How to slow down your electric meter.

I fully expect every derogatory comment anyone wants to shoot off at me....

But in one year our power company has had 4 rate hikes. The one last month was 13%. The others were 11%, 8% and 10%.

I just got my electric bill and you know how it shows the bars related to the previous year?

I used almost 1/4 LESS electricity this past month and my bill is over $100 more.

These are the facts:

1. I am single. I keep my therm at 83 when I'm not here and 78 when I am (not exactly comfortable).
2. I keep all computers, printers, tv's, etc. turned OFF when I'm not using them. Someone recently suggested that's not good enough: You need to actually unplug everything when you're not using them (lamps which aren't turned on, etc) in order to make a significance.

3. I wash two loads of clothes a week (at most) and installed a cute little 1950 clothes pole in my backyard to dry them with clothes-pins.

4. Since I live by myself I don't cook except for maybe twice a month. The rest of the time I eat sandwiches and fruit.

5. In each of my overhead lights I have 2 bulbs instead of the 3 allotted. And they're 60 watt instead of 100.

6. I run the dishwasher (mainly glassware) once every two weeks.

I'm sure there are other things (keeping drapes shut, water heater temp-, fridge temp, etc) that I'm forgetting to tell you but you get the point.

This bill was $383 for a 1500 sq ft house. When Cap and trade kicks in I have no idea what I'll do.

Until now I have lived a very honest life but I'm SICK of this shit!

I went to a swap meet over the weekend and they had this thing you could buy that would reduce your energy bill by 25%-40%. It's called plug and save.

Then I started googling about how years ago people used to put sand bags on their meter to slow the rotation..

Then something about magnets.

I do NOT want to do this but I am paying 50% of my take home to the electric company and it keeps getting worse every 3 months when they have another rate hike.

Does ANYONE know what I can do to reduce my electric meter?

They are RAPING us and there's nothing that appears that we can do anything about it.

I m a VERY frugal person. I don't even have cable TV or a cell phone. But by the time I pay the water, electricity, phone and trash pick up each month I seriously have very little to even buy food and gasoline with. I haven't bought a new piece of clothing or "luxury" item for over 3 years.

This just isn't right.

If anyone could suggest some things I would be truly grateful.

Miggy
(PS I can't keep the windows open at night because someone would break in- not that it matters- it's still 140 degrees here at night anyway)




what the fuck is wrong with you 83 fuckin degree's. try 65 and you will have one hell of a savings. 83 degrees...that is not even healthy for you. try the cooler temp and you will be much better off. you get chilly put on some sweats. 83 degrees. omfg....

drill a tiny hole in the bottom of the meter and stick a pin in it to stop the wheel going round be careful not to knock it off :)

cool

They check.Dont do this.Could be a felony.

Anything with a resistor sucks energy. Here are the top ones.
Toaster, toaster oven, bathroom heat light, electric stove, electric water heater, ceiling or floor electric heat, and a large or malfunctioning refrigerator.
Light bulb use is negligible. I am sick of people telling people this light bulb crap. Test it yourself.
Test your meter if you can, turn everything off and have a pal turn them on one at a time. It will be a lesson you will always remember.
I understand living on the edge, been doing it all my life and I am now an expert at it. It gets to you sometimes, especially when people do not understand how it feels to deny yourself everything EVERY day, EVERY week, EVERY month, EVERY year, with no end in sight. It is very tiring.
Bless you for doing all you can and for not giving up. Love to you. I don't fault you.

I would like to thank you all for your kind responses.

I feel bad that I even addressed this but I've lived here (Vegas) 7 years and I don't see it EVER changing....

Every 3 months they go before the commission and are approved another rate hike between the 8-13% range. That's quite a bit for a year.

But the water Authority is just as bad. Though I have green grass year round, after living here about 2 years I went out there and asked why the hell my bills were $100 a month.

Now keep in mind: By working in a casino, I ate one very filling meal at work each evening so I didn't have to cook. I was issued three dry-cleaned uniforms so I only had to wash a load of clothes a week (towels, sheets, etc.)> Basically I showered and brushed my teeth each day. They were quick to tell me (I live in the historic district) that I must have some kind of leaking going on under my house, in the sprinkler system, etc.

So a neighbor recommended an honest plumber. He took his equipment all over the premises and came back, swearing to me that there were no leaks. OK. That costs $100.

Then another neighbor recommended his sprinkler guy and the guy came over, went all OVER the place and said, "Lady, you DON'T have any leaks!" Another $100.

A few days later I decided to slip into a neighborhood bar and have a glass of wine before going home to deal with this house that I KNOW is going to kill me.

I started conversing with a 60-70 year old man and found out he'd been a plumber his whole life in Vegas. We talked about my problem and since he lived nearby he told me he'd stop by in the morning.

He looked around my 1949 house and said:

This is what I want you to do. After you shower and leave for work tonight, turn this outside valve off (on the front of the house). When you wake up in the morning look around the neighborhood and see if there are any "plumbing" trucks around.

He said that back in that time of construction it was common for two or three houses to be hooked up to ONE water line (Mom, Dad, kids in one house- Grandparents in another- and maybe an Aunt and Uncle in the other.)

He said if I didn't see anything to call the water Dept and DEMAND a new meter because he said he could tell the one I had was from 1949.

After not seeing any plumbing trucks I went to the water dept and it was like pulling TEETH to get a new meter. I bet I talked to a dozen people, each saying, "Oh, No!!!!! You've got the best quality out there. I wish I had one of those at MY house!"

I wouldn't budge. The next day they came back and do you know for the past 6 years years my water bill has NEVER been over $50 like the first 24 months I lived here when they were $100?

I knew they'd never credit my account but I wanted them to know that I KNEW what was what!

Now, for all I know the electric meter is the same. I just went and stuck out two magnets to the outside of the glass but I've got a feeling I'm not putting them in the right spot.

Yes, I know it's illegal. Send Obama the bill. Or take my $1200 credit back from the Water Authority that I'LL NEVER SEE AGAIN.

My thermostat has been set to 82 here all day and it only kicked on for about 15 minute4s this afternoon. I've only had this laptop and my office light on.

Maybe I should start taking daily meter readings.

Would THAT help?????

BTW, because Vegas has these 6-7 foot sound walls around each of our homes the readers simply have to click over the fence. In my case, my meter is located on the other side of two buildings.

Also, I have a street lamp sitting on my property. Do you think I have to pay for that for the whole neighborhood?

Thanks again for all of your kinds advice.

Miggy

Change all your light bulbs to energy saving bulbs like so [link to mattsimmsy.files.wordpress.com] . You will see a drop in your bill in a month .

My friend dug under the meter,tapped in before the meter 2 ft underground.His hot tub electricity is free.He also has his AC units power switchable to the tapped electricity.Ran all older components in case he ever got cought he could say it was from the previous owner(who died).YOU HAVE TO BE AN ELECTRICIAN TO DO THIS.IT IS DANGEROUS.

I fully expect every derogatory comment anyone wants to shoot off at me....

But in one year our power company has had 4 rate hikes. The one last month was 13%. The others were 11%, 8% and 10%.

I just got my electric bill and you know how it shows the bars related to the previous year?

I used almost 1/4 LESS electricity this past month and my bill is over $100 more.

These are the facts:

1. I am single. I keep my therm at 83 when I'm not here and 78 when I am (not exactly comfortable).

2. I keep all computers, printers, tv's, etc. turned OFF when I'm not using them. Someone recently suggested that's not good enough: You need to actually unplug everything when you're not using them (lamps which aren't turned on, etc) in order to make a significance.

3. I wash two loads of clothes a week (at most) and installed a cute little 1950 clothes pole in my backyard to dry them with clothes-pins.

4. Since I live by myself I don't cook except for maybe twice a month. The rest of the time I eat sandwiches and fruit.

5. In each of my overhead lights I have 2 bulbs instead of the 3 allotted. And they're 60 watt instead of 100.

6. I run the dishwasher (mainly glassware) once every two weeks.

I'm sure there are other things (keeping drapes shut, water heater temp-, fridge temp, etc) that I'm forgetting to tell you but you get the point.

This bill was $383 for a 1500 sq ft house. When Cap and trade kicks in I have no idea what I'll do.

Until now I have lived a very honest life but I'm SICK of this shit!

I went to a swap meet over the weekend and they had this thing you could buy that would reduce your energy bill by 25%-40%. It's called plug and save.

Then I started googling about how years ago people used to put sand bags on their meter to slow the rotation..

Then something about magnets.

I do NOT want to do this but I am paying 50% of my take home to the electric company and it keeps getting worse every 3 months when they have another rate hike.

Does ANYONE know what I can do to reduce my electric meter?

They are RAPING us and there's nothing that appears that we can do anything about it.

I m a VERY frugal person. I don't even have cable TV or a cell phone. But by the time I pay the water, electricity, phone and trash pick up each month I seriously have very little to even buy food and gasoline with. I haven't bought a new piece of clothing or "luxury" item for over 3 years.

This just isn't right.

If anyone could suggest some things I would be truly grateful.

Miggy
(PS I can't keep the windows open at night because someone would break in- not that it matters- it's still 140 degrees here at night anyway)

Run an extension cord from your neighbors house,and branch it throughout your home.

Change all your light bulbs to energy saving bulbs like so [link to mattsimmsy.files.wordpress.com] . You will see a drop in your bill in a month .

I wonder if they insulated a Vegas home in 1949? Have you checked the insulation in the attic? Or updated the windows or weather-striping around your doors?

Don't even get me started on this!!! We have been having disputes with our power company for the past year.

We've had them come out and test the meter (by an independent firm), we've had electricians come out to check our home, we've done online calculations to find estimates for what we are using. Our bills still don't seem to fit our usage. We sacked our last energy company and switched. We are still getting high bills.

The electrician was the most helpful. We turned off all circuits. Turned them on one by one and tested items on that circuit. We found that the downlights used the most juice. Even though they are halogen downlights - they made that thing spin like crazy. We ended up buying floor / table lamps and leave the downlights off. Gives a nicer ambiance anyway.

However, even having done all that - we are still getting high bills. I'm not sure what the source is. I'm pretty sick of checking into it - but can't afford these high bills either.

The guy who remodelled this house before we bought it was an electrician. I'm sure that there is something f'ed up with it. Having seen some of his handy work - I'm not sure that I trust what he's done.

Any suggestions for where else we should turn? Should we get ANOTHER electrician out to have a look? What should we be having them check?

You need to all the electricity company and have them physically come out to do a reading, have them replace the meter.

No way you should be paying 383 for electricity especially on 1500sq ft.

Earlier this year, I received a $280 elect bill, then the next month it was 340 as I recall. I called the company to complain, requested a meter read, next day I get a call saying there was a mistake in the reading, that there was no reading, the guy did a drive by and estimated the reading based on the previous 2 yrs. True story. My actual bill for the time period?.... $87/mo

Call them, complain, demand they replace the meter.

I knew an old engineer who worked from home /lots of industrial stuff lathes etc /had both single and 3 phase
the residential meter went backwards every time he started up a welder/lathe etc

dude, people will sympathise, but what you're talking about is illegal. The energy companies are another control system sucking us dry.

I won't tell you how to cheat the electric company but I will tell you the two big hot items that drive up the total each month. They are the hot water heater and the refrigerator. Of course an air-conditioner is an obvious hot item but the other two are less well known. Turning them both off will easily drop your bill by 20% or more. I wish you well on your quest for affordable energy.