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View Full Version : Electric bills in texas DOUBLED????



slickdawg
7/24/2006, 09:57 PM
What's up with that?????

jk the sooner fan
7/24/2006, 09:57 PM
yes, its called 100 degree heat

Okla-homey
7/24/2006, 09:58 PM
What's up with that?????

Its the ghost of Ken Lay taking his evile Enron revenge.

slickdawg
7/24/2006, 10:00 PM
My inlaws felt lucky, theirs only went up 60%, but people all over appear to be in shock at these huge electric bills. Up to $600 :eek:

Scott D
7/24/2006, 10:02 PM
ahhhh, it topped out at 82 today....currently 79..and dropping..should get down to about 70.

BajaOklahoma
7/24/2006, 10:04 PM
Bane Scott!
Bane Scott!

Wait, we'll get our revenge this winter. So Scott can stay, just barely.

And bill averging is the way to go. And ceiling fans - no matter what those decorators on HGTV say about them.

Penguin
7/24/2006, 10:05 PM
Doubled compared to when?

jrsooner
7/24/2006, 10:06 PM
My inlaws felt lucky, theirs only went up 60%, but people all over appear to be in shock at these huge electric bills. Up to $600 :eek:June/July/August they usually double, then decrease during the winter months.

Scott D
7/24/2006, 10:12 PM
Bane Scott!
Bane Scott!

Wait, we'll get our revenge this winter. So Scott can stay, just barely.

And bill averging is the way to go. And ceiling fans - no matter what those decorators on HGTV say about them.

what revenge? during the summer my gas bill is like $5. :D

jk the sooner fan
7/24/2006, 10:13 PM
and during the winter?

yermom
7/24/2006, 10:13 PM
yeah, mine was getting into the $200s so i did the average thing

now it's like $130 or so every month

and Scott's punishment is living in Detriot ;)

Scott D
7/24/2006, 10:14 PM
and during the winter?

Hard to say, this past year we were on a balanced plan so we were paying like $40/month all year. But according to usage, from December - Feb we probably went up to about $80-95/mo tops.

crawfish
7/24/2006, 10:15 PM
Mine was over $600 last month...and that with leaving the temp at 80 both upstairs and downstairs. :mad: :(

Scott D
7/24/2006, 10:15 PM
yeah, mine was getting into the $200s so i did the average thing

now it's like $130 or so every month

and Scott's punishment is living in Detriot ;)

dead.
to.
me.

jk the sooner fan
7/24/2006, 10:19 PM
mine was a shade under 400, but i dont have an upstairs

i shudder to think what it will be this coming month with the 100+ temps we had

and i've got my thermostat set on 80 - damn a/c runs non stop

jrsooner
7/24/2006, 10:21 PM
mine was a shade under 400, but i dont have an upstairsSame here...we have a single story. But the plus side our gas bill usually lowers drastically in the summer.

SoonerInKCMO
7/24/2006, 10:59 PM
I don't think my monthly utilities (gas & electric combined) have ever topped $100. :)

Ever.

GottaHavePride
7/24/2006, 11:07 PM
I'm in a teeny house and our electric bill was $126 last month.It's been hotter this month. It wouldn't be too bad except for the giant patio door that faces west, and there aren't any trees in the backyard to shade the house.

Harry Beanbag
7/25/2006, 06:12 AM
I live in hell and mine was only $215 last month.

mrowl
7/25/2006, 06:14 AM
$360 for the past 30 days, 2 story, 2 a\c's. Keep them both at 75

etouffee
7/25/2006, 06:19 AM
we're paying 275 to 325 in the summer, also for 2 story, 2 a/c units.

colleyvillesooner
7/25/2006, 08:25 AM
I have a two story town home and it went from $130 to $260 from May to June. I have been keeping it above 82 when we are gone during the day, and don't turn the upstairs back down to 80 until an hour before bed. I am in fear of the new bill.

Howzit
7/25/2006, 08:28 AM
Mine was over $600 last month...and that with leaving the temp at 80 both upstairs and downstairs. :mad: :(

Mine was close. I guess I should be happy to be under $600?

etouffee
7/25/2006, 08:47 AM
turn the upstairs unit off (or up to 90) during the day (assuming like most homes nobody is up there during the day). turn it back on an hour before bedtime to cool it down.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 08:58 AM
I have a two story town home and it went from $130 to $260 from May to June. I have been keeping it above 82 when we are gone during the day, and don't turn the upstairs back down to 80 until an hour before bed. I am in fear of the new bill.

Well just got the new bill and it was actually less at $244. We used 14% less killowatts with an average temp of 4 degrees higher.. I happy mainly because had a freon leak for the first 6-7 days of the billing cycle.

So turning it up over 80 while we are gone and leaving the downstairs like that at night is working.

BoogercountySooner
7/27/2006, 09:09 AM
$220 for new 2600 sf house and 30X50 shop. Just gettin started though.

sooner n houston
7/27/2006, 09:15 AM
$500 here! Last year my highest bill was $700. We bought a new AC unit over the winter so I'm hoping I won't see any higher bills than the current one.

BlondeSoonerGirl
7/27/2006, 09:34 AM
Stop letting your houses get 90+ above during the day people.

And that's all I'm gonna say about it. I learned my lesson last time we talked about this.

Just stop it.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 09:40 AM
Stop letting your houses get 90+ above during the day people.

And that's all I'm gonna say about it. I learned my lesson last time we talked about this.

Just stop it.

how about 82. That cool? :D

BlondeSoonerGirl
7/27/2006, 09:42 AM
Better.

Heh.

ouflak
7/27/2006, 12:17 PM
My electric bill was about $60. Ofcourse, I'm living in England so....

GrapevineSooner
7/27/2006, 12:22 PM
$259.

Next month should be higher, though. :mad:

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 12:26 PM
My house is only 1600sf, I set my stat no higher than 72. My highest elect bill to date was 160 bucks and we are total elect. Those rates you guys are quoting are ridiculous. Oh, BSG, I got your back on the "don't let your house get hot deal". That makes all the difference in the world.

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 12:31 PM
Oh, BSG, I got your back on the "don't let your house get hot deal". That makes all the difference in the world.

You know she's a chick, right?

1stTimeCaller
7/27/2006, 12:42 PM
this guy I work with was complaining about his AC unit never shutting off. He paid a guy to go look at it and see if anything was wrong. The AC guy told him that he shouldn't leave his thermostat at 70 if he wants the unit to shut off.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 01:01 PM
My house is only 1600sf, I set my stat no higher than 72. My highest elect bill to date was 160 bucks and we are total elect. Those rates you guys are quoting are ridiculous. Oh, BSG, I got your back on the "don't let your house get hot deal". That makes all the difference in the world.

Something must be different then between your's and everyone elses.

1stTimeCaller
7/27/2006, 01:06 PM
Stop letting your houses get 90+ above during the day people.

And that's all I'm gonna say about it. I learned my lesson last time we talked about this.

Just stop it.

Serious question here. Other than taking a long time to cool when you get home what's the big problem with letting your house get to 90+?

Humidity in the house?

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 01:08 PM
:pop:

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 01:34 PM
Here we go....

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 01:56 PM
Serious question here. Other than taking a long time to cool when you get home what's the big problem with letting your house get to 90+?

Humidity in the house?



Setting you t-stat at a reasonable setting during the day when you are away does a couple of thing to you advantage. One being keeping all of your walls, furniture, floors etc. cool making it easier to maintain a comfortable environment. Two, it keeps the humidity down in the house, which in turn makes it more comfortable in the home. An A/C SEER rating is determined at 95 degree outdoor ambient, 75 indoor ambient and I believe 45% Rh indoors, running constantly to maintain these parameters. So, if you unit is sized properly for you home, it will run constantly at any ambient over 95 with a stat setting of 75, or any lower than 75 ambient indoor with 95 outdoor ambient. That being said, an A/C is at it’s most efficient operationally when it is running constantly. Starting amperage load is what uses the most energy, not running amperage load. Before and A/C starts to bring the actual temp(sensible heat) down, it must remove humidity(latent heat). If you let your house get more than a few degrees above your comfort level, you are starting off behind the eight ball. I know, all the energy studies show set back stats save so much energy. This is true to an extent, that extent is just a few degrees above your comfort level.

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 01:59 PM
What?

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:00 PM
heh

I guess I just don't see how you set yours to 72 and your bill is only $160 bucks. No one else is even close to that.

1stTimeCaller
7/27/2006, 02:05 PM
What?


I think he just fancied up what I said. I'm not sure though.

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 02:07 PM
heh

I guess I just don't see how you set yours to 72 and your bill is only $160 bucks. No one else is even close to that.
To: [email protected]

Greetings.

A quick reminder...you received a bill from AEP.

Biller Account Number: *******7112
Amount Due: 168.57
Due Date: 07/18/2006


If you have already paid this bill, you don't need to take any
additional action. It is simply a notification that you have received a new
bill.

Please do not reply to this message. Replies to this message are routed
to an unmonitored mailbox. If you have a question about your bill,
please contact AEP directly. For all other questions, please go to
http://www.stockmansbankok.com/ and contact us using the instructions
in your online bill payment service. You can also call us at
xxx-xxx-xxxx.

Thank you.


========================================
Please do not delete this section.
Email_ID:#600267935590726021208_
========================================

My house is pretty small at 1600 sq foot. I lied, this month it was 168 and some change. This is the copy of the e-mail bill.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:09 PM
Dude, I'm not disputing your bill amount.

I'm guessing you have a one story? At 72 degrees, your AC would probably run all day, is that correct?

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 02:10 PM
Single story ranch on a crawl space. I designed the HVAC and sealed the house well. I didn't mean to come off like an a55, I was just verifying. Those other rates jsut sound unbleievble to me.

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 02:12 PM
I haven't received the latest one yet, but I haven't had a bill close to $160 yet. We set it at 74 when we're at home, turn it up to 79 during the day and on the weekends when we're gone.

SoonerInKCMO
7/27/2006, 02:15 PM
Good grief. $500, $600... do you people not have insulation in your houses? Are you storing meat in the guest bedroom?

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:16 PM
Single story ranch on a crawl space. I designed the HVAC and sealed the house well. I didn't mean to come off like an a55, I was just verifying. Those other rates jsut sound unbleievble to me.

How much are you paying per KWH?

BlondeSoonerGirl
7/27/2006, 02:17 PM
Serious question here. Other than taking a long time to cool when you get home what's the big problem with letting your house get to 90+?

Humidity in the house?

Sorry. Had to go to a meeting. And I'll be dumbing it down since Tipton busted out all supa.technical (he's right, though)...

Depending on the efficiency of the unit, it takes much longer/more energy to cool a house down from 90+ degrees (depending on the square footage) than it does to leave it at 80~82 all day (durrr...). The biggest factor not being the air in your house but all the other stuff in it that's also 90 degrees.

Ever open a cabinet door after the house had cooled a bit? The hot air is still in there, right? All the stuff in your house is also 90 degrees. It puts off heat. Your unit has to compensate for that.

It wears your unit out faster, too. It's not a drastic thing but over time, depending on the power of the unit and duration you do this, it can hurt the parts like fan motors, etc.

Now this is all depending on your unit, how big your house is, how much insulation you have, two story vs. single story but it's a good basic rule. We all know if you have a bigger unit in a smaller home it'll cool down faster. But in these days of cookie-cutter homes that are built as cheaply as possible they really ride the line when installing the AC (putting in a 2-ton unit instead of the 2 1/2 it should have). Makes all the difference in the world.

People also don't realize how important a good insulation job is. It is an invisible killer as far as your heating/coling cost. HUGE. Insulate the crap out of your house, people. For reals.

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 02:18 PM
It puts off heat. Your unit has to compensate for that.

Oh, it compensates alright.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:19 PM
Sorry. Had to go to a meeting. And I'll be dumbing it down since Tipton busted out all supa.technical (he's right, though)...

Depending on the efficiency of the unit, it takes much longer/more energy to cool a house down from 90+ degrees (depending on the square footage) than it does to leave it at 80~82 all day (durrr...). The biggest factor not being the air in your house but all the other stuff in it that's also 90 degrees.

Ever open a cabinet door after the house had cooled a bit? The hot air is still in there, right? All the stuff in your house is also 90 degrees. It puts off heat. Your unit has to compensate for that.

It wears your unit out faster, too. It's not a drastic thing but over time, depending on the power of the unit and duration you do this, it can hurt the parts like fan motors, etc.

Now this is all depending on your unit, how big your house is, how much insulation you have, two story vs. single story but it's a good basic rule. We all know if you have a bigger unit in a smaller home it'll cool down faster. But in these days of cookie-cutter homes that are built as cheaply as possible they really ride the line when installing the AC (putting in a 2-ton unit instead of the 2 1/2 it should have). Makes all the difference in the world.

People also don't realize how important a good insulation job is. It is an invisible killer as far as your heating/coling cost. HUGE. Insulate the crap out of your house, people. For reals.

So bascially you are saying it's ok to heat the house up to 90, as long as you leave all the cabinets open. Cool, got it.

BlondeSoonerGirl
7/27/2006, 02:29 PM
I hate all of you.

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 02:29 PM
How much are you paying per KWH?


Average energy cost per KWH = $0.08

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 02:31 PM
I hate all of you.

I think my unit is wearing out over time because it has to work too hard.

Is that possible?

TIA

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:33 PM
Average energy cost per KWH = $0.08

Well, there you go. Mine, and most around here is around $0.12 - $0.15. You used around 2100 KWH. If you had TXU, your bill would be $315.

Beef
7/27/2006, 02:33 PM
My bill is up .03/kwh from last year.:mad:

1stTimeCaller
7/27/2006, 02:34 PM
www.powertochoose.org

YWIA

GrapevineSooner
7/27/2006, 02:36 PM
Average energy cost per KWH = $0.08

There's your answer to his low energy bill, sports fans.

I'd kill to pay 8 cents per Kilowatt hour.

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 02:36 PM
Well, there you go. Mine, and most around here is around $0.12 - $0.15. You used around 2100 KWH. If you had TXU, your bill would be $315.


That just proves Texas Sucks......`

GrapevineSooner
7/27/2006, 02:37 PM
www.powertochoose.org (http://www.powertochoose.org)

YWIA

I discovered that website about two years ago.

Last summer, I switched to Cirro and have not regretted it.

colleyvillesooner
7/27/2006, 02:38 PM
www.powertochoose.org

YWIA

Yeah, I know about that, but the most I'm gonna save is 14% and that comes with a 12 month contract. I live in an apartment (2 story townhouse). Almost all of those are within 1-1.5 cents of mine.

If I had a house, and was in control of the insulation or the air conditioner itself, I would investigate more.

Tiptonsooner
7/27/2006, 02:38 PM
That difference is insane, I would never have dreamed there would be that much difference.

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 02:38 PM
Well, there you go. Mine, and most around here is around $0.12 - $0.15. You used around 2100 KWH. If you had TXU, your bill would be $315.

Yeah, but they don't have state income taxes.

BlondeSoonerGirl
7/27/2006, 02:39 PM
I think my unit is wearing out over time because it has to work too hard.

Is that possible?

TIA

http://www.gogosuperfun.com/funny_pics/redneck_ac.jpg

Mjcpr
7/27/2006, 02:40 PM
It's cool as a cucumber in my Lincoln.

IB4OU2
7/27/2006, 02:41 PM
I think my unit is wearing out over time because it has to work too hard.

Is that possible?

TIA

Weird, I thought you only had a basement?

BoogercountySooner
7/27/2006, 05:03 PM
I think my unit is wearing out over time because it has to work too hard.

Is that possible?

TIA

Probably from to much personall use. Keep an eye on the elbows running to the Unit they will go next!:D