and when I'm at work during the day.
On the bill it says 713.00KWH x $0.122170 =$87.11 Supplier Services
But on the back I have all these crazy delivery charges which adds another $56.84 to the bill.
The meter is digital (icon) and it read 24394KWH just now, I watched it for a bit and it didn't change. The other meter for next door read 628KWH and also didn't change. The reading on my bill says 24047 then it says actual usage =713

Any conclusions based on that info??

1) water heater - turn off the breaker to the water heater, take off the 2 cover plates, behind each plate you will see a dial, make sure both the dials you see are on the same setting - I'd recommend 120 degrees, if you live alone and don't take real long or real hot showers then 110 might work - the difference between 110 and 120 will save $2-$3 a month
2) the old fridge can be using a lot more power than you realize, is this the same fridge you had in your old place?, it could easily be $15-$20+ per month
3) the kWh rate is 12 cents and you have a delivery charge, welcome to deregulation & thank you Mr. federal government for screwing up the best utility grid in the world - more under #8 below
4) you used 713 kWh, I don't have any reference to know if this is high or low, there are too many variables, one thing you can't do is compare your bill to others or to your usage last year, again too many variables
5) the empty unit next door may be part of the problem, if the heat is turned off next door then you can be sure it is real cold inside, it is possible that the common wall you have with that unit is not insulated
6) keep checking the meter for a few days to get an idea of the kWh usage for a 24 hour period
7) call the utility for an audit, forget complaining about the meter they are almost never wrong and I've tested a couple hundred, most of the time they are slow 1-2%, you have a digital meter so it must be fairly new and accurate
8) researching the CL&P website:
- you are on the best rate you can be on
- CL&P is deregulated, this was the government idea of "creating" competition in an industry where size does matter
- when deregulation was created the previously integrated utility was "broken apart"
- that is why you have all the delivery charges listed, these are the seperate entities involed in getting power to you
- once they were split apart each had to have their own President, VP and all the other overhead people and costs
- any idiot could predict that the cost of service would rise
- you also have the "social program" costs, Public Benefits Charge and FMCC - total of $0.01477 per kWh, so those cost you $10.53 - makes you all warm and fuzzy inside doesn't it
9) there is a fixed charge in the bill that remains the same regardless of usage, $16, this covers the meter, meter reading and bill processing, this is a normal charge and seems in line with other utilities
9) you are paying about $0.20 per kWh, here in SC we fought the government and did not deregulate, the 713 kWh would have a total cost of about $80, $0.112 per kWh after adding the fixed charge of $8, what is so crazy is the government is still trying to force deregulation

- trucking, banking and the phone system were all deregulated
- anyone happy about that?
- the utility system is bigger, $$$, than all of these combined, if they keep screwing with it they will wreck that also

- having said that, your best bet is to conserve and use appliances with high efficiency, this will reduce the kWh usage
- stop as much of the air inleakage (infiltration) as possible around the doors and windows and any other wall penetrations
- use compact fluorescent lamps
- your t-stat settings are much lower than most people

- overall the best option is to move south and always check the utility usage of a place before you rent or buy
- NC, SC, GA are all great places to live, for me FL is too hot
- we have a turbine DZ just south of Charlotte and would love to have ya' and the Farm is NW of Atlanta

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[billeisele 122]

almost forgot, you can shop electric suppliers or other rates with CL&P
- the delivery charges are set so no changing those
- go to this website to do some research
http://www.ct.gov/dpuc/cwp/view.asp?a=3356&Q=405992&dpucNav=|

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[peanutgallery 0]

Haha, i love how helping me with my electric bill turned into getting me to move south! don't get me wrong, i have considered it, just not the right time at the moment.
I really appreciate all the help and education. I understand most of it and I do understand all the fees and everything but even with all the variables I just can't justify a bill that is double what it was in the old place with two people.
Anyway, I will see what I can do and thank you for that site, that is what I was looking for!
Thanks again!

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke

[turtlespeed 212]

Quote

That does seem on the high side. What's per/Kw charge?

Here in TX, I'm paying .12 cents per Kw, and my bill last month for a 2000 sq/ft home = $75.00.

HOLY CRAP!

You used 625000 watts?

Just how big IS you hydro lab in the basement?

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[Beerlight 0]

Quote

Quote

That does seem on the high side. What's per/Kw charge?

Here in TX, I'm paying .12 cents per Kw, and my bill last month for a 2000 sq/ft home = $75.00.

HOLY CRAP!

You used 625000 watts?

Just how big IS you hydro lab in the basement?

Shhhhhhhh!!!!!!! It's almost harvest time

[turtlespeed 212]

Quote

Quote

Quote

That does seem on the high side. What's per/Kw charge?

Here in TX, I'm paying .12 cents per Kw, and my bill last month for a 2000 sq/ft home = $75.00.

HOLY CRAP!

You used 625000 watts?

Just how big IS you hydro lab in the basement?

Shhhhhhhh!!!!!!! It's almost harvest time

Oh - OK - Mums the word.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun