# Advice on high monthly electricty prices



## sudo911 (3 May 2011)

Moved to the country a few years back, and have noticed that the electricity prices no matter what I do to try and control it is very expensive.

Compared to our previous house in the city, the only extra items are a water pump (our own well) and a pump in the bio-cycle system for the waste.

Our monthly electricity costs are running at approx €160 per month!

I've heard of an energy audit - anyone aware of this service and who runs it? I need to really get someone it to figure out what is consuming all this electricity once and for all.

Appreciate any advice & help!


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## Slim (4 May 2011)

There is a facility on the ESB website where you can enter your estimated usage and get an idea of why your bills are high. I have a similar problem. I blame multiple light fightings and wall sconces.


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## niceoneted (4 May 2011)

You could buy one of those devices that measures usage so it will tell you fairly quickly. 
switch light bulbs to CFL's or LED's. Switch off rather than leave on standby all appliances that you are not using such as TV/ DVD / Sky box/PC etc. 
Try washing the dishes a few days rather than use the dishwasher. Lots of other things that cna be checked.


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## mradaly01 (4 May 2011)

Hmmm - so I'm not going mad! I'm seeing the same thing.... House is un-occupied most days, 2 adults, 1 child under 5. ESB bills seem high, when I compare them to friends in the city with what I think are similar situation.
Only thing running during the day is the fridge /freezer, water well pump, house alarm, everything else is turned off i.e. not on standby... 

If you find anything that is of use to do the measurements, let me know  Don't want to think of how high the bills would be if we are in the house all day...


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## dahamsta (4 May 2011)

160 is very high. How big is the house?


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## sudo911 (4 May 2011)

House is 2,200sqft - but that's kinda irrelevant in a way isnt it?

I've tried the whole "turning off all unnecessary lights, chargers, turning off sockets" to the extent that my family think I'm a deranged lunatic!

Two adults, a teenager, and twins aged 3. Ok, so wife uses the tumble dryer and washer a fair bit, but it still doesnt seem to add that much to the bill as we tried going for a month with putting the washing on the line.

Been switching as many light bulbs as I can to CFLs. The kitchen has 4 x GU10 50W spots - and these lights would be on a fair bit, but I cannot see them account for a large percentage of the costs. We have some outside floodlights as well, but rarely turn them on.

Our well pump did cause a surge in the electricity costs a year or two back when the motor burned itself out (live in a high-iron area, so damaged the pump).

Question on Night/Day saver electricity. We had this in our old house - but we dont have this in our house in the country? I see the ESB site recommending to use electricity off-peak - but if I dont have a night rate whats the point?

Maybe the best bet is just to get an electricity meter and go around all the devices.... not that practical for measuring the outside well or the bio-cycle system tho!


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## AlbacoreA (4 May 2011)

Pity they can't put some sort of monitor on a fuse board so you can see which loop/circuit is using the most electricity, which help people track down energy guzzling devices and habits. We really have 1950's tech in our houses.


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## dahamsta (4 May 2011)

sudo911 said:


> House is 2,200sqft - but that's kinda irrelevant in a way isnt it?



How is it irrelevant? At the very least you have more bulbs to light. What kind of heating are you using? Any spot heating?

The only real way to monitor your electricity usage is to... monitor it, i.e. buy a monitor like an Owl or a Wattson (google) and watch it go up and down as things go on and off.


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## sudo911 (4 May 2011)

dahamsta said:


> How is it irrelevant? At the very least you have more bulbs to light. What kind of heating are you using? Any spot heating?
> 
> The only real way to monitor your electricity usage is to... monitor it, i.e. buy a monitor like an Owl or a Wattson (google) and watch it go up and down as things go on and off.



Sorry, I meant in turning everything off (including lights etc) it still seems to be guzzling electricity.... 

Maybe someone is tapping my supply???? ;-)


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## DoctorEvil (4 May 2011)

You could try one of these to measure what is using the electricity. No affiliation - just saw these when searching about energy meters.

[broken link removed]


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## dahamsta (5 May 2011)

sudo911 said:


> Maybe someone is tapping my supply???? ;-)



Do you live in a neighbourhood where that seems likely? It's not exactly common. If you believe you have some kind of energy leakage, then call an electrician or the ESB.


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## Shane007 (6 May 2011)

sudo911 said:


> Moved to the country a few years back, and have noticed that the electricity prices no matter what I do to try and control it is very expensive.
> 
> Compared to our previous house in the city, the only extra items are a water pump (our own well) and a pump in the bio-cycle system for the waste.
> 
> ...



I think you may find your waste treatment plant could be the culprit. They can be heavy on electricity but can be adjusted.


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## angela59 (23 May 2011)

Hi Sudo111,

I posted a thread over the weekend - I didn't see your thread till now.  Similar situation - my present bill E234 for March till now, previous bill E256 and previous to that E254 - these are bimonthly.  All bulbs are energy efficient, installed 11 watt bulbs into any recessed lighting, oven A rated, water pump is one to watch make sure that pressure is correct and that it is not running when it shouldn't.  I have a feeling that my problem is my american fridge freezer which is 14 years old and an undercounter fridge which is 18 years old.  House size does factor in - the more space you have the more appliances/lights etc - mine is 2800 sq foot.  Also rural charges are higher than urban.


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