Posted on 06/03/2024 8:13:18 AM PDT by fwdude
My residential electric service contract is up in about a month and just checked the markets for renewal. The rates have SKYROCKETED.
I don't know if this is because of EV usage increase or just the general crappy economy under Biden, but it's about to price me out of home ownership.
Anyone else seeing this?
[Service company is Oncor.]
Electricity generated by wind & solar is frequently more expensive.
I read the huge data farms and bit coining processing takes mega power, starving regular users. Those businesses should have to generaate their own electricity.
At the first of winter when so cold I noted my electric cost was up about $30. over last year. It remained pretty much that thru the winter.
i didn’t know there were places where one could choose electric companies. Here we have one and that’s all she wrote.
I use air conditioning very little as I open up windows nightly, here in Pa. Even in 90 plus it’s not until late afternoon about 4:00 or later things start to get warm in here.
Not-for-profit companies governed by member-elected boards are socialism? Okay. Keep throwing your money at corporate bigwigs that like to change their rates with the wind then.
I recall not that long ago when electric rates were of no concern. It was just another reasonable utility most paid with no issues.
Now after 50 years of lawyers turned professional politicians, people struggle to pay for simple things like electric bills and food...Homeless everywhere, open lawless borders, choking inflation, foreign policies that are sabotage for America.
So just keep electing lawyers turned professional politicians...You don’t need leaders, you need lawyers!
That’s not too bad
We’ll see for next winter....but it will only go up - that we know.
Texas electric rates are all over the map. I’m on a coop and rates are holding pretty steady. At least it hasn’t become Californication with their extortionate electric rates.
I’m on a plan with TXU, seems to keep things reasonable.
I’m in Texas and use Energy Ogre, but I would imagine they’re national by now. They automatically shop energy rates/companies and switch you seamlessly. They simply send an email telling you what they’re doing. Been with them for several years and have saved me lots of money each month on business and residential. It’s $10 per month. Legit.
You got me to thinking about my own system: the choice to go solar, convert 2 natural gas appliances to electric, do other energy improvements to the home, and do most of our driving in an EV. Usually I look just at the changes in how much I pull from the grid compared to before I did the energy project. Your post made me look at the #'s for changes total kWh consumption by going all-electric (regardless of how much of that comes from the grid). Note: this is for life in Alabama (read: don't have to fight bitter winters), and for driving 15K miles per year in the EV with home charged miles (not counting miles charged away from home where I don't track the #'s so keenly).
From May 2020 to April 2021: 16,356 kWh.
From May 2023 to April 2024: 21,140 kWh . An increase of about 4,800 (400 kWh per month).
Notes: May 2020 to April 2021 was the last 12 months before I started solar. I had 2 natural gas appliances and no EV's. The kWh is the total the power company says I pulled from the grid those months.
May 2023 to April 2024's numbers come from my inverters recording how many kWh were demanded from my electrical panels (regardless of how much of that came from solar panels, batteries, or the grid). So this is how much extra I'd pull from the grid without solar but being all electric at home and almost all electric in driving.
This also includes, though, energy improvements like now having a variable speed heat pump to cool and warm my home (heat strips for the few times in the winter it gets too cold for the heat pump). I also now have a hybrid water heater (in place of the gas water heater) that usually runs at 380W (unless I have company staying over and need it to run with the common heat strips demanding 4kW). So having an EV and no gas appliances demand more power, and it'd be even more power if I didn't offset some of that with energy improvements I made when converting my gas home furnace and gas water heater to electric (plus some insulation and being more diligent with new gaskets around doors and such).
Installed Windmill brand window A/C last year. It is one of the quietest brand available. Doing a bang-up job so far and I rarely have to use central A/C. Was very easy to install, needs 2 people to install unless you are very strong.
Nice! And I know, it’s either co-ops or Capitalist Pigs, so no really good option.
Valid point.
I lived in California where electricity rates are super high. We went on vacation once for a month. Turned everything off before we left. Next bill was $400 something anyway. I gave up after that. 🤷♀️
China + India is 3 Billion people ( 9.5 times bigger than US), with faster growing middle class. Those countries do not care about green energy. Coal is the predominant fuel being used to generate electricity. US can go 100% green, and it will change nothing climate wise.
I know. Poster I responded to was mocking and I played along.
Yes, it varies greatly by location. Here in most parts of Texas, you can go through the market to get a more competitive rate since deregulation several decades ago. We used to be all TXU before that. They had use over the barrel.
One infrastructure company but dozens of "providers."
Market prices are pretty tight but you can sometimes find some deals, depending on your usage needs.
A savvy consumer can do what Energy Ogre does without the fee. I shop with Power To Choose and find the best rates on a regular basis.
Quick question: How would you know how much money they save you?
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