Brownfarang

It was the people from the electric company who did our checks as part of their visit. The wife spoke to them and they went through checking the items one by one.

Hmmm... they told me they can't check inside and I would have to get somebody to do that.

Well, somebody from the electric company showed up as soon as I posted that. They checked the meter and somebody from the office just called me. Everything's fine outside. Meter's working, no problems with cables/connections. I'm wondering if it can be connected to the breaker problem I had this past month. The breakers kept going off (I'm guessing because there was too much power being used) and it turned out I had a short in one of the connections/lights. Once somebody cut off the connection to that particular cable, the breakers were fine. Could that be the reason somehow that power consumption went up? I know I'm reaching for straws here, but it'd be nice to figure out how to pay less next month!

I am no electrician but if you had a short to the ceiling metal work frame, in other words it was receiving current, then it costs you money.

If that's the case, the next bill should be lower, but I don't want to wait a whole month to verify that just in case I'm wrong (and the next bill is equally high). Maybe have somebody come in and check everything to see if something is consuming too much electricity (like the fridge Farma mentioned).

Well, somebody from the electric company showed up as soon as I posted that. They checked the meter and somebody from the office just called me. Everything's fine outside. Meter's working, no problems with cables/connections. I'm wondering if it can be connected to the breaker problem I had this past month. The breakers kept going off (I'm guessing because there was too much power being used) and it turned out I had a short in one of the connections/lights. Once somebody cut off the connection to that particular cable, the breakers were fine. Could that be the reason somehow that power consumption went up? I know I'm reaching for straws here, but it'd be nice to figure out how to pay less next month!

I just came back from the electric company and they were a bit shocked at my bill. They couldn't believe I don't have a swimming pool or 3 AC running at all times. So yeah, you know it's bad when the electric company is surprised. They're sending somebody tomorrow to check my meter and the cables/connection outside. Their "tomorrow" didn't sound very convincing, so I might need to go back and nudge them again.

I don't mind paying the 4500 I paid in the old house if it means I can run the AC all day and night. But 5500 for half a day of air is ridiculous.

I am running 2 aircons each night, all night, (9000 and 18000 BTU), in the bedrooms and another 18,000 BTU unit during the day in the living room as required. In addition, the bedroom aircons are often on for an hour or two each afternoon for the family siesta! I also have a hot water heater for hot showers, a washing machine, water pumps, refridgerator and two TVs running as and when, not to mention 6 or 7 outdoor lights each evening. We do not exercise the on/off switch as much as we could. Total bill last month 3,800 THB. Sounds like you have problems!

Thanks. I thought so. I'm going to the electric company right now to ask for somebody to come over and do... something.

Do you have any old electrical appliances that are inefficient such as old A/C units, refrigerators etc.? How about old pumps for your water supply? etc. etc.

I don't think so. This is a pretty new house. It belongs to a farang, who used it only a couple of months a year, when he came for vacation. I'm the first tenant. The past month, I did have some trouble with one breaker (that corresponds to half the living room). It would just shut off and I would have to switch it on again, sometimes 4-5 times a night, though not every day. Eventually, the whole thing went out with a bang and I had to bring somebody in to repair it. It's been working fine since then.

Out of curiosity, does this sound like a normal bill for running the AC half of the day (and a fan the rest of the time)? Am I crazy in thinking the bill is too big?

i have 2 aircons, 1 is constantly on at night, and the other aircon in the living room is used part - time . i have many electrical items , and also have alot of lights that are always on a night, my electric bill came from the month and it was 1700 THB

Ok, so something's wrong in my house. I'm paying three times that amount and I think I'm using less electricity than you are.

Out of curiosity, does this sound like a normal bill for running the AC half of the day (and a fan the rest of the time)? Am I crazy in thinking the bill is too big?

ask the electric company to check the accuracy of the meter

for 500 baht they will come and install a brand new meter in tandem with yours

if the readings are different after 24 hours they will change your meter and refund the 500 baht

if they are the same, you know your meter is accurate but goodbye 500 baht.......

Thanks. That sounds like a good idea. I'll stop by their local office today and ask (I'm in Hua Hin, but I'm assuming it's the same thing everywhere).

No, I have a meter outside. Bill comes from the city.

I have no neighbors on one side and the house on the other side is empty.

Ok, so I lived in a house for a month and had the AC running 24/7. During the day, I ran the one in the living run non-stop. At night, I turned that off and turned on the one in the bedroom. Seriously, never turned them off. My electricity bill was 4500 baht. Then I moved to a different house. For some reason, the house is cooler, so I use the AC only during the day. At night, I turn it off and use a ceiling fan in the bedroom. First month in the new house, I get an electricity bill of 4,000. I was expecting bigger savings but oh well. Second month, my electricity bill is 5,500 baht. I'm still not using the AC at night, so what gives? This seems like a huge bill. It's a lot more than the one at my old house, even though I only use the AC half of the time. Something's not right. I do have a fish pond here with a filter and a pump running, but that can't be it. I mean, it doesn't even make sense that the new bill is 1500 baht more than last month, since nothing has changed.

Could electricity be "leaking" or something like that? The amounts don't make any sense.

Thanks Aurelius

I have the basic savings account at Kasikorn bank that everybody here mentions opening. Somebody in the US needs to send me some money as a transfer. Can he send the money in dollars and Kasikorn does the conversion here? If he chooses to send baht instead of dollars, the exchange price he gets from his bank in the US is horrible and I end up losing almost $60 (on top of the $45 he has to pay for the transfer). I believe my account here is in baht, so can I accept a transfer made in dollars?