Is everyone's utilities pricing insane or am I getting screwed?

Submitted by peon2 t3_10p5xyg in pittsburgh

We relocated to the Pittsburgh area in October and have been shocked at the pricing of electric and gas. For reference I'm near the West Mifflin/Pleasant Hills border, technically in West Mifflin. We have a 1,350 sq ft house. It's just me and my fiance, I shower at the gym 4 days a week (more relevant to water heater cost than water bill) and we set our thermostat to 67 degrees.

Over the past 3 months our utilities bills have averaged

Water: $43/mo

Electric: $335/mo

Gas: $225/mo.

That's a total of $600/mo, which is over 40% of what our freaking mortgage is!

Before we moved we had an 1,110 sq ft place in Roanoke VA and our electric was about $130/mo and water was $9/mo and the electric included our heating so this is a shock to us unless something crazy is going on like we're somehow getting charged for our neighbor as well by mistake.

Is this normal for the area?

Edit: The companies are Duquense Light, Pennsylvania American Water, and People's Gas. I also checked my old electric bills from Virginia and we averaged about 750 kwH but that included electric heat/AC. So our use has doubled despite having gas heat and no lifestyle change.

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Brak710 t1_j6ig0ni wrote

The electric seems high given you have gas heat and hot water (I assume.)

What is your electrical usage being consumed by?

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peon2 OP t1_j6ih221 wrote

I'm not entirely sure. We are gas heat but for some reason our water heaters are electric so that probably is a big part of it.

But our dishwasher is new and the washer/dryer aren't super old so they should probably be fairly efficient. And we wash our clothes on cold. My fiance works from home and usually has a TV on as background noise all day but my calculations say that leaving a smart TV on for an entire month straight should just total about 42 KwH

Duquesne Light claims we used 1470 kwH over the last 30 days.

Some googling says the average household use is 850/mo and as 2 people in a reasonable size home I feel like we should come under the average not over.

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Showerbeerz413 t1_j6ik5yp wrote

so then it doesn't sound like an issue of you getting screwed per rate, it sounds like something in your house is using ALOT of power. Might be worth going over everything im the house and seeing where that massive power draw is coming from

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Yomama-22 t1_j6itofk wrote

A dehumidifier will wreck your electric bill if it runs a lot. More than one refrigerator will too.

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dcraider t1_j6jj3rl wrote

Yes this. We have a DH in the basement and runs almost non-stop 6-months out of the year, and of course a freezer in the basement, which are notorious at gobbling up electric as well.

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[deleted] t1_j6jjen7 wrote

[deleted]

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dcraider t1_j6jk2mv wrote

It's only 9 cu. ft. and energy start rated. It claims $24 annual running cost a year but who knows.

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Jumpy-Natural4868 t1_j6jorjv wrote

that's a small one and isn't terrible. People have the very large ones -- that are the size of a standard fridge but are all freezer. They're usually butt old and in grandma's basement for the past 50 years and just chew up electricity.

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burritoace t1_j6md9di wrote

Chest freezers are pretty efficient actually

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Jumpy-Natural4868 t1_j6mhioh wrote

whoops, thanks for correcting me. I must be thinking of those fridge size stand up freezers.

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peon2 OP t1_j6ilqnw wrote

Is there a way to check how much power a single appliance is drawing?

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Ryan_JK t1_j6iofkw wrote

You can buy a killawatt meter if it is an appliance that plugs into a normal outlet. If it’s something you need to monitor at the panel then you would need something more complex. I was looking at this system the other day but have no experience with it, not sure how effective it is.

https://sense.com/

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jnc2000 t1_j6km3pn wrote

I'm been a happy Sense user for almost 3 years. Is it perfect, no, but it has helped me chase down phantom draw issues, and I've been able to keep my usage in line with what I expect. Our house currently has a tankless electric hot water, electric vehicle, and five people in the house.

https://imgur.com/a/xwsAFzv

https://imgur.com/a/a3LxAd9

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Showerbeerz413 t1_j6immb8 wrote

by itself, I don't think so, but there are outlet usage monitors that can measure how much power a device pulls from the plug.

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merkinmavin t1_j6j48py wrote

There's a device called a Kill A Watt and every homeowner should have one. Simple yet effective way to confirm how much juice something is using. And it can be used to avoid overloading a circuit.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6ikeke wrote

Why is water heaters plural? That’s not very common in the states. Do you have separate water heaters in each room? I thought people used those in countries where energy is expensive and they only turn them in an hour before they use them and turn them off when done

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peon2 OP t1_j6ila9w wrote

It was weird to me as well but the previous homeowner must have installed an extra for long showers or something? We have 2 water heaters that are both 40 gallons.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6im2v6 wrote

Wow that’s your problem. 80 gallons is enough for 15 people. Forty gallons is for a small family and 50 for a big family. And why would they use electric over gas? Whoever they were, they are weird. Gas is usually a lot cheaper around here but you should investigate if you have gas lines and the venting needed. I guess it depends on how they are fed to the sinks and showers - do they feed into separate hot water pipe networks or do they combine into one system? You can get tax credits to swap in a high efficiency electric water heater but the purpose of those is usually when you have no gas line or want to reduce your carbon footprint.

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Jumpy-Natural4868 t1_j6jjjte wrote

if you have a 220 v line you can install a heat pump water heater with electric backup and get rid of the 2nd water heater and save a lot of money.

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adamglumac t1_j6kt0a8 wrote

This is very good advice.

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Jumpy-Natural4868 t1_j6l2poe wrote

Problem is you need a 220v line. And they're expensive. But I think they qualify for that climate bill tax credits.

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mikeyHustle t1_j6ivlgk wrote

*Two electric water heaters* is itself an anomaly that 99% of other houses aren't going to have. I agree this is the spot to start troubleshooting.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6j1exy wrote

Maybe a marriage counselor suggested it because they were fighting over who used up all the hot water. So they got a separate his and hers hot water heaters and were too lazy to figure out the gas lines and venting so they went electric /sarcasm

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mikeyHustle t1_j6kwnmv wrote

People with more money than either brains or emotions might have actually done this. Or not even that serious, just "You use up ALL the water! I'm buying a second one and it's YOUR FAULT!"

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analmartyr t1_j6isuor wrote

This is super weird. Like super weird. You need to see how old they are as most likely these are not going to be very efficient. A normal response from a homeowner who needed more hot water would be to go tankless not add another 40 gallon tank.

Also, most likely the tanks are in the basement which generally are not insulated well so keeping the two tanks heated is going to cause them to be almost constantly running.

I’m also trying to figure out in my head how 2 tanks would run, does one go to one part of the house and the other go to a different part or does one feed into the other?

This is very curious.

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peon2 OP t1_j6j2xih wrote

The previous owners added on a full bathroom in the finished basement, I believe one water heater only supplies this and the rest of the house (1 full bath, kitchen, etc) are supplied by the other heater.

One is on it's way out (2011) and one is fairly new (2019).

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worksong1 t1_j6mzbg0 wrote

Lose the 2nd heater entirely! No matter how efficient the appliance, it makes no sense to keep 40 gallons always hot for what sounds like a rarely used basement bath. A small tankless unit placed in or adjacent to the bath will provide instant & limitless hot water for a hand wash or shower, & draw ZERO kWh when not in use. Cost approx $250.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6jt5te wrote

which one is the newer one? Are any of them high efficiency?

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SparklesLuvsScotch t1_j6j1b8k wrote

We had two water heaters in our old house. The previous owners finished the basement and installed baseboard heating, which is the only thing that used the second water heater.

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CARLEtheCamry t1_j6j1zkr wrote

A water heater for baseboard heat and not a boiler?

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mmphoto412 t1_j6j6y29 wrote

They either don’t know the difference between a water heater and boiler or are getting them mixed up.

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kistner t1_j6j8hw3 wrote

I work in real estate. I've seen a couple houses over the years that used a water heater as a boiler. Typically in a small addition.

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mmphoto412 t1_j6j8pd2 wrote

As in the same type of water heater that’s used for potable water?

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kistner t1_j6j9ma0 wrote

Yes, but if you use it for heat you can't also use it for drinking water. There are fancy recirculating dual use water heater/boilers out there as well but I wasn't really talking about those.

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mmphoto412 t1_j6j9ye9 wrote

I’m not an HVAC expert, so maybe one can chime in, however that seems extremely inefficient. Also you can’t run any rust or declassification inhibitors through the heating system.

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kistner t1_j6jagc2 wrote

It probably isn't efficient or I would have seen it more than twice in 30 years. But it is simple, water heater, pump, thermostat.

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mmphoto412 t1_j6jas28 wrote

Based on some quick googling, it is a thing, however it seems to be only used in mild climates.

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Kichard t1_j6jp5x7 wrote

The cold water would be fine to drink, right?

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kistner t1_j6jpock wrote

Yes. Cold water would have nothing to do with a water heater hooked up as a boiler.

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buterfligurl t1_j6j7w37 wrote

Some baseboard heating can use low temperature, thus a water heater is not unheard of.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6j1l1o wrote

This is an interesting idea. Op needs to investigate where the hot water from each goes.

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zadigger t1_j6k7vv3 wrote

For reference - I'm now in central Texas and during peak summer (105F+) our AC, in a 1200sqft house w single pane windows, running near 24/7, uses roughly 1500kwh per month. Our electric company literally gives discounts for higher usage (although that's specific to the plan I contracted for knowing the insane usage the house has). I'm sure you're already looking into the power usage but I wanted to give a real-world anecdotal comparison.

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peon2 OP t1_j6l48r5 wrote

Thanks that is helpful. I feel like it is impossible that we use 1450 KWh a month. Like I said we use to use 800/mo including heat/AC with electric. Now that we have gas heat I’d assume we would be like 600 not 1450.

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zadigger t1_j6mcogl wrote

In the winter our usage w electric heat still peaks at 850. So I'd expect you to be well below that w gas. Again we have a lot of loss because of old windows and bad insulation

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Snoo-35041 t1_j6knckm wrote

Please look up heat pump hot water heaters, or hybrid electric hot water heaters, you'll have a fortune. And Duquesne light has energy audit programs you can do too. I have a hybrid hot water and I use about 400kwh a month on the low end.

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Jurrald_La_Queefious t1_j6l1vs7 wrote

Do you use electric space heaters by any chance? For how small they are, they draw a ton of power.

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PeanutCavalry t1_j6kjrwx wrote

Sign up for notifications from Duquesne Light. They send weekly emails with your usage. I've also been getting them (monthly I think) that tell me what's been using the electricity based on draw signatures.

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ML1310 t1_j6ih81u wrote

Electric seems very high. We're 2 adults in a 1800 sq ft. house in Mt Lebo.

Electric for us has been around $100 the last couple months.

Water is pretty consistently between $30-$40.

Gas has been crazy high for everyone. We keep our place at 68 and most recent gas bill was $300.

We have Columbia gas, PAW and Duquesne Light.

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WellTimedPoop t1_j6j6yx0 wrote

That's wild. I'm up here in the exurbs, but I have the opposite experience (first energy for electric, peoples gas). Our electric bill it typically around $200-250 per month (we have an EV and drive about 1500 miles a month, plus tons of electronics, servers, etc., that never get shut off).

Our gas bill was just over $100 for december-into-january, even with gas heat. I think our electronics all just generate enough heat to keep the house warm enough haha.

Also 1800sqft, two adults one toddler

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knotAsiDew t1_j6io5qa wrote

Make sure Duquesne light is your electricity provider and not some other party. We signed up for some deal that was a bit cheaper a couper years ago and when it expired, we were paying like 50% more than we should've been for over a year 😭.

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GlitteringCash6422 t1_j6iv2e9 wrote

Also check out pagasswitch.com I recently switched from peoples to another supplier that’s about 20% less per month. Price per McF of gas has also fallen dramatically recently. expect more price drops Q2 2023

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couplenippers t1_j6izjyc wrote

Seriously invest in led lightbulbs for everything, caulk windows and doors, all the obvious stuff, make sure chimney flues are closed and not so obvious stuff, get a smart thermostat, leaving the house at 67 while you are not home is a luxury, like my house automatically turns down to 62 when not occupied but only takes 30 minutes to get up to 68, but yeah Allegheny county is crazy expensive, Duquesne light, vs West Penn power, gas and water also

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Zealousideal-Bug1967 t1_j6igzul wrote

The electricity bill seems a bit crazy to me but idk what you have In your house, using that much. In a similar-sized house my other bills are about what yours are but my electricity has averaged only about $100, last one was $140 and that’s the most it’s been (obviously it’ll be more in the summer when the AC is running)

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Cuttlefisher1890 t1_j6ii9zw wrote

I will agree with others here and say that the electric seems very high. I live in a 1,728 square foot house, and my electric bill last month was $68. I work from home, my boyfriend does not. We don't have electric water heaters, but if you're washing your clothes on cold and not taking super hot long showers every day, I don't know how it could be that high. You need to call Duquesne.

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alquix t1_j6inzec wrote

I have similar bills to yours, but often higher. Lately they’re the highest I’ve ever seen. It’s crushing, especially since our pay isn’t going up at the same rate.

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PghCoondog t1_j6jgqnv wrote

We're all getting screwed.

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thatoneladythere t1_j6ivk59 wrote

I'm in a 1 br apartment in Turtle Creek. I pay all utilities except trash. My electric is $78/ month (budget billing), water is usually $100/ month (we have really high sewage here for some reason, it's like 2/3+ of my monthly bill. There are no issues with anything, that's just what it is. I think it's all the shitty infrastructure and my Creek proximity), gas is at budget billing $105. So that's a minimum $283 every month on top of rent. It's also just me and a little dog here. If my rent wasn't so cheap I'd need to move, but I see a lot of rentals are becoming "tenant pays all utilities" and idk if I can swing that with a higher rent.

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jrwolf08 t1_j6ihmgc wrote

In West Mifflin 1500 sq ft house. Definitely seems high, probably close to double our gas and electric.

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peon2 OP t1_j6ii5nq wrote

So you probably have Duqeunse Light and People's gas as well and both are about double yours?

This is kind of what I feared, we keep our house cool so it shocks me that we're this much higher than expected.

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jrwolf08 t1_j6ij2i7 wrote

Yep, Duq Light and Peoples.

Might wanna have your mechanicals checked if they are old. Check attic insulation for energy efficiency. Can also turn your water heater down too if the water temp is on the high end.

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peon2 OP t1_j6imgnm wrote

Just checking, how is your bill broken down for the electric. For instance my recent >$300 bill says $160 is "DLC charges" and $190 of it is "supply charges" but it doesn't specify what these mean. I assume one is the usage but not sure what the other is.

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tesla3by3 t1_j6innxg wrote

DLC charges are what DLC charges for transmission and distribution (basically maintaining the infrastructure). You can choose who your supplier is- it doesn't have to be the default supplier for DLC customers. That's what the supply charge is.

No matter who your supplier is, the bill comes fromDLC, and they will bill for the third party supplier.

If you have a paper bill all of this should be explained on the back I think.

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jrwolf08 t1_j6iuqbw wrote

Our DLC Charges are 54 and Supply Charges are 57 for Dec 2022.

Our highest month this year July 2022, with whole house ac and two windows units running, DLC Charges 121 and Supply 123.

Just checked our People's bill, and our Jan bill was 215, so closer to yours. Had it mistaken for the budget amount which is generally 120.

FWIW we have gas everything, water heater, stove, heat, dryer.

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crhine17 t1_j6ij97b wrote

What rate are you paying per kWh on your Duquesne light bill? And if it's above ~12 cents/kWh for the generation part of your bill you can probably reduce it on papowerswitch.com for a better rate.

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peon2 OP t1_j6im8xb wrote

The bill actually doesn't tell me what the per kwH rate is, but for reference the most recent bill says

Usage: 1626 kwH

DLC Charges: $159.14

Supply Charges: $189.82

Non basic service charges: $6.36

Wtf is the difference between supply charge and DLC charges?

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mandalorian222 t1_j6ipjgi wrote

Supply charge is what your base provider is. You can switch it via that link but look for variable rates and such that make other suppliers not as good as you might think. DLC charges will be the same no matter who your supplier is.

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drunkenviking t1_j6j8z0j wrote

DLC Charges are what DLC charges to maintain all the wires and poles to your house. Supply charges are what the power station charges to generate the electricity.

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Jumpy-Natural4868 t1_j6jjsdz wrote

papowerswitch has had pretty terrible rates for DQE customers over the past few years. sometimes you find something that's a 1/10th of a penny different and it isn't worth saving the $3 or whatever a month especially if you're dealing with a scammy supplier that jacks up the rates after the whatever period is over, etc.

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hoovb t1_j6kvspy wrote

Thanks for this, just found out I've been paying 25 cents/kWh and got it reduced to 10.7!

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Sprussel_Brouts t1_j6iwrw8 wrote

Yup. We have our doors closed, vents closed, temperature set to 63 degrees. electricity and and gas are easily totaling 500$ a month. I cannot help but suspect both our providers are just gouging us.

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Chubby-bunny-22 t1_j6l6n72 wrote

Make sure you didn’t sign up for a “green electric” company. I did this and about a year later my electric bill TRIPLED.

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junior_emo_mcgee t1_j6ighn0 wrote

This is very similar to my setup as well. Thermostat on 67, only 2 adults. My water, electric and gas are very similar to yours. I have Columbia gas, PAW and Duquesne Don't forget about your sewage bill, too.

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James_Tiberius t1_j6j9b1a wrote

I got one of these to monitor what I am spending so much on electricity for:

https://sense.com/

I have to say it has helped. I identified things that were major cause and mitigated when they turn on.

One question would be: DO YOU HAVE HEAT PUMPS?

Heat pumps use a ton of electricity. Even if they are paired with a gas furnace. And with the cold that dipped down into single digits, the heat pumps were very inefficient. Probably using a ton of electricity and not giving off much heat.

My gas furnace allows me to shut them off. Which I did when it was super cold (highs in 20s or lower).

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vocalyouth t1_j6jfjq0 wrote

OP's electric is insanely high. i have a similar sized house with gas heat and my bill last month for 2 adults was $125. Highest bill I have gotten in 2 years at my current place is $225 with central air running constantly. Also have Duquesne Light.

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SakuraSalticidae t1_j6jgmvn wrote

Our stats for a similar size house built in the 70s (outside the city), Peoples and First Energy (and on payment plans that average out the costs so each month is roughly the same): Gas, $189/month and electric, $87/month. According to Peoples, our actual usage for Dec was around $218. Electric was around $135 in Dec. 🤷🏻 Our house is also not well insulated.

One thing That wanted to mention, just in case… our old house (1960) was built by my grandfather and he and a buddy did the wiring when he built it. Nothing was ever renovated, just repaired, and only updated when something broke and replacement parts were needed. Our electric bill was frequently over $500 a month and according to grandma, had “always been unusually high.”

Someone went through with some kind of tester once and found “hot spots” (his words) where things were registering in a way they shouldn’t have. The main one in the kitchen was behind what used to be a very modern (for the 50s/60s) electric panel with plugs and retractable cords, timer dials, etc. It was broken, but still getting power. Once the guy detached that panel from the live feed and got it all properly shut off/capped, and did the same with at least one other concerning spot, the electric bill dropped by $100/month.

I’m not an electrician (clearly), but it seems to me that all the jury-rigged electrics in that old house were causing some major issues and jacking up the electric bill. It could maybe be worthwhile to call an electrician and have them check your house for wiring faults. Especially if it’s a “mid-century,” or older, house.

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mrs_peeps t1_j6k2qts wrote

Our gas bill was ~$400 last month where it's usually half that in winter. I called Columbia gas and they said the rate literally doubled from last year. I asked the rep how many calls they're getting about it and she said it's been nonstop calls.

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Fit-Practice1221 t1_j6l7m9r wrote

335 for electric is high. Even if it’s your main heat source.

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kniki217 t1_j6lbxga wrote

I'm near you and that's really high. I live in a 1000sq ft house. My electric averages $125 during winter and $175 during summer and that's with a 1950s antique beer fridge sucking up power and 3 pcs always on (2 work and 1 gaming). My gas bill was $140 on 68 and that's not on the budget billing. Water is 70 and sewage is separate that is $40.

Edit to add my insulation is shit so that's not helping keep my bill down

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mvpilot172 t1_j6ik4m0 wrote

My water runs between $70-90/mo sewage is around $70 Electric is $120 Gas is around $90 (budget amount)

1500 sq ft 2 story house with 4 people. Our water seems really high but maybe that’s normal now. Gas has doubled over the last 2-3 years also.

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MrMoneyWhale t1_j6im0xo wrote

Water seems normal, electric and gas are really high compared to us. We have the same size house in Homestead and same suppliers and keep the house at about the same temp.

I would check to see how much appliances like your furnace are running as well as any potential internal water leaks (including running toilet, basement sink that's dripping ,etc). If your furnace is constantly running to stay at 67, you likely either have an insulation issue and/or thermostat issue.

Electric, you likely have some energy vampires. Try unplugging some stuff for a day and see if that changes your usage. You can log onto your Duquesne site to get a better idea of energy breakdown at least by week.

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ticketferret t1_j6isk7o wrote

Nope utilities have been rough this winter. Gas for a 1.4k sq ft building has been $350 and electric has been higher than last year as well. People gas is what we use.

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MichaelPgh t1_j6ja3oq wrote

Our gas bill just went through the roof, and we just had a new roof installed. We keep the temp at 68° during the day when we’re home, otherwise it’s at 66° at night. Gas rates have definitely gone up.

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rustbeltrose t1_j6jgn3i wrote

My house is your same size, in the east end, I also rarely shower at home and only me and husband living at home. We rarely even have guests over. Our bills are very similar to yours. It’s astronomical!

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dingurth1 t1_j6jiv1s wrote

The one thing that bothers me the most as a transplant myself is the account fees. $16.75 per bill for gas, and $17.50 for water. $400+/yr all just for the pleasure of doing business with these companies. My last gas company in CA, the account fee was $0.16/day.

That said, the water and gas don't look too out of line from what I've heard other people say and my own experience so far. I'm a single person in a slightly smaller space than yours, but mine were $28/mo with PAW (so just the account fee is over half the bill), and $200/mo gas with Columbia, but my electric with DLC was just $80/mo. I've replaced all my bulbs with LEDs, but otherwise I'm not particularly electric conscious. I have a computer that I'm on ~14hrs a day and pulls a lot, and I have a chest freezer in the basement.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_j6ijjj8 wrote

It’s almost double what your mortgage is because you bought a cheap house that probably was build pre 1970s and has no insulation. You could invest in attic insulation, double pane windows, and high efficiency furnace. Your electricity seems high especially if you have a gas furnace. Can you provide more details? Welcome to home ownership. It takes a lot of effort to research all these issues and be a successful homeowner

Edit: electric hot water heater is strange. There are high efficiency heat pump electric hot water heaters but they are expensive and I bet you have a basic resistance hot water heater so get that replaced with something better. You will need to research your setup though because swapping electric to gas involves gas lines and very important proper venting. You can get a tax credit for a fancy heat pump electric water heater if you can’t fit gas

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pm_goth_feet_pls t1_j6ina31 wrote

not sure if it depends on the provider but with my 800 watt pc, 3 space heaters (1 for me, 1 for my snake and 1 for my roomies), running 24/7 and otherwise normal electricity use mine usually runs about 150$ from duquesne. my gas is columbia and i have a gas water heater, dryer and stove and my bill is less than 80$ monthly. gas with peoples is always fucked and they overcharge for everything, i would ask for a serialization of ur gas usage to make sure they arent overcharging u for 0 reason as they did with me for all of 2022. im in mt oliver so i have no idea if that affects prices but these are all just my personal experiences

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fryerandice t1_j6itewh wrote

My electric has been nuts since my sump pumps have been running 24/7 for 4 months now or something, i wish the rain/snow melt would ease up for a fucking week or two.

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GargantuanWitch t1_j6ksrqu wrote

If you've got a sump running 24/7, you need to investigate that. Even if the water is being removed, that kind of flow is NOT good. The sump should only be used for keeping shit dry, not "every time it rains" and certainly not all winter long.

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fryerandice t1_j6lhync wrote

My window wells have drainage tiles that drain into the interior sump to be pumped into my septic system. So If you account for that and the fact we haven't had 2 days in a row without rain since mid October, yeah it runs a good bit

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pburgh2517 t1_j6iut3r wrote

Am I the only one not seeing any change in my utilities? I have taken no actions out of the ordinary but my bills have actually gone down a little this year. Did I hit the utility lottery?

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Fine-Sense-595 t1_j6lzyfa wrote

Same. Gas is what it normally is , around 230$ with no insulation and down a radiator. but I haven’t used my space heaters and I’ve been at 40-50$ for electric since October. I’m normally at like 150/200 at this time of the year. Pretty proud of it!

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HighDerp t1_j6ivzk8 wrote

My electric is $130 and my gas is $530 right now. Gas heat. 2200sqft. Two people. Water is 50-80.

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AirtimeAficionado t1_j6izwli wrote

For my 1,100 sqft:

-No Gas

-Electric: $121.43

—Water: $51.10

I have a heat pump HVAC, electric water heating, and live in new construction. Not sure if they have an impact, but I also have an espresso machine (which does draw somewhat significant power) and full LED lighting.

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JAK3CAL t1_j6j9f2k wrote

That electric is absolutely wild dude, I have a 15 acre farm right by you with electric fences, well pumps, barns, etc and I am nowhere near your bill. Something’s amiss

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Sinsilenc t1_j6jd74n wrote

Do you know if your house has knob and tube? If so you could have a fault in the shielding and its making connection to wood.

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blackstarhero666 t1_j6jfrzq wrote

Do u have Duquesne for electric cus they tried saying I used more electricity

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mike33724 t1_j6jtkc4 wrote

Your gas and electric should not both be that high. Whichever is your heat MIGHT be that high, but the other should be low. Same will be true for the summer if you like your thermostat on 65 which makes your air conditioner work overtime.

To answer your question, that is not normal to have those prices for your utilities. You could call Duquesne light or Peoples but I’m not sure how much they will help you beyond basic advice over the phone. I would make sure all my bulbs are LEDs, my hot water tank is set lower, my thermostat is low, try to consolidate laundry cycles, try to consolidate dishwasher cycles, turn stuff off when not in use, and anything else you can think of to lower energy use

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Perky_Penguin t1_j6jx9us wrote

My rates for gas and electric doubled since 2021. I'm surprised non one has mentioned that.

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KnuckleHeadTOKE t1_j6k3tg7 wrote

704sq ft ranch built in 1915 here.

First Energy: Electric was 43.56 (last month was 35.41)

Peoples Gas:Gas was 85.67 (last month was 102.34)

Plumboro:Water was 81.00 (almost always the same) Water includes sewage, recycling and trash.

I live alone and have a gas stove, dryer, and furnace. I keep it around 60 during the day and lower it to 50 at night.

In the summer averages are:

Electric 120 (Central air being the main culprit)

Gas 25

Water 81

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Steely_McNeatHouse t1_j6k5lpd wrote

Hokie alumni here: Utilities are cheap AF in the NRV. (at least they were when I was in school)

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MisanthropicFriend t1_j6kaigz wrote

I paid $450 for one month of electric in a small small apartment that was only 62 degrees for a month before it got cold cold. I was barely in the apartment, worked full time, had all the windows sealed, blankets and drapes covering places where the wall was cold, and a cheaper space heater that ran a lower BTU with low voltage draw. I tested the fusebox, got the meter checked, and yeah. It was just that expensive.

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cjr9831 t1_j6kho6q wrote

i dont live to far from you, west mifflin near the airport. 1000sq ft house with finished basement. Electric and gas right now between 100-150. gas stove, water heater, and furnace. electric washer/dryer.

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seems a bit high

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adamglumac t1_j6ktrxy wrote

1 Insulation and windows 2 change out the water heater setup 3 start turning things off, background noise is all good, but those habits are contributing to high electric

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Sock_It_2_Me53 t1_j6kyop3 wrote

The water is low, electric is high. What about the sewer? That's what kills me.

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Gloomy-Carob-6921 t1_j6l62um wrote

Hey! I was thinking the same thing. My electric billed almost doubled and I'm renting.

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dogmom412 t1_j6lb80g wrote

Were they actual readings or estimates?

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DennisG47 t1_j6loiqq wrote

Can you not check with the previous owners, neighbors or with Duquesne Light or whoever your energy supplier is? I signed up, in the grocery store with Inspire Energy and they have a flat rate, or did, for the first two years and have saved a significant amount on my first bill.

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KentuckYSnow t1_j6mwyib wrote

Consider yourself lucky you don't have pwsa, or the water would be 150. The elec looks a tad high high, but tht gas doesn't. Last yrno checked the supply it up over 100% from a year ago, and 67 is pretty warm.

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wagsman t1_j6n85li wrote

That seems high. Since you have already double checked usage, that's a place to start. If the same stuff in VA pulled half the kwH, something is pulling current off your meter.

I'd look at the age of your systems to see if that's a contributing factor, but the other thing would be to invest in a home energy monitor that can tell you a bunch of information like which circuits are pulling what amounts and exactly when it's happening - however, if you arent comfortable around electric you might need to pay an electrician to set it up.

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After that you can look at things like insulation, and leaks.

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klauskervin t1_j6nbg85 wrote

I have a 1,800 sqft house in the same area and my electric only gets that high during peak AC use in the summer. You have a something using way too much electricity.

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thatburghfan t1_j6ovi0n wrote

Our home is a split entry of similar sq. ft., we also have Duq Light and one of us is home almost all the time, thermostat at 68-70, 65 at night. Dishwasher, gas heat, gas water heater. Our most recent electric bill was $113 (525 kWh used), gas was $121 (7.4 MCF used - Peoples Gas) .

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anxiousrunner13 t1_j6je331 wrote

If it’s plugged in it’s using electricity. If you have lots of stuffed plugged in but not used it still will increase your bill. Extra tv in a guest room not used unplug it all sorts of little things like that add up. Leaving lights on in rooms your not in all that will help bring down that bill some.

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GargantuanWitch t1_j6ksb3i wrote

Imagine the vindication for everyone who wisely ignored the "hurr durr pittsburgh is too cloudy" idiocy and got their solar panels installed before everything went to shit.

Those sub-$25 bills are nice, and it's also cool to not have to care (as much) about rate hikes.

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rockincharlierocket t1_j6illkx wrote

complain to gas company. they claim they raised rates to record high rates last month. fuck peoples gas

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[deleted] t1_j6iv372 wrote

Prices have more than double and in Pennsylvania the rates are hidden in distribution charges . Your actual cost is quite low its all the BS tacked on …nothing you can do . You voted for this and there is no return from it. Not enough votes anymore to change things. This from a state the EXPORTS power !!

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[deleted] t1_j6iuf1e wrote

Thank Senator “I am For and against Fracking “ Stutterman.

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GargantuanWitch t1_j6ksxbb wrote

I hope that no one you know ever has a stroke, but if they do, I sure hope you don't neglect to use that charming nickname for them.

Who hurt you?

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[deleted] t1_j6maaig wrote

You're right. Stroke is nothing to joke about on the top 1,000 things Not to joke about,

However No single Senator in History has done anything this insignificant as this creatin. Living in parents basement til 48 years old Neglects to pay his own taxes in the most blighted town in the USA while Mayor and keeps climbing the slime ladder to success. I apologize.

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GargantuanWitch t1_j6nefx4 wrote

Since you're simply parroting the same bullshit that my octogenarian mother-in-law hears down at the church every weekend, without understanding any of it, I'm gonna bid you a good day and wish you luck in your battle with reality.

If nonsense superlatives, "Sheetz" and backhanded comments about trans people were nickels, you'd be rich.

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[deleted] t1_j6neo6a wrote

Backhanded ? And what’s wrong with Sheetz ? I eat there everyday

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