7,500 electric bill for the month

[JimTripper]

1 hour ago, JeffersLos said:

It sounds like the office and neighbors have all connected to run through his meter. 

How would they tap in, run a wire from the actual meter, or could it be done from an external line somewhere outside the building?

Edited February 25 by JimTripper

[sometimewoodworker]

2 hours ago, KannikaP said:

Why would you run an a/c at a higher temperature than the air outside?

Humidity control!

[scubascuba3]

28 minutes ago, JimTripper said:

How would they tap in, run a wire from the actual meter, or could it be done from an external line somewhere outside the building?

Wiring can be wrong, my condo kitchen main light seems to be connected to communal electric, so quite possible it's the other way around

[scottiejohn]

Switch everything off at your main fuse box and/or mains switch and see what happens to your meter and the people's electrics around you!

[Puccini]

23 hours ago, James105 said:

 

It's just way too high.  I have a 3 bed condo similar usage to yourself and my bill is averaging 1500-2000 a month.  Unless your bedrooms are the size of football pitches then something seems amiss here.   

 

To what temperature do you cool your rooms?

[richard_smith237]

We lived in a Modern Condo in Bangkok (128sqm) - building had a metal facade and was hot.

Our bill was about 12-16000 Baht per month... (government rates)...  the place just ate electricity, or rather the AC did.

 

We halved our monthly electricity bill moving to a different Condo... 

 

Our current house, also gets very hot... and our bill is about 7-8000 baht per month with 2 AC's on at night (bedrooms), and at least one throughout the day (living room - sometimes the second one in the living room if it gets too hot).

 

Wife puts the temp on to 0 degree's kelvin at night...   and I freeze !!! (its actually set to 22 degs)

I put the temp on to 24 in the day and she says she's freezing !!! 

 

 

Edited February 25 by richard_smith237

[JensenZ]

On 2/24/2024 at 8:42 PM, sometimewoodworker said:

The AC units could be part of the problem however he doesn’t say what the unconditioned temperature is. If he is dropping the temperature from the high 30s low 40s then a drop of 20 degrees will contribute a large part of the problem. But it’s far more likely that there is a vampire using the power. AC units, even big ones are far more efficient than most people think.

 

If he/his GF is taking hour long hot showers that will be eating the power.

Assuming he's not paying for neighbours usage, the aircon units might be malfunctioning. They could be low on gas with the compressors on full-time. This could easily account for a 7500 baht bill.

[sometimewoodworker]

28 minutes ago, JensenZ said:

Assuming he's not paying for neighbours usage, the aircon units might be malfunctioning. They could be low on gas with the compressors on full-time. This could easily account for a 7500 baht bill.

While that is a possibility, don’t forget that the unit is virtually new.

[JensenZ]

3 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

While that is a possibility, don’t forget that the unit is virtually new.

I didn't forget that, but new units can be incorrectly installed, and even faulty. I've had new units installed incorrectly more than once. 

 

Here are some examples of bad installations:

 

1. An outdoor unit was installed in a corner of my balcony, on the floor with the front very close to a wall so it was creating a vortex of hot air that it was sucking in and overheating. The unit needed to be relocated.

 

2. The back of an outdoor unit was installed too close to the mounting wall. I needed to get longer mounting brackets.

 

3. An indoor unit was mounted at the wrong angle, so the drip tray wasn't draining to the exit pipe, but accumulating water which after a while grew a lot of clear slimy algae which blocked the drain pipe.

 

Despite "professional" air-con installers, I'm the one who had to figure out why these units were not operating properly and give them instructions on how to fix the problems.

 

These were all brand-new units.

 

4. Another interesting one... when I first arrived in Thailand many years ago I was getting 5000 plus electric bills in a very small 2-bedroom apartment. That's quite a big bill for 2006. It was a brand new unit the landlord installed for me in one of the bedrooms, a very small bedroom. The problem was that the outdoor unit was installed a very long distance from the room (over 25m). As a result, the compressor was always on to cool the room as it was operating at very low efficiency. It could not lower the room temperature to below 25C and it was a well-sealed room with no direct sunlight. What made it worse was that I couldn't tell if the compressor was on or off as it was too far away. I had a huge fight with my landlord over this.

 

And finally, even if the unit is brand new and installed correctly, there are other considerations:

 

Is the unit powerful enough for the size of the room and the desired room temperature? If not, with the unit turned down to 23C, it might never reach the target temperature making the compressor work full-time. I suspect a lot of units will have trouble reducing the room temperature down to 23C. I keep mine at 26 - 28C but I've never tried to create a refrigerated environment.

 

Is there a considerable cool air leakage under doors? Ceiling fans can increase the leakage of cool air if there are large gaps under the doors.

 

Is the thermostat working correctly? It's always a good idea to keep a digital thermometer in the room. This will tell you quickly if the unit is underperforming.

[JensenZ]

12 hours ago, KannikaP said:

Why would you run an a/c at a higher temperature than the air outside?

If you look at a temperature chart by the hour of your locality (Pattaya for me), you'll note that nearly all of the day the temperature is over 30C, and it only drops to 25/26C for an hour or so before dawn (if you're lucky). My room temperature will remain 29C and over, so 27C is always lower than the room temperature apart from a few days in Dec/Jan. Also note, that with my setting at 27C, the temperature at bed level is 25C because the warm air rises. There's a 2-degree gradient in the room.

[SAFETY FIRST]

10 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

condo kitchen main light seems to be connected to communal electric

Load it up, connect your AC units to it. 

 

Communal electric, the co-owners pay for your cooling. 

 

Edited February 25 by SAFETY FIRST

[scubascuba3]

20 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Load it up, connect your AC units to it. 

 

Communal electric, the co-owners pay for your cooling. 

 

It has crossed my mind, if my bill was 7k maybe i would

[Gottfrid]

On 2/24/2024 at 9:06 PM, JoeyMac said:

 

How do i identify what has gone bad ?

Depending on what you know or not, it will be options. You can measure yourself with a small tool called a multimeter. If no have the knowledge you will have to use a trustworthy electrician. You should also check if someone tapped in to your meter. Surely it can also be a faulty meter, which also must be checked.

Edited February 26 by Gottfrid

[itsari]

On 2/24/2024 at 7:34 PM, Eloquent pilgrim said:

 

agreed ... unit price is not excessive but usage seems to be; meter needs checking and / or recalibrating 

Have the airconditioners checked for how much electricity is being used . Maybe the airconditioners are not so high end anymore.

[KannikaP]

12 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Humidity control!

Then put the a/c on HUMIDITY, no temperature shows.

I tried it in my case, but very small reduction in power consumption, the compressor is still running.

[sometimewoodworker]

2 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

Then put the a/c on HUMIDITY, no temperature shows.

I tried it in my case, but very small reduction in power consumption, the compressor is still running.

Not all AC units work as yours. A couple of mine don’t show a temperature in humidity control mode, another does so, QED I can set a higher than ambient temperature in humidity mode

[JimTripper]

man up on the weather, man

Edited February 26 by JimTripper

[RolandRat]

I think the issue with your high electricity bill is the rate your building charges you for, or else they are scamming you. For me usually, it's around 2,000 baht maximum, use air conditioner as well.

[steven100]

On 2/25/2024 at 12:16 PM, JGon said:

I run my AC's 24/7 at 25C (Except the few nights were the temperatures dropped below 20C or maintenance). Then the usual (Many Fans/TV/Microwave/ Electric Water Heaters/Hairdryer etc..) My bill is usually 2,000-3,000 baht a month. 

 

Electricity usage is one of those things that is basically math. Once you know your unit price, then it's all about how much each appliance uses.  

 

BTW- AC are not the most consuming items in your home... if they mean over time, yes (like me that pretty much use them 24/7) But here are some typical wattages of home appliances:

 

Electric Water Heaters: 3,000-5,000 watts

Range/Oven: 2,000-5,000 watts

Clothes Dryer (Electric): 2,000-5,000 watts

Split unit Air Conditioner: 900-1,200 watts (12,000 BTU)

Window Air Conditioner: 500-1,500 watts

Clothes Washer: 500-1,000 watts

Dishwasher: 1,200-1,500 watts (excluding heating water)

Refrigerator: 100-800 watts

Microwave Oven: 600-1,200 watts

Vacuum Cleaner: 500-1,500 watts

Television (LCD/LED): 50-150 watts

Desktop Computer and Monitor: 100-800 watts

Laptop Computer: 50-100 watts

Ceiling Fan: 15-90 watts

Coffee Maker: 600-1,200 watts

Toaster: 800-1,500 watts

Hair Dryer: 800-1,800 watts

Iron: 1,000-1,800 watts

Blender: 300-1,000 watts

 

But to contribute to the topic... it's simple. Your condo management is somehow "adjusting" consumption for all tenants. 

your post is very detailed and helpful, I salute you for your dedication and contribution.

[JimTripper]

what's going on here is that you moved to a tropical climate and want to sleep in the north pole.

 

a/c on at 23 all night while you sleep and tv 6 hrs a day will run it up that much. all the rest, computer etc, is hogwash.

Edited May 14 by JimTripper