A request for all those posting about the high cost of their energy bills...

Submitted by NET42 t3_10lt4vu in RhodeIsland

It seems almost on a daily basis someone is posting about the high cost of their energy bills. Usually with questions for the community asking why their bill jumped so high. Usually these posts lack ANY useful information to actually help answer the question or figure out what is going on. Unless you're just posting to complain about the cost, here are some helpful things to include:

What was your electric utilization in kWh the prior month?

What was your electric consumption in kWh during the same month in the prior YEAR?

What is your energy source for your heat, hot water, and cooking appliances?

Do you live in a single-family home or a multi-family apartment?

Is it a single-family home converted to multiple apartments or a large apartment building?

How old is the building and what is your square footage?

Answers to these questions can actually help others help YOU. As an example; a co-worker had a similar issue a few years ago. They live in a multi-family apartment that was originally a single-family home. While each apartment is metered separately, it turned out that there was an outlet in the basement where all the hot water heaters reside that was tied to THEIR meter. The landlord plugged in a space heater to keep the pipes from freezing over the winter causing a large jump in the electric bill. Other factors can also play a role, such as a potentially failing hot water heater or bad pressure switch on a well pump causing it to run constantly.

The prices of energy surely have gone up to the point of creating financial hardship for a lot of people in the state. I feel bad for everyone that is living through those types of issues. There's no way to help in any real manner without providing information that could help the this community help YOU....

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j5zcpwb wrote

THINKING OF MOVING TO RHODE ISLAND WHERE CAN I GET AN ITALIAN SUB AND WHY IS ELECTRICITY SO EXPENSIVE

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HugoWullAMA t1_j5zr55e wrote

  1. Riccottis

  2. We’re all manifesting utter misery via all the Riccottis

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Blubomberikam t1_j5yrl3i wrote

The bills high because they're charging a fucking ton for it and there was a rate hike. I highly doubt suddenly people who have lived in a cold state don't understand using more this month means a higher bill than last.

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Ph886 t1_j5yvwj2 wrote

There are A LOT of new people here (first/new house, first/new apartment), which is why OPs post is useful. Just because you’ve lived in a cold state doesn’t necessarily mean you know or understand utility billing. I do understand that there are those that are just venting about the increased costs as well.

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AlexBDawg t1_j60f8dt wrote

I honestly feel like 99% of these posts are just bitching about it being expensive, not actually looking for advice.

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Ph886 t1_j60fwxf wrote

Yeah, pretty much it’s just venting. May need a new “tag” that relates to “rant/vent” that way it can be easily determined/skipped/filtered.

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GlotzbachsToast t1_j5ywxfe wrote

Yeah, I think a lot of the shock comes from the fact that suddenly their rate is higher when they haven’t changed any of their normal habits! Doesn’t mean they aren’t willing to make changes to save electricity (for example, I used to leave the above-stove light on at night as a nightlight and now I don’t).

Your point about making sure there isn’t some major factor using energy that didn’t exist before is a good suggestion, but I think most people are just surprised by how much their costs have changed when everything else has been a constant.

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Blubomberikam t1_j5z5p7v wrote

It feels like climate change and using a metal straw. Sure you can make improvements, but when 98% of all emissions are corporate, making small changes is putting the onus on the home owner instead of predatory rate hikes and 2 types of delivery charges.

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GlotzbachsToast t1_j5z7z51 wrote

Oh 100%, at least in this case with some modifications you can slightly lower your monthly bill (by like, pennies) so at least there’s SOME impact to be felt. We’re all fucked, though lol

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_CaesarAugustus_ t1_j601lg5 wrote

This is exactly it. It’s our burden to recycle. Not the conglomerates and corporations that waste insane amounts of non-renewable resources.

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Mortal-Cynical-42 t1_j5zzxpp wrote

Why take a rational approach to this when I could just complain on the internet?

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mdurg68 t1_j5ztcg3 wrote

$ kWh $/kWh
Jan-22 $144.15 586 0.245989761

Feb-22 $141.89 581 0.244216867

Mar-22 $142.11 580 0.245017241

Apr-22 $139.42 599 0.232754591

May-22 $151.81 699 0.217181688

Jun-22 $291.92 1386 0.210620491

Jul-22 $342.38 1637 0.209150886

Aug-22 $419.14 2019 0.207597821

Sep-22 $271.75 1293 0.210170147

Oct-22 $247.63 964 0.256877593

Nov-22 $173.08 558 0.310179211

Dec-22 $136.53 449 0.304075724

2200 sq ft new house, propane heat, water and stove. 2 adults no children. Summer running pool pump and A/C. You can see the spike during the heat wave. I just straight up divided the total price by kWh used because you are still paying those fees...

Installing solar doesn't pay off for me unless I'm there 8-9 years at least.

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Yak54RC t1_j616jvw wrote

So your electricity didn’t go up 500 percent like everyone else here lol.

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hobomom t1_j5zcsn0 wrote

Hey does anyone know if there is a 1-1 correspondence between breaker box and meter? I know which one is my breaker box, I know which one is my meter. I think my bill is higher than it should be, so if I turn off the master breaker in my box, should I expect my meter to stop spinning?

I'm concerned that something in the building is tied to my meter than should not be and I am trying to debug it.

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NET42 OP t1_j5zdmej wrote

There should be. If you throw your main breaker, your meter should stop running. But it's also possible that another breaker in your box is potentially feeding outlets or lights in a common area that it shouldn't be.

If you turn off the main breaker at night and the front lights to the building turn off at the same time, that would be a clear sign that those lights are being paid for by you.

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degggendorf t1_j5zz9ym wrote

Yes. There should be nothing between the meter and the primary breaker panel.

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darekta t1_j5zszrk wrote

Thanks for this. Good luck everyone

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Coincel_pro t1_j5z7wyr wrote

Yep usage volume vs volume (ie total kwh for a set billing period) is the way to compare.

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NET42 OP t1_j5zafuc wrote

A few years ago I completely automated my house using HomeAssistant. Using that, I am able to track kWh over time on an almost per-outlet basis. I also use an Ambient Weather system outside that lets me track temperature and other environmentals. With enough data I was able to figure out where I could save substantial amounts of electricity (and oil for heat) to more than pay for my investment in getting it all set up. With the current electric rates I'm saving over $600/yr based on previous utilization. Even greater savings on the cost of oil heat.

To deal with the changes in climate, I also use weekly average/mean temperatures to find appropriate months to compare the data to. IE: January of this year may be more comparable to October two years ago than January of 2022.

While I hate these increases on my electric bill and do believe something needs to be done to reign in this monopolistic power company, yelling and waving my arms in the air isn't going to make next month's bill any cheaper...

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Coincel_pro t1_j5zsseq wrote

I also added a solar array + battery (last year) and have been using HomeAssistant for a few years.

You said it yourself, monopolistic power company. My anger is on behalf of those who cannot do anything but eat shit over rate hikes and have very few / no options but to do so. I (and probably you) have had the luxury to spend money up front to get ahead of things like this and save.

It all falls back into the "it's expensive to be poor" trap. It sucks. Holding local politicians accountable for appointments to oversight positions etc and those who vote down new generation facilities or methods are also part of the process and something I've invested a lot of time in since moving to RI.

​

e: what do you use to capture current data for your HA system? I've not done anything for usage monitoring just a lot of presence based and time based automation / made a few control kiosks etc from old tablets and such.

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NET42 OP t1_j5zukih wrote

I looked into putting solar on my house this past summer, but I have some trees that need to get removed. I also have some electrical work that will need to be done to realize all the benefits of solar, and switch from oil heat/hot water to a heat-pump based system. So for the time being, solar is being put off until I get these other things taken care of.

I'm angry about the rate hikes as well. I don't know how they expect a lot of people to afford it. I'm also not confident that the programs available to assist people are being leveraged to the extent that they could be, or reaching the maximum number of people that need that help. I also wholeheartedly agree with holding local politicians accountable. There have been efforts to build some new solar farms in Richmond over the past couple years, but a lot of people seem dead-set against it. During campaign season last fall I received a few visits from aspiring politicians and that was usually one of the topics I brought up. I got some sympathetic responses, but I'm not sure how sincere they all were to embracing things like solar and wind.

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Coincel_pro t1_j6194fu wrote

Ughhh yes “keep Richmond rural / say no to solar” everywhere. Classic nimby shitlib nonsense imo. Vote down renewable local generation then cry when the power grid is still 90% dependent on gas. Thanks guys. (Not cool with razing forests for solar arrays tho, but using brown fields should be a given)

FWIW we have oil heat with a wood stove backup. The solar was still worth it. Basically the monthly finance cost for 7 years to pay off the array is the same as our average monthly electric bill was pre rate hike. With the array lifetime of 25-30 yrs and add the 30% Fed tax credit to the installation cost and it’s a no brainer especially if you can time it with when you need a roof replacement. That is if your tree removal gives you enough light exposure.

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burritos0504 t1_j5zlky8 wrote

This is really helpful! I compared with my sister and bro in law that live in MA and he asked these same questions. After looking at my bill he said "You know our paying 44 cents per KWH?" I said yes and that we turned downtown he thermostat and he's like "that's not going to help much when you can go with a different supplier and pay 17 cents per KWH" my mind. Blown. I didn't know there were so many supplier options. I just had a random person come to my house last summer and say "wanna sign up to be part of a solar grid community? It's cheaper than your current rate" (at the time it was like 5 cents cheaper) and I was like sure pffft why not?! I didn't know how easy it was to switch once the rates started to skyrocket would love to see my bill cut in half from 430$ this last month jeeze.

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luciferin t1_j602a47 wrote

I am not aware of a single supplier that is less expensive that RI Energy. Anyone I have seen that offers a lower rate has it as an introductory rate.

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User0098237490 t1_j5ytxit wrote

The people posting about energy prices here don’t want to look at shit like this with logic and reason. They just want to bitch, moan and complain about it.

The mods should ban those kinds of posts. I’m so sick and tired of seeing them every day.

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fenix1230 t1_j5z4q0g wrote

I disagree. Seeing more gives an indication that it's not just one person, or not just my house. If you don't want to see them, you could just not go to this subreddit.

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User0098237490 t1_j5z6bbl wrote

We all live in the same state and we all got our energy prices raised at an equal rate. Stop acting like energy price increases are made on a person-to-person basis.

Clearly bitching about it all the time isn’t bringing the prices down so suck it up and deal with it like we all have to.

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whatsaphoto t1_j5zp1p5 wrote

Sheesh bud, some people just want to bitch and moan in an effort to release the stress of paying for this shit. It's perfectly natural and human to do so. If it's this much of an inconvenience for you, close the app for a while and take a breath of fresh air.

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User0098237490 t1_j5zq36s wrote

I have no problem with people doing that, outloud, or to themselves. No one else gives a damn, especially if we’re all dealing with this shit.

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fenix1230 t1_j600ckz wrote

Not everyone here has lived here for a long time, or has other people they know. If you want to suck it up, stop commenting and deal with it.

You're telling everyone to placate you, when you can placate yourself.

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User0098237490 t1_j601lqb wrote

So how many posts with people bitching about it will it take for them to understand it then? It’s literally been talked about it here consistently since November, including on the news.

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fenix1230 t1_j60iik1 wrote

Again, you could just not comment. How much are you going to complain?

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User0098237490 t1_j60iyrm wrote

Not bright enough to see irony of you getting mad at me for complaining I take it…

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fenix1230 t1_j60y3kj wrote

Lol, at this point I'm just pointing out the hypocrisy of you.

It's basically the pot calling the kettle black, but at least I realize it.

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A_Ghost___Probably t1_j60bt2q wrote

Shouldn't complain about things like corporate profits and corruption too then? Clearly "bitching" isn't fixing it so let's just suck it up.

Hey police brutality too, just suck it up. Amiright.

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User0098237490 t1_j60cm6l wrote

Yes, stop bitching & suck it up or go do something to try and change it.

People already tried protesting the rise in energy prices, it did nothing, bitching about it does nothing, so now it’s time to stfu about it and deal with it.

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A_Ghost___Probably t1_j60qa9g wrote

And im assuming discussion isn't a step to changing something to you? Are you annoyed at people posting about this again and again or are you annoyed at how reddit pretty much encourages people to make new threads?

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User0098237490 t1_j60ulc3 wrote

It’s not a lively discussion talking about potential solutions to the problem, it’s just people bitching about it.

I’m more pissed that the moderators allow the same bullshit to be posted over and over again filling up the sub with a bunch of people either bitching about the drivers in this state or about the energy price increases.

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Sarcofaygo t1_j61myxs wrote

So true. Everyone should bottle up their resentment until they are brimming with seething rage oozing out of their pores and stop complaining. That way they can be as cool and level headed as you! =) /s

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User0098237490 t1_j61nk64 wrote

Jesus people on Reddit are dumb.

As if angrily writing a Reddit post in the RI subreddit about some bullshit is the only way to let out your anger and resentment.

You’re a dope.

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Sarcofaygo t1_j61owek wrote

Why are you so mad tho

Why can't you just turn off the phone

Nobody is forcing you to read this thread or really any other thread, let alone respond

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