My electric bill really is high - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Summersquash · RV-Dreams Family Member

My electric bill really is high

Lucky Mike · RV-Dreams Family Member

ask your neighbor if you are in a park to compare........unplug from your pedestal and see if it is still drawing power at the meter.......are your batterie's going into charge continuously...try shutting down the salesman switch and use ac power only

The Bear II · RV-Dreams Family Member

Unfortunately, I don't pay close attention to what we are charged per kilowatt hour. During the months of July - September last year our electric ran about $220 per month at the resort near San Diego, CA. we stayed in.

We have a 38ft 5th wheel. We heavily use the AC (nearly 24/7 every day), electronics, washer/dryer and small appliances. My DW stays up until 3 to 4am so the TV, sat dish, lights and laptop are in use.

Without being able to give the cost per kilowatt the resort charges, it's tough to compare with what you paid. I'm guessing our use would be an example of a high electricity user where you would be a mid to low user.

The Junkman · RV-Dreams Family Member

Summersquash wrote:
My electric bill really seems high. We have a 38' Montana. We don't have a washer/dryer, dish washer, or any extra appliancs than the normal RV stuff. We are located in Southeast Texas at present so we are using the air some but our electric bill is nearly as high as our 3000 sq.ft home was. I guess my question is what is a normal utility bill for most of you. Our RV pulled over 1000 hours last month. Does anyone know if that is normal or do we have some kind of problem we are not aware of.

Just curious.. How much is the bill?..

I was wondering if sometimes it's cheaper to rent by the week as the ones I looked at included things like electric.. But when you go monthly, the ones i seen where charging ..

So maybe it's cheaper to pay 800 a month on a weekly rate, versus 600/ mo on a monthly rate?

GENECOP · RV-Dreams Family Member

I have stayed in parks that mark up the electric so much that our electric bill was over $100 per month...I stayed seasonal at this park two years, then left because of the high cost of electric...

cherylbrv · RV-Dreams Family Member

If you're looking for a CG and the rates indicate full hookups, or 30/50 amp electric, is it usually assumed the electric is included in the rates and if not, it would be listed separately?

Summersquash · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have our own electric meter that we had turned on by the utility company. We are not in a rv park, just renting a space from an individual as our home base. We will be leaving for Colorado in a couple of weeks for tge summer so I guess we can see how it goes there. Our electricity is included in our RV spot there so we wont have a bill for a while. Thanks for the help.

2riker2go · RV-Dreams Family Member

cherylbrv wrote:
If you're looking for a CG and the rates indicate full hookups, or 30/50 amp electric, is it usually assumed the electric is included in the rates and if not, it would be listed separately?

Most places that we have been...if you stay less than a month the electric is included in the daily or weekly rate. Usually if the stay is for more than a month, the electric is metered. That is usually indicated on the "rates" page though.

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

Cheryl: Electricity is normally metered for monthly stays.

Summersquash: RVs are not well insulated, so air conditioning can be a major power user, as can electric heat. RV fridges are very inefficient and can use 4 to 7 kilowatt-hours a day. We used about 850 to 900 kilowatt-hours a month during our winter stay in Mesa, AZ this winter and 1200 a month last winter. The changes bewtween years are we now have a residential fridge and the weather was milder this winter, so less heat and air conditioning were needed.

You can look for stray electric uses by turning everything off, turning off all the breakers and having one person watch the electric meter while turning breakers on.

MarkS · RV-Dreams Family Member

This month my electric bill will exceed $800. This house must go! Or maybe this state must go?

The Junkman · RV-Dreams Family Member

Kinda kills the saving money by going monthly idea.. lol

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

MarkS wrote:
This month my electric bill will exceed $800. This house must go! Or maybe this state must go?

I thought you napalmed the house then dumped a pile of nuke waste on it to get rid of that mouse biggrin Or is that the electric bill for the fence to keep it out as you rebuild? biggrin

MarkS · RV-Dreams Family Member

So there was the napalm and nuclear waste.... And then the rebuilding. I never gave a thought to what the electric fence and lasers would cost me to run. Hmmmmmmm

Sushidog · RV-Dreams Family Member

With a new war in the middle east looming (forcing oil prices higher) and our coal industry shutting down, it looks like all our energy costs are going to get a lot higher, making solar, wind and off grid living (and smaller, more fuel efficient rigs) more attractive, maybe even a necessity for many.

Chip

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

Sushidog wrote:
With a new war in the middle east looming (forcing oil prices higher) and our coal industry shutting down, it looks like all our energy costs are going to get a lot higher, making solar, wind and off grid living (and smaller, more fuel efficient rigs) more attractive, maybe even a necessity for many.

Chip

And when the demand for solar, the batteries etc shoots up the prices, (and any applicable subsidies disappear) even that alternative will become much more expensive than it is is now. Not saying it's a bad idea, just saying, finding ways to use less is the only real solution to high prices. High efficiency appliances, LED lights, dump the old CRT TVs for space, weight and energy sipping flat panels(size for size), less use of "convenience" electronic gadgetry and so on will go a long way to cutting the electric bill. For most of us that will be hard to do in some instances. 50K volt fences and lasers aside (ahem MarkS) biggrin biggrin

The Junkman · RV-Dreams Family Member

The problem I see is, that some are willing to pay the high prices.. no matter how high they get. And they always will. The folks that can't pay, don't get it. And the folk that conserve energy help make it less expensive for the big users.. It's a loosing battle..

Only way to do it, is regulation. And who wants that? Noone. Who wants the goverment to mandate how much energy you can use? But since we loose a little freedom everyday, why not a little more.. and a little more... etc..

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

The Junkman wrote:
The problem I see is, that some are willing to pay the high prices.. no matter how high they get. And they always will. The folks that can't pay, don't get it. And the folk that conserve energy help make it less expensive for the big users.. It's a loosing battle..

Only way to do it, is regulation. And who wants that? Noone. Who wants the goverment to mandate how much energy you can use? But since we loose a little freedom everyday, why not a little more.. and a little more... etc..

Once upon a time, when electricity was new, it was the wild west for the power supply market. Then it became universal and correctly became regulated as all universally needed things are. Clean air, water etc. The quality of those regs surely is debatable, but not here. I wouldn't care much about those that can pay for their high utility bills. Surely they are interested in controlling their costs as much as Joe Average. I'll work on containing my own consumption and thus my bill, the others, it's up to them.

Brian

-- Edited by biggaRView on Tuesday 17th of June 2014 10:06:03 AM

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

It sounds like MarkS will be on the "I spend less in an RV" list. Same as us.

Debating energy policy is great for around campfires, but won't help Summersquash figure out if their RV is using too much power. My opinion, it is not.

Barbaraok · RV-Dreams Family Member

Summersquash wrote:
Our RV pulled over 1000 hours last month. Does anyone know if that is normal or do we have some kind of problem we are not aware of.

A/C will cause that meter to whirl like mad. We normally use between 15 and 20 KWH per day in the winter, using small electric heaters and a w/d. Last winter was really mild so the little heaters hardly ever ran and we were down to 10-12 KWH/day. If running that air conditioner every day you could easily go to 1000 KWH/month. You don't say what your cost per KWH is, but if 15¢/KWH then it would be $150/momth - - not something I would consider not all that unusualble with A/C running. You've been given some good hits on how to check to see what is pulling the most power.

Barb

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

bjoyce wrote:
It sounds like MarkS will be on the "I spend less in an RV" list. Same as us.

Debating energy policy is great for around campfires, but won't help Summersquash figure out if their RV is using too much power. My opinion, it is not.

Quite right, Bill. Barb's use of 15 cent per kwH (being a reasonable estimate) suggests that Summersquash's (1000kwH) is not totally out of line considering the use of A/C and thinner insulation on RV's compared to a S&B. We budget 60/month on avg. but it climbs to over 150 during the summer months and we have 2200sq ft of superinsulated, triple paned Eglass house to deal with. Had to laugh at your MarkS comment.

-- Edited by biggaRView on Tuesday 17th of June 2014 11:13:01 AM

PIEERE · RV-Dreams Family Member

Checked mine this am. Since the 30th of May have used 600 kws. About 30 a day X 0.12 = $3.60 = $111.60 for 31days. My single level 900+ sq. ft. house in Az. in 1985 cost $ $350.00 in electric. Have only about 300 sq. ft. and easier to clean.

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

Everybody is different and every place is different. Barb was about half a mile from us this winter and used much less electricity. We, mostly my wife, are more sensitive to temperature differences and that means we use more electricity keeping things in our comfort zone. (Not a female thing, since she got it from her father and my own father reliably got sick in hot weather.)

But being in a hot place like Texas at this time of year, you will use more air conditioning even keeping the inside in the 80s. I talked to RV pad owners in Fort Myers, FL, and they said that tenants cost them $300 to $400 a month in the summer for electricity alone. That is 2000 to 3000 kilowatt-hours a month.

I suspect MarkS is in SoCal Edison territory and has tiered rates, with very high rates if you used much (once taxes and fees are included it gets close to 50c a kilowatt-hour). People in houses routinely find themselves with over $500 and sometimes over $1000 electric bills in SoCal Edison areas. The campground close to my sister-in-law in sees many in small trailers using a space heater with over $300 electric bills in winter. It can be worse in summer, when they do see temps above 100 and sometimes 110.

The Junkman · RV-Dreams Family Member

Oh boy.. We have 2 tv's on most of the day.. And 1 stays on .. even when we are sleeping. There are 3 ac's in the rig I have ordered and I like it at 72-74 degrees.. constant. I always like the lights on.. AND we are on the internet , on 2 computers.. many hours each day ( that may change) .. Our fridge is a house 120v , have a dishwasher we will use..

I am really starting to think it may be better to rent weekly with free electric than monthy and pay..I guess we need to try a month and see what the bill looks like. Ithink on monthly they may start charging for wi-fi and cable too ?
So where is the value of paying monthly?

I better revist and revise my budget tonight too..

Good info folks!

Sushidog · RV-Dreams Family Member

Ok, I've done some calculations. If you have a 30 amp service and use all of the available electricity, 30 amps, 24 hours a day for 30 days, (which would be impossible to do, in fact extremely difficult to do even with a 50 amp service) you would consume 2592 KWH in a 30 day period. For that amount of electricity to cost $1,000 you would be paying 38.6 cents per KWH. Even if you used all 50 amps, 24hrs/day for 30 days (an impossible task) you would have used 4,800 KWH. At $1,000 that means you are paying 20.8 cents/KWH. The average residential 2013 electricity rate in Texas was 11.45 cents/KWH. If the park is getting their power at the commercial rate, it is only costing them 8.09 cents/KWH. Something sure sounds fishy here.

www.electricchoice.com/electricity-prices-by-state.php

Chip

-- Edited by Sushidog on Tuesday 17th of June 2014 02:48:32 PM

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

Sushidog: 50AMP service is two legs of 120 volt 50AMP, so it would be 4,800 x 2, or 9,600 KWH maxed out.

Sushidog · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thanks for the info, Bjoyce. I had no idea that a 50 amp service was really 100 amps of 110v power (50 amps on 2 legs) as my camper only has a 30 amp plug. OK, if you've got 12,000 watts of power coming in you could possibly (but not easily) burn that much power at today's rates - if you have say, 3, 15k BTU ac units, electric water heater, etc. running full blast.

Can a 50 amp service be used to supply 50 amps at 220v then? Either way, it sounds like 50 amp is the way to go if you need lots of power, but not if you're on a tight budget though. I think I'll do myself a favor and stick to 30 amps. When electricity prices "necessarily skyrocket" as promised, I'll be glad I did.

Thanks,

Chip

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

Yes, 50AMP should supply 220 volts but most RVs are wired to split it at the entry, so it is harder to retrofit any 220 volt appliances in. In some cases the campground use 3-phase, so it is 208 volts instead, which most 220 volt appliances can handle. Some campsites are wired incorrectly and both legs are the same phase, so it is only 110/120.

Some longer RVs have 3 ACs. I have even seen 4 ACs on high end bus conversions and specialized units like blood mobiles.

The Junkman · RV-Dreams Family Member

I better get the generator installed.. lol

Summersquash · RV-Dreams Family Member

I guess I was expecting it to be less because our house was very efficient. Our travel trailer never used very much electricity, but it was a 30 amp. We do have 2 ac's & latge fridge. But we keep our hot water heater off untill evening & then wash dishes & bathe. It is just now getting into the 90's. Guess it is a good thing we are leaving for cooler climates.

Jack Mayer · RV-Dreams Family Member

RVs are notoriously inefficient in the HVAC area. Large windows (often not double pane), slides with poor seals (air infiltration), and often poor insulation. AC, in particular will really work hard in TX in the hotter months. I have three RV rental lots in TX that the tenants pay the electric on directly to me - so I know the usage. Under the same conditions, it varies wildly....I have one tenant that is almost always over $200 and month. And in that same month I can have another that is around $80.

Our personal use varies, but in general if it is cold out in the winter we run around $100 - more or less. We tend to heat with the electric fireplace and supplement with a ceramic heater. Rarely do we run the furnaces. The point being that we maximize our electric use....we also have a dishwasher, washer/dryer, etc. We do have a gas cooktop, but that is the major use of gas. The rest is electric.

In most parks the monthly rate is about 2.3 - 2.8 "weeks" worth of rent. Depending on your usage and the electric rate it "could" be better to be monthly. But never in our case....and I have figured it over the years.

-- Edited by Jack Mayer on Thursday 19th of June 2014 10:11:42 AM

waltben · RV-Dreams Family Member

No one asked:

Is the hot water heater on electric? Usually we have both gas & electric turned on to get faster recovery when at a CG, but not when metered.

How about the refrigerator - is it on electric? With high outside temps, the heater element may be on almost all the time.

The price per kw hour is the main thing though. Sounds like yours may be just about equivalent to using propane for everything.

RonC · RV-Dreams Family Member

MarkS wrote:
This month my electric bill will exceed $800. This house must go! Or maybe this state must go?

Mark,

We lived in San Bernadino and Redlands, CA ... it's the state. Such a shame as California is such a beautiful place. Too bad it is run by idiots ... and if you don't water enthusiastically, it WILL return to the desert it wants to be. This might not make it past the politics police.

legrandnormand · RV-Dreams Family Member

This post is over 2 years old...

RonC · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thanks for noting the obvious.

With only 4 or 5 posts per day, if you want to participate, older posts are all that is available.

-- Edited by RonC on Saturday 29th of October 2016 09:05:51 PM

legrandnormand · RV-Dreams Family Member

I'm on 3-4 Forums/day and this is one of them, a very quiet one compared to others.

RonC · RV-Dreams Family Member

Agreed.

legrandnormand · RV-Dreams Family Member

RonC wrote:
Agreed.

Let's wait for the next post ! wink

Cummins12V98 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Let's stir the POT!!!

RonC · RV-Dreams Family Member

Radio Silence😎

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Speaking of silence, since this is a 2 year old post and there was no reason to revive it, I'll make it quieter by closing it. As for participating on the forums, start new topics instead of reviving old ones.

Terry