Why does electric use increase in winter

[Doc C]

I am looking for ideas as to why electric usage increases in the winter?

In my case my electric use is doubled comparing June to November just looking strictly at KW usage because our wonderful electric company raises rates in the winter. So total bill dollar amount is more then double comparing the months.

All light bulbs are led and we really don't use much more light compared to summer.

All electric heaters off at breaker.

Hot tub off in winter. In summer hot tub is running.

Hot water heater costs more to run because water coming in is colder in winter but it is almost brand new and energy efficient.

Don't use blower on stove.

Cook stove is gas and we use 1 therm on average a month.

Kill-a-watt meter testing the deep freezer in the garage shows only very slight increase in usage from summer to winter.

I have a brand new Square D breaker panel in house and sub panel in garage. And when I installed the panels I had electric company check the meter. The tech was out here hanging out for several hours waiting on more calls and helping me work on the panel. I'm pretty confident the meter is fairly accurate and it's digital.

Any ideas what else I could check?

I'm sure I'm missing something.

 

[velvetfoot]

What are the numbers?

Could an estimated bill be involved?

Is the water heater in a cold place, vs warm in summer?

Could the well pump be a factor somehow?

You can buy whole house electric monitors that aren't really expensive. Might buy a few kw-hrs though, lol.

 

[Doc C]

What are the numbers?

Could an estimated bill be involved?

Is the water heater in a cold place, vs warm in summer?

Could the well pump be a factor somehow?

You can buy whole house electric monitors that aren't really expensive. Might buy a few kw-hrs though, lol.

Bill is not estimated. It's been like this every winter.

Well pump. I thought about it. Not sure how the cold would affect it? Any thoughts? Also we water our garden and fruit trees in the summer so there is less use in the winter. We have an above ground jet pump that feeds an in ground cistern that feeds the house so there are 2 pumps.

Water heater is about 5 feet from the stove behind a wall with an opening that keeps it warm.

 

[Doc C]

 

[Doc C]

Orange bar is current month. Light blue/Grey bat is same period last year. And the darker blue bars are the last year.

We don't change anything as far as daily energy usage and there seems to be no pattern in usage. It's all over the place!

 

[Doc C]

The drop from August to September is from turning off the hot tub.

 

[velvetfoot]

That seems crazy high to me. I'm, like, 300-400 kw-hr/mo.

 

[Husky]

Do you use electric blankets in the winter, what about Christmas lights, ect. Not that these would spike your usage that much. Something you are doing in the winter months is causing more electric usage. If you have central air kill the breaker at the box. Even when not in use it draws electricity.

 

[Doc C]

That seems crazy high to me. I'm, like, 300-400 kw-hr/mo.

Right. If you look at Feb it was like 3300ish.

Appliances that we have:
TV (1)
Dish network box
Washer and dryer (no kids)
Fridge
Dishwasher
Deep freezer
Microwave
Air compressor (only plugged in when using rare)
Hot water heater
Led light fixtures
Cell phone chargers
1 floor lamp with led bulb
WiFi modem

All heaters off at breaker
Shop heat is propane with no fan.
Hot tub unplugged in winter

 

[Doc C]

Do you use electric blankets in the winter, what about Christmas lights, ect. Not that these would spike your usage that much. Something you are doing in the winter months is causing more electric usage. If you have central air kill the breaker at the box. Even when not in use it draws electricity.

No electric blankets. I have one string of led Christmas lights that we use year round for light on our covered deck.

No central air. We have no cooling system at all. Only baseboard heaters which are all off at breaker box and tested with non contact meter to verify.

Good ideas though!

 

[heat seeker]

Do you have heat tapes on pipes, or your eaves? Some are thermostatically controlled, so only go on in cold weather. Any tapes on hidden pipes in attic or crawl space?

 

[Doc C]

Do you have heat tapes on pipes, or your eaves? Some are thermostatically controlled, so only go on in cold weather. Any tapes on hidden pipes in attic or crawl space?

I have searched every inch of this place looking specifically for heat tape. I found some on my pipe for the well shortly after we bought the house. I promptly removed it. It's possible that there is some under ground between the well and the cistern but if there is I can't find where it is wired in at.

 

[Husky]

I would call electric company and ask them. They may have seen this before and have an idea of what is going on in the winter months.

 

[festerw]

Do you hang your clothes to dry in the summer?

 

[Doc C]

I would call electric company and ask them. They may have seen this before and have an idea of what is going on in the winter months.

I have talked to them several times. They tell me it's my fault and something in my house. Told me to check the basics.

 

[Doc C]

Do you hang your clothes to dry in the summer?

No we don't.

 

[Ashful]

Do you have a basement dehumidifier? I was surprised with a $400 bill one December, and realized it was from one of our basement dehumidifiers, which had frozen solid and was just running furiously to no avail. It was a surprise to me, as I’m used to them normally only running in the summer months.

 

[Doc C]

Do you have a basement dehumidifier? I was surprised with a $400 bill one December, and realized it was from one of our basement dehumidifiers, which had frozen solid and was just running furiously to no avail. It was a surprise to me, as I’m used to them normally only running in the summer months.

No we don't. We have a crawl space. Nothing down there that takes electric.

 

[velvetfoot]

I have one of these. It's proven to be reliable, but not high tech, like recording historical usage on a time interval basis. I keep it in the kitchen and look at it when I pass by. It projects how much energy will be used for the month. It currently predicts 297 kw-hr.

(broken link removed to https://www.ebay.com/itm/NIB-Whole-House-Electric-Energy-Monitor-The-Energy-Detective/302567579101?hash=item46726edddd:g:-CYAAOSwiYlaIhkO)

 

[Doc C]

I have one of these. It's proven to be reliable, but not high tech, like recording historical usage on a time interval basis. I keep it in the kitchen and look at it when I pass by. It projects how much energy will be used for the month. It currently predicts 297 kw-hr.

(broken link removed to https://www.ebay.com/itm/NIB-Whole-House-Electric-Energy-Monitor-The-Energy-Detective/302567579101?hash=item46726edddd:g:-CYAAOSwiYlaIhkO)

Do I need to wire that in the panel?

 

[velvetfoot]

It has two sensors that clip on the incoming lines. They send info over power lines to panel. There can be interference in the lines from appliances that inject it into the lines. There are wireless ones now that this is not a factor. Mine samples about once a second but the wireless ones are longer duration. My panel is nice, but if I had to do it over now, I think I'd go wireless. They didn't make wireless when I got mine. I really don't know what the current models do. I think it'd be worth it in you case. If you could track it down, it could save a lot of money.

 

[Doc C]

It has two sensors that clip on the incoming lines. They send info over power lines to panel. There can be interference in the lines from appliances that inject it into the lines. There are wireless ones now that this is not a factor. Mine samples about once a second but the wireless ones are longer duration. My panel is nice, but if I had to do it over now, I think I'd go wireless. They didn't make wireless when I got mine. I really don't know what the current models do. I think it'd be worth it in you case. If you could track it down, it could save a lot of money.

I have 2 110 lines and no ground or neutral. That us what our power company supplies us. Think it will work?

 

[velvetfoot]

I have 2 110 lines and no ground or neutral. That us what our power company supplies us. Think it will work?

I'm no electric guru, but that seems crazy to me too. But, all you need are the two incoming mains to put the clamps around. You should make sure that whatever you get, it has two of the current sensors...some might only have one: you need to measure both legs.

 

[Doc C]

I'm no electric guru, but that seems crazy to me too. But, all you need are the two incoming mains to put the clamps around. You should make sure that whatever you get, it has two of the current sensors...some might only have one: you need to measure both legs.

They have us ground through 2 grounding rods at the house. The electric company only has a two wire system.

 

[kenora]

Hi..something is waaaaaaay out of line there. I have an ELECTRICALLY HEATED house up in the frosty north ... I use less energy than you do. and I have a 20kw electric forced air furnace. And its COLD right now Its running a lot.

You either have a faulty meter or a huge load that you don't know about...I'm betting on the meter and if that is the case the electric company owes you some big $$$..