{"id":1245,"date":"2019-01-15T11:58:15","date_gmt":"2019-01-15T16:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.oasiscooling.com\/blog\/?p=1245"},"modified":"2023-02-28T10:51:50","modified_gmt":"2023-02-28T15:51:50","slug":"high-energy-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.oasiscooling.com\/blog\/high-energy-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"What Your High Energy Bill Could Mean"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"What<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the end of the month, and you\u2019re going through your bills. You’ve paid your rent or mortgage, the credit cards, and the water and internet bills. You come at last to the electric bill, only something looks different. This month, the energy bill is through the roof. It\u2019s higher than it\u2019s ever been, and you can\u2019t begin to imagine why. You think back through the last month and can\u2019t remember having the heat cranked up, or leaving the lights on all night. So what\u2019s going on?<\/p>\n

A few possible culprits could be causing an unusually high electric bill. Some of them are fairly harmless, but some of them the may indicate a severe problem lurking beneath the surface. If you happen to notice an anomaly such as this in your electric bill, don\u2019t ignore it. The problem could be more serious than you think.
\n<\/p>\n

Why Is My Energy Bill So High?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To help you narrow down what might be causing your problem, here are some of the top reasons for an unusually high electric bill.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Inefficient Appliances<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Poor House Insulation<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. Old Water Heater<\/a><\/li>\n
  4. Fluctuating Energy Prices<\/a><\/li>\n
  5. You’re Simply Home More Often<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Inefficient Appliances<\/h3>\n

    Are any of the appliances in your home a little past their prime? Before you say no, think carefully about the wide range of appliances in your house \u2014 the washer, dryer, dishwasher, refrigerator or more. If any of these appliances are getting up there in years, they could be at least partially responsible for the spike in your energy bill. This is because of two primary reasons.<\/p>\n

    The first reason is that old machines simply have to work harder. As the parts get old and wear down, they don\u2019t run as smoothly as they used to. Therefore, to do the same job,\u00a0the machine must work extra hard<\/a>\u00a0consuming more energy than normally necessary.<\/p>\n

    The second reason is that machines and appliances were not always designed with efficiency in mind like they are now. Nowadays, every appliance comes with an ENERGY STAR\u00ae\u00a0rating that gives you crucial information about how much electricity the appliance will consume, and thus, engineers design with this in mind. However, this didn\u2019t come about until fairly recently. This means that if you\u2019re hanging on to any gadgets from the 1990s, they could easily be responsible for guzzling electricity in your home.<\/p>\n

    The solution is simple \u2014 it\u2019s time to upgrade your appliances. While there will be an upfront cost to making this upgrade, these appliances will pay for themselves over time in the form of lower electric bills.<\/p>\n

    If replacing your appliances is not an option, you might also try cleaning and maintaining your appliances.<\/a> Clean the individual parts and clear out any dust, dirt and debris that may have accumulated and been responsible for the machine struggling to do its job. Try replacing any broken parts for new ones, and put a fresh spin on your old appliance. This will likely not have the same dramatic effect as purchasing a new appliance, but it may still help.<\/p>\n

    A Poorly Insulated House<\/h3>\n

    \"Reasons
    \nWhile light bulbs, refrigerators and TVs are responsible for a portion of your electric bill, they only represent a tiny fraction of your energy consumption. The vast majority of our electric bills goes towards heating our houses in the winter and cooling them in the summer.<\/p>\n

    It can be challenging to maintain a controlled temperature in a large space like a house or apartment under the best of circumstances. But it becomes even harder when your home isn\u2019t airtight. If the heated or cooled air is leaking out of your house and the air from outside is leaking in, then your climate control has to work twice as hard and is likely spending twice as much energy to achieve the same results.
    \nThe easiest solution to this problem is to take measures to keep doors and windows closed as much as possible. Don\u2019t leave the door open for longer than it takes to go in and out. If you\u2019re feeling overheated in the winter, don\u2019t crack a window. Turn down the heat inside instead.<\/p>\n

    A more long-term solution is to investigate your insulation. If the walls of your home are poorly insulated, the heat or cold could be leeching out through the walls themselves. Fix this problem by giving your home an insulation-overhaul. The better insulated your home is, the easier it will be to control the temperature and the less money you\u2019ll spend doing so.<\/p>\n

    An Overworked Water Heater<\/h3>\n

    Your water heater is another appliance that is responsible for consuming a large portion of your total electricity usage. This will be the case no matter how efficient you work to be. However, based on the way you have things adjusted, it\u2019s possible that you may be wasting more electricity than necessary in this single area.<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s recommended that most water heaters be\u00a0set at 120 degrees Fahrenheit<\/a>. Any lower, and your water may not be hot enough. Any higher and it will become a safety hazard as well as an enormous drain on your energy bill.<\/p>\n

    The logic behind this is simple enough. If you have your heater set up to 140, which many people do, you\u2019re not being efficient with your energy. You don\u2019t need your heater set that high. It won\u2019t do you any extra good, and all you\u2019re doing is wasting additional energy in getting your water to this unnecessarily-high temperature.<\/p>\n

    What will likely happen is that this heat will leak out through the heater, escaping into your basement or wherever else the heater is stored. This means your heater has to work harder to keep the heater at the specified temperature, all the while the heat is steadily leaking out into the outside air.<\/p>\n

    Avoid this problem by targeting a lower temperature. Set your heater at 120 degrees and see the difference in energy savings.<\/p>\n

    Fluctuating Energy Prices<\/h3>\n

    \"Why
    \nUnfortunately, no matter how many steps you take to make sure your home is operating efficiently and you aren\u2019t consuming more energy than necessary, there is one significant factor that you can’t control \u2014 the price of your electricity. Ultimately, that\u2019s up to the electric company, and there isn\u2019t much you can do to change this. That\u2019s the bad news. The good news? There are a few ways to work around this.<\/p>\n

    First, it\u2019s important to understand that\u00a0energy rates fluctuate based in part on demand<\/a>. During the peak of summer, when it\u2019s extremely hot out, electricity might cost more just because there\u2019s such high demand as everyone is looking to cool their homes. The same applies in the dead of winter when everyone is cranking up their heat. If you notice your energy bill is particularly high one month, it\u2019s entirely possible that there has been such a fluctuation in the energy prices lately.
    \nSo how do you deal with this? Your best and simplest bet is to be aware of these high-demand times and decrease your energy consumption during them. For example, it might not be the best idea to run multiple loads of laundry on the hottest or coldest days of the year.<\/p>\n

    In addition to this, you can always try looking for different energy deals. Maybe a different provider will offer you a better deal, or perhaps you can switch to a different plan that will help you save a little extra on your energy bill.<\/p>\n

    You\u2019re Home More<\/h3>\n

    This one isn\u2019t rocket science. We use more electricity when we\u2019re actually home to use it. While certain appliances will run even when you aren\u2019t home, such as the heat or A\/C, refrigerator and water heater, the vast majority of energy-consuming machines in your house stay shut off when you\u2019re not there. This includes light bulbs, electronics, TVs, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers and more.<\/p>\n

    Most of us realize this, and that\u2019s why we make efforts to shut the house down before we leave. We switch off light bulbs, for instance. Many of will even dial down the heating or cooling when we aren\u2019t there. Both of these things help save electricity and save you money.<\/p>\n

    It stands to reason, then, that if you\u2019re home more often, it\u2019s very likely that you\u2019ll consume more energy. The lights will be on, the heating or cooling will be running at full blast, and the rest of your house will be active, too. Someone might be showering, someone else might be running loads of laundry or cooking dinner in the oven, and someone else might be watching TV. All of this energy wouldn\u2019t be used if no one was home.<\/p>\n

    Because of this, if you receive a high energy bill at the end of the month, it might be wise to think back over the past weeks. Have you or your family been home more than normal lately? Maybe you\u2019ve been working from home, or the kids are on a break from school. Maybe it was a holiday, and nobody had to work. Any of these could be the culprit behind your high bill.<\/p>\n

    While this is an explanation, unfortunately, it isn\u2019t much of a solution. This increased energy consumption is a natural result of more people spending more time in your home. However, you can take comfort in knowing that this month was likely an anomaly and that next month, things will be back to normal. And if this does represent a new normal, perhaps if you\u2019ve started to work from home or some other permanent change has come to your house, then there are plenty of energy-saving methods to look into that can help.<\/p>\n

    How to Lower Your Energy Bill<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    When faced with an unusually high bill, we recommend running through the items listed above and checking if any one of these things might be causing the uptick in energy usage.<\/p>\n

    However, just knowing the reason for your high energy bill isn\u2019t enough. Once you know the cause, the next and arguably more important step is figuring out how to lower it again. Here are our top tips to help you do just this.<\/p>\n