Power Usage Different to Bills

weezlebub on 02/09/2019 - 09:43

Good morning all,

Just looking for some general advice, and yes there are a lot of flaws with my current power situation …

But focusing on the problem at hand:

Living in South Australia (on a pretty old property, in the metro area)
Power company sent me bills saying that I was using 45kw/day
I complained a few times and asked them to investigate
They changed the meter to a smart meter (which I disputed, I didn't want or need a new meter) they said they'd turn off the power if i didn't swap over
After smart meter, bills still excessive, more complaints
Wrote down actual meter reads at the same time every day for a month, power company said they couldn't accept this and needed photos
Took photos over the course of a month, power company changed their mind and said it needed to be investigated by an electrician (a report that I'd have to pay for)

I got a little fed up with changing stories and have gone to the ombudsman, power company is actually responding for a change … I asked for my meter reads over the 7 year period … here's the fun part …

Consistent usage of 45kw / day according to my bills over the 7 year period
Old meter readings - 22kw / day (based on averages over the period)
New meter readings - 29kw / day (based on averages over the period)

I've sent a please explain, but does anyone here know how / why the bills would come out so much higher than the meter? Would the smart meters use an extra 7kw / day to power themselves?

Home & Garden Electricity

Comments

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 02/09/2019 - 09:55
    1. How many tariffs are identified on your bills?
    2. Which retailer and which plan?
    3. Electric or gas hot water? Pool?

    Would the smart meters use an extra 7kw / day to power themselves?

    No.

    • weezlebub on 02/09/2019 - 10:30
      1. one tarrif standard, the other is j-tarrif (south australian version of off-peak) for the hot water service, this accounts for around 8kw / day
      2. AGL, but problem seems to have followed to new provider
      3. No gas mains (electric hot water) but no pool, no a/c or heating
      • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 02/09/2019 - 12:34

        j-tarrif

        This doesn't exist anymore for you. You now have a a smart meter. How many seperate tariffs are on your current bill?

        On your old meter - how many readings were you recording? 1 or 2? What were their individual avg/monthly readings each?

        On your new smart meter - how many different readings are you recording? 1 or 2? What are their individual avg/monthly readings each?

        AGL, but problem seems to have followed to new provider
        granny flat, shed,

        These are both pretty important pieces of information you didn't provide in your original post.

  • brad1-8tsi on 02/09/2019 - 10:39

    No, smart meters don't use 7kw a day. That's 7000watts. That's having a 1000w fan heater on for 7 hours.

    What's the property?

    How many people?

    Do you have lots of appliances (fridges/freezers/heaters/AC) or lights permanently ON?

    Have you made an effort to reduce your usage in that time?

    Have you audited your appliances to determine how much power they use?

    • weezlebub on 02/09/2019 - 10:54
      1. Property is a house, 2 bedroom with granny flat, shed, games room, garage
      2. Most of the time was one person (or two for a while there)
      3. Fridge, second fridge for some of it
      4. Yes, hence the no a/c or heating
      5. Not too sure how to audit appliances, any advice would be great!
      • brad1-8tsi on 02/09/2019 - 13:13
        +1

        If the item has a label:

        Find the wattage on the appliance label. Most high-power appliances have an energy label on the back or base of the appliance. …
        Multiply wattage by hours used each day. …
        Divide the result by 1,000. …
        Multiply your answer by the number of days you're measuring. …
        Multiply by the cost of electricity per kWh.

        Otherwise you need a meter. Sometimes your local council has them at the library to borrow.

        I'm single in a 3 bedroom place with occasional visitors and I average 5kwh day with gas HWS, stove & oven. 25kwh day seems an awful lot and 45kwh is outrageous.

  • atris17 on 02/09/2019 - 11:36
    +2
    • Check the Hot Water tank for any problems, it alone used to account 1/4 of my Energy Bill
    • Check for leakages, Excessive temperature threshold (60c enough) or faulty insulation to the tank itself
    • Check if the Hot Water pipes leading to the bathroom etc is insulated, heat could be loss constantly. Requiring the Hot Water tank needing electricity at a constant rate just to keep it hot.
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