If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re probably dealing with a high utility bill. You wouldn’t normally pay attention to your power bill but now you want to know what’s going on.
You’re not the only one who’s turned suspicious over a utility bill so pay close attention. Here is a list of things to check when you see a spike in the bill.
- You Never Go Out: Hear me out; when you stay indoors for too long, you use a lot more power. You watch a little more TV; cook a little more; leave the lights on a little longer and you charge your appliances a lot more often, and then it all adds up.
Utility bills are bound to spike up during holiday seasons when you’d spend a lot of time indoors with family and during the pandemic as well. You may also notice an increase in the price during certain seasons. For instance, the weather gets a lot hotter during the summer, so you use the air-conditioning a bit longer and when it gets colder in the winter, you use your heater more. All that can give your utility bill a rather significant boost.
- Vampire Appliances Sucking The Power: These are appliances and electronics that stay connected all the time. Appliances like your TV, your kitchen appliances, and the likes consume a good amount of power all the time. Whether these appliances are in use or not, as long as they stay plugged into the power source, they add to your bill.
- Inefficient Appliances: The older the appliance, the less effective it is. That doesn’t mean it consumes less power though. Also, some appliances consume a lot more than others. So if you just bought a new appliance, like a lightbulb, be sure to check the type of bulb you’re getting and the amount of energy it consumes. Getting Led bulbs would be better for you. They use far less power and last way longer than the rest.
To save up on electricity and cut down the utility cost, you may want to check on those vampire sources and unplug them when they’re not in use. You can plug them back in when you’d want to use them but be sure to take them right out after.
Getting new appliances as well to replace the old ones will also prove to help along the way. Just make sure you’re checking how effective they are and how much energy they’d likely consume.
Don’t forget to turn off the lights when the day’s bright. You don’t need the extra lighting in the middle of the day. Invest in a good programmable thermostat that you can customize to suit your needs.
Check if you’ve been billed for the wrong meter reading as well. If your bill isn’t an estimate, then you may have been given someone else’s by accident. Compare your previous meter readings to the new ones and call up your supplier to lay a complaint.
An electrician may be able to help troubleshoot what is causing the high electrical bills. Please call The Electric Connection for more information if you are interested.