# Anyone have any novel theories on why my utility bills are so high? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 26, 2019, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528 "2019-05-26T00:44:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/41 "2019-05-29T17:56:40Z")
Between using the breakers and the electric meter, you should be able to figure out what’s using all the power. Turn off all the breakers and watch the meter. I’m guessing the meter should be stopped with all the breakers off. Then go through the breakers where you turn one on and see what the meter does for some fixed amount of time. Only have one breaker on at a time. You should be able to come up with a chart where you know how much power each circuit behind the breaker is using. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/42 "2019-05-29T19:09:15Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > Between using the breakers and the electric meter, you should be able to figure out what’s using all the power. Turn off all the breakers and watch the meter. I’m guessing the meter should be stopped with all the breakers off. Then go through the breakers where you turn one on and see what the meter does for some fixed amount of time. Only have one breaker on at a time. You should be able to come up with a chart where you know how much power each circuit behind the breaker is using. It sounds like the problem is that his wife is using butt-loads of electricity and water on a daily basis. By comparison, my household of three used ~2800 gallons of water last month and 826 kWh. Granted, it’s spring so we haven’t had the use the AC much yet and there’s been enough rain that plants aren’t needing much watering (and we have a rain barrel), but we do have a hot tub that is continuously heated. That said, the OP’s household surpasses our weekly dishwasher and washer/dryer use in two days! I mean, yeah, every family is different and I always assume that everyone has their own little quirks or luxuries but this just seems like so much clueless wasting of resources I was like 😕:eek::smack: ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/43 "2019-05-29T19:49:54Z")
How many computers do you have and how old are they? I have 4 PCs that are essentially always on, and all by themselves they probably account for 20% of my electric bill. One of them alone is probably 50% of that, judging from the fact that I can tell by the temperature of the room it’s in whether it’s on or not. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/44 "2019-05-29T20:07:44Z")
> [@nate](#): > > We have our AC set kind of weird… it’s always set to 80, and we can stand it until it gets to around 76-78 and then we cut it down to 74 during the day or 72 during the evening. At night we cut it down to 70. But for a “scheduled” thermostat, it always moves back up to 80 after 4 or 6 hours. I’d try a compromise at 75 and see how it goes. Heat pumps are better at maintaining temperatures than making large temperature changes. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/45 "2019-05-29T23:52:52Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > It sounds like the problem is that his wife is using butt-loads of electricity and water on a daily basis. . . . Out of the box idea: your wife is taking in laundry to make a little side cash. ---
**Author:** ![nate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nate/32/13085_2.png) [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/46 "2019-05-30T01:18:04Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > This is a very straightforward problem to solve. Make a spreadsheet with all your electrical devices. See how much each one draws. Start measuring how much you use each one and see where it goes. > [@HeiLo](#): > > You already have all the tools to figure out exactly how much energy every run of your dryer, washing machine, dishwasher etc. uses. Why not do that, add up the amounts (don’t forget to meter HVAC and water heater) and see if the sum is far off from what your bill says? > > I’d suggest that you stop freaking monthly, look rationally at the facts once and then make the changes to your lifestyle that you can afford. > [@filmore](#): > > Between using the breakers and the electric meter, you should be able to figure out what’s using all the power. Turn off all the breakers and watch the meter. I’m guessing the meter should be stopped with all the breakers off. Then go through the breakers where you turn one on and see what the meter does for some fixed amount of time. Only have one breaker on at a time. You should be able to come up with a chart where you know how much power each circuit behind the breaker is using. I have the house to myself tonight, so this is what I’m doing. I’m going to figure this shit out once and for all. I will report my findings. ---
**Author:** ![nate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nate/32/13085_2.png) [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/47 "2019-05-30T05:04:19Z")
Well that was disappointing. I set up my house with the normal lights/fans/TVs on but with the power-hungry appliances off (dryer, water heater and AC) and went through each circuit and measured the current. The biggest draw were my hallway lights @ 3 A. I’ve never had to change a bulb in those, they still use the original incandescents that were installed when the house was built. 8 bulbs total I believe. My fridge was drawing 1 A. Everything else added up to about 4 A. Then I turned on the dryer. It sucks about 20 A which is around 5000 W and so costs about $0.50 - $0.60 an hour to run. I ran the AC and it pulls 40 A (around 9.6 kW) so it costs about $1 an hour to run. The water heater I have has a 4500 W element, so it’s about as expensive as the dryer when it’s heating. So I’m back to where I was. We just use that much energy I suppose. It seems like everyone else in the country uses half of what we use. I don’t know how you people do it or what we’re doing differently. One month about 10 years ago I got a really low (for me) power bill in the mail. This was after trying some different things to lower our bill, so I was ecstatic. Fuck yeah. It was around $109 when the previous month’s was over $300. I figured it out. I fixed our crazy-ass electricity usage. …but then, I noticed in the corner that it was addressed to my next-door neighbor. I walked over to deliver it to him and told him I got excited when I thought it was mine and he said, “yeah I know it’s high, but I can’t stand being hot”. Fuck me. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/48 "2019-05-30T15:28:41Z")
Well, I give you credit for testing but it seemed obvious to me that it’s your family’s lifestyle/habits that are to blame. I mean, you don’t understand that trying on clothes and then putting the clean clothes in the wash is crazy? Or letting your kids wet the bed every night so you have to do a load of bedding every day is completely avoidable? That might sound harsh, but it’s not normal and I’d be willing to bet that there are a dozen such habits that could be changed in your household that would help reduce your water and electricity consumption. Do a search on ways to conserve energy and water in your home and you might learn all sorts of things. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/49 "2019-05-30T15:39:37Z")
> [@nate](#): > > It seems like everyone else in the country uses half of what we use. I don’t know how you people do it or what we’re doing differently. We have trees strategically planted to help shade our house. The only air conditioner is in our bedroom window, and it is used for the handful of nights when it is really, really hot. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/50 "2019-05-30T17:07:34Z")
Speaking of shade, if you’re letting a lot of sunshine into your house you could also try blinds or curtains on the windows. And keep the outside doors shut when it’s hot outside. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/51 "2019-05-30T17:26:05Z")
If your windows are not well sealed/double paned, curtains can also help keep your house warm in winter. I also think the washer/dryer cycles are at least partly to blame. If your kids are wetting the bed that’s a different kind of problem, but until you solve that you probably will continue to have high water and electric bills. Your wife washing unworn outfits is something you might want to discuss, though. Do you have any old bills from months where you went away for a week or two for comparison? How different are they? You would expect them to be lower in any event, but by how much? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/52 "2019-05-30T18:39:49Z")
I would put the hallway lights on the short list for projects–check with your power company, they offer deep discounts on LED bulbs. That project should pay for itself within 3 months. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/53 "2019-05-30T19:19:34Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > What’s with you people? The OP wanted _novel_ theories. > > Obviously, he has an incompetent [Maxwell’s demon.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxwell%27s_demon) Or _Little Women_ running around switching on appliances while no one is watching. As to the dryer and dish washer running daily in a 2-person household, I’d say that is above average for sure. In my 3 adult household we run the dishwasher only when full, about 3-4 times per week depending on how much/what we cook at home. The washer and dryer run about the same, 3-4 times per week. The dryer takes, on average, about an hour per large load, so I’m guessing your wife is doing 2 large loads per day for 2 people :eek:. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/54 "2019-05-30T21:22:51Z")
Novel theory: Your wife has a second, secret family living in the attic. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528/55 "2019-05-30T21:35:42Z")
> [@TSBG](#): > > Novel theory: Your wife has a second, secret family living in the attic. Move them to the basement and you won’t need so much AC. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-any-novel-theories-on-why-my-utility-bills-are-so-high/834528.md?page=2)