One Reddit user took to the platform to seek help with a ridiculously high energy bill.
The Central Texas resident shared their plight in a post on the r/electrical subreddit.
They began by writing: “I know this may have been posted ad nauseam, but I’m overwhelmed by the amount of money I spend on my electric bill. I’ve done a lot of research and haven’t been able to find the culprit of this money pit.”
“I have paid nearly $2,000 in electric bills over the past 3 months,” they wrote. “I realize it’s summer and electric bills naturally increase during these months, but there’s obviously something causing this spike. I got a $780 electric bill in July and found out we used 3,500 kilowatt hours. We had the air conditioner running at 72 degrees almost all day.
“After that, I turned the air conditioner off in the morning and only ran it when I got home from get off work around 6:30 p.m. We still used over 2,500 kilowatt hours in August and my bill was $550. This month we were nearly 2,000 kilowatt hours and that’s when the energy company increased their rates from 11 cents/kilowatt to 17 cents/kilowatt.”
They explained that their energy use was limited to “normal daily living” and were unsure what was causing the sky-high energy bills.
Soaring energy prices are a huge problem in the United States, and they’re only getting worse. According to NPR, U.S. energy prices are rising at twice the rate of inflation, largely due to increased demand in the data centers that power large language modeling platforms such as Google’s Gemini and ChatGPT.
With energy costs soaring, there are many ways to lower your electric bill, but one of the best and most effective is with solar panels. TCD’s Solar Explorer is a great way to save money on panel installation and helps you understand your options as you begin the solar process.
Solar Explorer helps you discover and connect with trusted partners who can help simplify the solar installation process and save you up to $10,000 on installation through bids from local installers.
It also allows you to find solar leasing plans that require no money down, such as Palmetto’s LightReach leasing program. This can save you up to 20% on your monthly utility bills and allows you to take advantage of federal tax credits already available to individual homeowners in retirement.
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EnergySage is another Solar Explorer partner and is a great resource for finding solar suppliers and planning panel bids.
In this case, commenters were quick to point out some ways to find out where they’re consuming power.
One person said: “A basic $15 clamp meter on every circuit around the panel can tell you a lot, but be careful, don’t do it if you’re not comfortable, and if you need more information, seek help here.”
Another user said: “Use the display on your meter to go circuit-by-circuit to find the culprit.”
A third commenter offered a more direct suggestion to address the problem: “Get solar panels.”
Another great way to reduce your utility bills is to upgrade your HVAC system. TCD’s HVAC Explorer can help you find the right system for your home and budget.
To further help you save on your budget, the free Palmetto Home app can earn you up to $5,000 in rewards for making home upgrades by doing simple tasks in your daily life.
Get TCD’s free newsletter for simple tips to save more, reduce waste and make smarter choices, and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD’s exclusive Rewards Club.
