Electric Bill Increasing By The Month

[StevieDee]

Unsure why but our electric bill has increased by approximately 50% over the past 5 months. We are billed direct from the electricity board, (not the owner of the condo), and our lifestyle and usage has not changed at all over this period but our bills are now nearly 4,000 a month as opposed to 2,500 a few months back. We have not added any extra appliances nor do we use others more than usual. Has anyone else ever had this happen?

[robblok]

Hotter temperatures mean more aircon use... i always see the same around these months.

[dddave]

Probably higher air-con use as mentioned above but never a bad thing to ask that your meter be checked. I once had an unusually high bill for two consecutive months and asked that the meter be checked. Turned out to be defective and power company replaced it and credited my account based on past average.

[arfurcrown]

The increases could be due to a number of reasons. You should get the Electricity authority to check your meter to see if any other''connections'' have been made and to check if the meter is running correctly.

A simple easy personal check you can do is to turn of all electrical equipment but not the main power supply and check to see if the meter is sill or working.

Time and patience is needed as sometimes a small power consuming item will show as a very slow meter disc rotation. If that happens it may be that someone has tapped into your supply , not unknown here either.We had an incident like that some years back due to a neighbor hooking up to our supply and stealing our power,The all items off check showed power use , electric company was called and they dealt with the matter and my wife dealt with the neighbors !!

If all is still with the meter disc,I would suggest that the meter is at fault in its operation.

But as said get the electricity authority to check the meter anyway.

Good luck.

[sfokevin]

Mine has gone from a low of 1,200 in the cool season to ~3,000 in the last couple of months...

You say your usage has not changed?...

Are you sure your Air Conditioners usage has not changed over the last 5 months even though the temp has risen?...

You may have your AC set at the same temperature but the compressor could be running more as the outside temp rises - This is were the high electric use occurs - when the compressor kicks in...

Can you provide the meter readings and usage from your last 5 months bills?...

Edited June 4, 2015 by sfokevin

[StevieDee]

Thanks for the replies. I only use 1 aircon unit in the bedroom which is on from 10.30 - 11.00 p.m to 06.30 - 07.00 a.m each night and have been doing for the past 5 months, no change there. The other appliances such as fan, cooker, washing machine etc get no more use than usual, there's just the 2 of us here and our routines are pretty much cast in stone. I accept that the aircon compressors works more in warmer weather but surely it is impossible for that small extra usage alone to add 1,500 a month to my bill. Yes I can supply bills and meter reading for the past 5 months as I keep them. Thanks again for the replies

[NickJ]

Learn how to read the bills. Not meant as an

insult. most people dont understand them. There may have been rate changes. or an air con needs a service. Or maybe wild air-con parties when you leave for awhile.....

[bartender100]

Have you had your a/c serviced and cleaned recently? every 6 months to keep them in top form

[lopburi3]

You are charged for units (KWH) used - that is the figure you should look at for usage (price can and does vary some depending on what is being used to generate electric during that time period).

A/C is the most power hungry item in most homes and will make a huge difference in the hotter weather now. There will also be a large difference for refrigerator/freezer as they also must overcome much higher ambient temperature (plus more access for ice most likely).

As said make sure your A/C remains clean - and that involves more than weekly cleaning of filters - a six month power cleaning by professionals is well worth the 6-700 baht charge.

[sandyf]

That is quite normal. It peaks June/July and will drop off again as the year progresses. It is not a straight line scenario but a general pattern. This year my April and May was within 50 baht of April and May last year. We go from a low of about 1000 in the winter to a peak of about 2100, usually in July. Average for the year is normally in the order of 1400/month.

Aircon charges will rise with the same usage. The unit works on the difference between outside ambient and the temperature required. The higher the outside temperature the harder the unit has to work. Where we are at the moment, min night time temp is in the order of 31/32.

[Pib]

Sounds right that your electric bill usage has increased by approx 50% of the last 5 months if you use A/C regularly...mine electric bill has too...happens every time this time of year....I'm billed directly from the electric company....has nothing to do with electric rate increase....electric basic rates have remained basically unchanged for at least the last 7 years...just increased KiloWattHour (KWH) usage due to the A/Cs working much harder. Now a dirty A/C indoor or outdoor unit can really reduce its cooling efficiency and very significantly increase its KWH usage....ditto if low on freon. although if low on freon you would probably be experiencing other A/C problems also.

See below for average temp range Fahrenheit (day and night) increase in Bangkok Thailand Jan-Dec...and notice how the temp starts increasing in Jan which was about 5 months ago. Come Aug/Sep you should see your KWH usage start dropping significantly as it cools off, days are getting shorter, cooler nights, etc.

[JAS21]

If it's any help here is my usage for the past few months ... but yes we use the air con for much longer periods in the hot weather ... it's twirling the meter now!

17 Nov 289

17 Dec 204

17 Jan 357 cost 1537thb

17 Feb 318

17 Mar 349

17 Apr 670 cost 3043thb

17 May 624

Actually for what you say the usage is your bills look a little high, cooking by electric bumps up the usage though. As others have said maybe you have a problem with you air con unit .... take your meter reading every day and put them in an excel spreadsheet ... just to see what is happening ... we are using about 26kwhrs a day at present. We don't cook by electric. We are supplied by the MEA and this is their cost calculator http://www.mea.or.th/aboutelectric/index.php?l=en&tid=4&mid=280&pid=116&ctForm=form11 maybe your electric rate is more expensive.

Edited June 4, 2015 by JAS21

[Estrada]

It has been much hotter lately. However, check that the temperature setting on your aircon is set at 25C in living room and 25C to 24C in the bedrooms. If someone drops the setting, even by 1C, this will make a lot of difference to your electricity bill. An Aussie mate was complaining about his electricity bill for his apartment and I found he had it set on 18C which is the temperature he is used to at home. Of course in a cold climate you want heating up to 18C and in a hot climate you need cooling down to 24-25C.

[Pib]

At 18C I expect the A/C outside unit (a.k.a., the condensor/compressor) was running all the time...and the outside unit when running is what eats the great, great majority (around 90-95%) of the A/C system power usage with the inside unit using the remaining 5-10%.

[Tywais]

My electric history below since moving into a new place. When I got my bill for May I was a bit shocked at the sudden jump and thought something was wrong. After putting the chart together I noticed May of last year was nearly identical with only a couple hundred baht difference. Was relieved actually as I know it will start getting cheaper from now. Apparently 2013 the hot season came a little later but cooler then the last two years.

[Crossy]

Ours echoes yours JAS, pretty well a doubling in units consumed from Feb to May. No real surprise as we're in the same general area.

Hot, hot, hot

[technologybytes]

We have a lot of air conditioners, and we use them a lot, but our bills are never anything like 4000 baht.

The thing that makes the biggest difference to our bill is if my wife starts baking bread and making cakes, those electric ovens really use a lot of power.

[CharlieH]

MOVED to Electrical forum

[The Deerhunter]

Aircon usage, Dodgy meter or an extra wire going from your meter to the neighbor's condo. It wouldn't be the first time. Also, look at usage this time last year. If in doubt, turn everything EVERYTHING off & go watch the meter. It should not be moving. Do it in the evening when the neighbors are home. (Cynical me!!)

Edited June 4, 2015 by The Deerhunter

[Tarteso]

Hotter temperatures mean more aircon use... i always see the same around these months.

I have the same question ... you gave me the logical answer.

[thrilled]

Either deal with it ,or turn it off and buy A fan.When it's hot it's hot.The compressor will come on sooner and sooner.

[Altalake]

Our wonderful (Brit) Developer was conning us and doubled all our power bills- the extra went into his pockets.

The only sure way to check it is to get a separate meter and an "expert" to check it - which we did.

"Sorry" was all he said when he was caught.

[catman20]

MOVED to Electrical forum

im not trying to offend you CharlieH but any chance of posting something a little different from MOVE TO ??????????????????

[jacko45k]

If you are in a condo, perhaps some sockets in your neighbours place are wired via your meter.....and they have now realised this and opened a battery charging business.

If you have access to your meter, turn everything off and ensure the little wheel is not turning.

There is also a possibility the meter is defective.......

[BeefSlapper]

Change meter forst step. I did and big change. Was old and faulty

[thaibeachlovers]

Thanks for the replies. I only use 1 aircon unit in the bedroom which is on from 10.30 - 11.00 p.m to 06.30 - 07.00 a.m each night and have been doing for the past 5 months, no change there. The other appliances such as fan, cooker, washing machine etc get no more use than usual, there's just the 2 of us here and our routines are pretty much cast in stone. I accept that the aircon compressors works more in warmer weather but surely it is impossible for that small extra usage alone to add 1,500 a month to my bill. Yes I can supply bills and meter reading for the past 5 months as I keep them. Thanks again for the replies

If your AC is leaking gas I presume it is becoming less effective as time passes and needs to run longer. I think that has happened to mine as it doesn't get as cold as before. As the temperature has risen I have had to use the fan as well or I sweat too much. Didn't have to do that last year.

[bankruatsteve]

Assume you have at least one refrigerator as well? Guess what? That will be cycling on more - or even stay on cycle - during hot weather. Water cooler? Same. It's not just the A/C that consumes more energy during hot times.

[IMHO]

Assume you have at least one refrigerator as well? Guess what? That will be cycling on more - or even stay on cycle - during hot weather. Water cooler? Same. It's not just the A/C that consumes more energy during hot times.

Not only that, if you're like me, the fridge thermostat goes up a notch in the hot season, because every time the door is opened, more hot air transfers in... double whammy.

[thailand49]

As noted, it has been hot.. even if you are using the A/C as normal, have you lower the setting for it to be colder to compensate for the hotter weather. Just bringing your setting from 25 to 18, is going to bring up your bill. Are you cleaning your filters to allow your unit to run better. dirty one's make your unit work harder, cost more too.

When it comes to refrigeration that is costly, I remember when I purchase my house. I had one of those small Thai one's the first month in the house even with 3 A/C which only one was being used at night. My bill average for electric was about 800, as soon as I purchased a large size Refrigerator like in the States, the bill jumped to 1600 Baht.

You noted you live in a Condo, and have your own personal meter being bill directly by the Board... Look at your meter and see the wheel spinning the more you use the faster it spins, Try unplugging items to see if it slows down.. you can compare it with your neighbors. Now do this go to you circuit breaker in your unit and shut everything down and go back outside to look at your meter. If the wheel does not stop you got the cause of your problem. If the wheel does stop or slow down when you start to shut down fixtures most likely the City meter has become defective. And defective that do become but getting the Utility company to come out test and actually admit it needs to be change is another frustrating matter.

Many Thais are not qualified to do electrical and it is even harder to find one who can do it correctly problem solved. I own a small apartment unit that my wife runs. I noticed the bills were running high each month and what we were charging the tenants for their use was not even close to covering the bill. From the beginning I noticed that the meter ran faster than my home meter which was next to each other. Everyone as usual said this is Thailand basically I didn't know what I was talking about. Farang is stupid right? So one day, I shut down the master switch to all the units, went to each individual meters and they all had stopped but went to the City meter it was still running. Problem... Yes.. I called the City to come out and show them the problem.. they said nothing wrong with the City meter.. so after a month I was able to find a Electrician to come out and check.. I cross my finger.. show him everything and he went to the master box. cut the ceiling so he could see all the wiring for the apartment. Hookup the meter etc.. after a hour of moving and cutting some wires he turn everything off and the City meter had stopped and the wheel now was running half the speed. Someone or prior tenant might have done something to the wiring? The charge was 1500 baht for a hours work. I cross my finger a few weeks later when the bill came... my bill went from 4,000 baht to 800 baht.

Good luck..

[lopburi3]

Don Mueang currently

38.7 °C

Feels Like 47 °C