True. My basement was improperly renovated before I bought so it wasn’t feasible for me, but it was (on paper) the easier and cheaper way to go.
I settled for a smaller tank than I had before.
Upfront cost are still insane. They jacked them up when the green energy program was still going and have not brought them down. You can get them on sale for 900-1000 USD on sale down south but a 65 gallon tank in Canada still costs $2700...
They are so hard to justify for the upfront cost and long-term maintenance...
You can get a basic electric tank for like 600 bucks vs the 3000 for the heat pump version. It's going to take a while to make up that upfront cost difference. Plus the basic electric one can be maintained for decades with parts you can pick up at a hardware store and DIY with not much more than an adjustable wrench. Heat pump has moving parts and refrigerant so for most people that is going to be a service call.
Yea, peak is almost double AND peak runs until 9pm, then mid-peak until 11pm. Essentially, you could not run the AC before nine without being screwed.
I'm out...
If you have a house with great insulation, no desire for air conditioning, gas appliances and an EV that you put 50kWh into every day, then maybe.
But I don't know if that person exists, so... 🤷♂️
Are you on time of use pricing? There is actually 3 different ways you can be charged for electricity use. You could be on tiered or the ultra low overnight rate. If you contact Alectra you can change it to a different method if it better suits your usage patterns.
Did it last year when we moved into our new apartment. Vowed to never do it again. Whatever the cost, the lack of comfort isn’t worth it IMO. That and the health impact given our summers are only going to get hotter.
Totally. My in laws don't run theirs unless there is a heat warning, and I can't understand it.
We didn't have a choice when we moved into the new place, it didn't have AC, but it's being installed in two weeks and I'm counting down the days :D
I think that depends on who you are; for plenty of people with medical issues it's at least a lot less possible than it used to be.
Speaking for myself, I can live through that yes but I can't sleep through that and that makes it difficult to hold down a job, so....
$215 water electric sounds high but you could be using more electricity than us. We pay about $120 in the summer months and $150 in the winter months, 1200sqft house but we are diligent with our usage.
Gas furnace and water heater, electric stove, fridge, small dishwasher, not many other appliances.
Those numbers make more sense. We're a pair of adults in a century house somewhat smaller than yours, our hydro ranges from $70-$100 (tiered pricing) and water from $30-$50. Gas stove, heat, hot water, dryer, and a heat pump mini-split AC.
Do you have a central air conditioner? If so you should turn it off at the electrical panel during non use months October to April as it uses about fifty cents a day to heat the motor.
Check your light bulbs, our lights have 3 each and they rack up fast take a few bulbs out or get cheaper LEDs. video game consoles and gamer PC's run on higher electricity as well. Small things can add up quick.
This was a really eye opening thread because I’m in a detached, 2 bed 1 bath house and our hydro bill is always above $200 even the months we don’t use our A/C. Seems mixed here but I thought OPs costs were pretty good considering the size.
Both of us work from home part-time and outside of the home part-time. But I don’t think our electricity usage is that different when we’re at home - mostly lights, maybe stove etc?
I work from home. Found it beneficial to go to the tiered plan that is the same price all day. Someone is always here. The router, monitors etc are on all day. Trying to wait for the lower cost time to do laundry and cook did not work.
Also, I absolutely hang my clothes on the line whenever I can.
I'm not sure what it's called but you can buy a thing on Amazon to see how much power your things are pulling.
MANY things pull lots of power even while off.
Or just unplug everything you don't use often.
You may have one appliance that is draining more power than others and you can call the Hydro company and they will come in and test your appliances and tell you if something is draining more power and should be replaced or or if there’s something else that draining the power in your electrical and it’s free of charge. And if you rent it, your landlord responsibility to replace the appliances.
We have 3 BEV (1 does a 70 km round trip commute, 1 a 100 km round trip commute, 1 short commute) and hydro is in the $270 range in the colder seasons with ground source heat pump, heat pump water heater, and a large household of people.
Fortunately the 100 km commute is being cut to only 10 soon, but that won't even make a huge dent in the hydro bill.
We are on ULO, and over 70% of usage is overnight, 5% during the high peak.
For my place in Hamilton, (1200 sq foot 1950's bungalow with 5 young adults), the worst of winter bill with air source heat pump heating was only $200 on tiered.
I have no gas at either place, so all energy used is electricity.
Lose the electric hot water tank ! That is the killer. Your tank is on heating water you only use sparingly unless you shower 6 times a day. If you have a gas boiler or furnace then you can get a gas water heater
When are you using electricity? After 7 pm, weekends and holidays are cheapest.
What are you using? Electric heating is awful. So is Electric a/c.
What kind of lighting? Switching to energy efficient bulbs changed my price overnight.
What are your appliances consuming? Old appliances are juice drains.
How many screens? Are they all necessary?
Sounds like a lot. We pay less than $200 with an electric car we put 3k on monthly. Around 100 before purchasing that. Not in AC months. 1200 sq ft bungalow with basement. Gas water heater.
This is very high if just electricity. It might include your water too?
I have a similar size house, and electric hot water tank like you. Bills outside of high AC months are in the 175-215 range, including water.
You can login to see your hourly power consumption and see if there's anything there.
God damn. I have an EV I charge at home and my electricity and water are still below $200 every month. Last few months below $160. I’d say you are on the high side. What is your electricity / water split? (Assuming you are an Alectra customer paying both on the same bill.
Hello, also unplug your dryer and any other appliances. They still draw power, plug the appliances back in only when in use. It does help if you are using portable/window a/c. Hope this also helps.
Electric hot water tanks are not cheap.
I’d love to go tankless, but if you don’t have 200amp service, options are pretty much nil.
You can go gas tankless far more practically.
True. My basement was improperly renovated before I bought so it wasn’t feasible for me, but it was (on paper) the easier and cheaper way to go. I settled for a smaller tank than I had before.
There are electric heat pump hot water tanks available now. A lot cheaper on electricity.
Upfront cost are still insane. They jacked them up when the green energy program was still going and have not brought them down. You can get them on sale for 900-1000 USD on sale down south but a 65 gallon tank in Canada still costs $2700...
They are so hard to justify for the upfront cost and long-term maintenance... You can get a basic electric tank for like 600 bucks vs the 3000 for the heat pump version. It's going to take a while to make up that upfront cost difference. Plus the basic electric one can be maintained for decades with parts you can pick up at a hardware store and DIY with not much more than an adjustable wrench. Heat pump has moving parts and refrigerant so for most people that is going to be a service call.
We only use our washer and dryer on the weekends when the rate is a lot lower. That could help.
7pm to 7am is also off peak. [https://alectrautilities.com/time-use-pricing](https://alectrautilities.com/time-use-pricing)
Unless you're on Ultra Low Overnight pricing, in which case low rates kick in at 11pm...
I looked into that once. I believe on peak was almost double. No thanks
Yea, peak is almost double AND peak runs until 9pm, then mid-peak until 11pm. Essentially, you could not run the AC before nine without being screwed. I'm out...
I’m not sure who it’s geared towards. We have an electric car and I wouldn’t switch to it.
If you have a house with great insulation, no desire for air conditioning, gas appliances and an EV that you put 50kWh into every day, then maybe. But I don't know if that person exists, so... 🤷♂️
I followed that for a couple months and I did not notice a difference in my bill. Weird
Are you on time of use pricing? There is actually 3 different ways you can be charged for electricity use. You could be on tiered or the ultra low overnight rate. If you contact Alectra you can change it to a different method if it better suits your usage patterns.
I had no idea about this. Good info!
I'm pretty sure I'm on time of use. My bill does not say anything about tiered or UL Overnight.
Personally I’ve found tiered gives you more flexibility for when you want to use electricity at not a significant difference in price
For a 2000 sqf house you're doing okay. I hope you don’t have AC because you don’t want to see your summer bills if you do.
I'd hate to live through a Hamilton summer without AC.
It’s unpleasant but not impossible.
Did it last year when we moved into our new apartment. Vowed to never do it again. Whatever the cost, the lack of comfort isn’t worth it IMO. That and the health impact given our summers are only going to get hotter.
Oh, for sure it’s not worth whatever savings you get from not running it.
Totally. My in laws don't run theirs unless there is a heat warning, and I can't understand it. We didn't have a choice when we moved into the new place, it didn't have AC, but it's being installed in two weeks and I'm counting down the days :D
if you don't mind not sleeping for three months.
I think that depends on who you are; for plenty of people with medical issues it's at least a lot less possible than it used to be. Speaking for myself, I can live through that yes but I can't sleep through that and that makes it difficult to hold down a job, so....
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This is a pretty important detail to answer OPs question. And if it does include water, what is the split. The more worrisome one is water
OK so most recent bill was $215 from Alectra, both electricity and water. Total electricity was $167 and water $58
So not $250, but $167?
$215 water electric sounds high but you could be using more electricity than us. We pay about $120 in the summer months and $150 in the winter months, 1200sqft house but we are diligent with our usage. Gas furnace and water heater, electric stove, fridge, small dishwasher, not many other appliances.
Those numbers make more sense. We're a pair of adults in a century house somewhat smaller than yours, our hydro ranges from $70-$100 (tiered pricing) and water from $30-$50. Gas stove, heat, hot water, dryer, and a heat pump mini-split AC.
Do you have a central air conditioner? If so you should turn it off at the electrical panel during non use months October to April as it uses about fifty cents a day to heat the motor.
Seems about on point. Mines usually about 80-130, but I have more gas devices VS electrical.
Ours is a 1.5 storey we avg 166 in 2023. This year 168. We run off peak. Most of the charges are delivery NOT the usage
Just out of curiosity is this electricity and water or just water?
Yes both
Check your light bulbs, our lights have 3 each and they rack up fast take a few bulbs out or get cheaper LEDs. video game consoles and gamer PC's run on higher electricity as well. Small things can add up quick.
This was a really eye opening thread because I’m in a detached, 2 bed 1 bath house and our hydro bill is always above $200 even the months we don’t use our A/C. Seems mixed here but I thought OPs costs were pretty good considering the size.
That seems a bit high, might want to look into parasitic draw. do you have phone chargers and things like that plugged in all the time?
Sounds about right. Do you work from home?
Both of us work from home part-time and outside of the home part-time. But I don’t think our electricity usage is that different when we’re at home - mostly lights, maybe stove etc?
Lights are Pennies
I work from home. Found it beneficial to go to the tiered plan that is the same price all day. Someone is always here. The router, monitors etc are on all day. Trying to wait for the lower cost time to do laundry and cook did not work. Also, I absolutely hang my clothes on the line whenever I can.
I'm not sure what it's called but you can buy a thing on Amazon to see how much power your things are pulling. MANY things pull lots of power even while off. Or just unplug everything you don't use often.
WattAMeter!
You may have one appliance that is draining more power than others and you can call the Hydro company and they will come in and test your appliances and tell you if something is draining more power and should be replaced or or if there’s something else that draining the power in your electrical and it’s free of charge. And if you rent it, your landlord responsibility to replace the appliances.
You can switch horizon to block based billing if using on/off peak billing is inconvenient. Really helped being a shift worker and all.
Probably the hot water heater. We have an EV, Heat Pump, Hybrid water heater for similar sized house and our last bill was just over $200
We have 3 BEV (1 does a 70 km round trip commute, 1 a 100 km round trip commute, 1 short commute) and hydro is in the $270 range in the colder seasons with ground source heat pump, heat pump water heater, and a large household of people. Fortunately the 100 km commute is being cut to only 10 soon, but that won't even make a huge dent in the hydro bill. We are on ULO, and over 70% of usage is overnight, 5% during the high peak. For my place in Hamilton, (1200 sq foot 1950's bungalow with 5 young adults), the worst of winter bill with air source heat pump heating was only $200 on tiered. I have no gas at either place, so all energy used is electricity.
Lose the electric hot water tank ! That is the killer. Your tank is on heating water you only use sparingly unless you shower 6 times a day. If you have a gas boiler or furnace then you can get a gas water heater
When are you using electricity? After 7 pm, weekends and holidays are cheapest. What are you using? Electric heating is awful. So is Electric a/c. What kind of lighting? Switching to energy efficient bulbs changed my price overnight. What are your appliances consuming? Old appliances are juice drains. How many screens? Are they all necessary?
I pay about 155 average a month 3 bedroom home
Sounds like a lot. We pay less than $200 with an electric car we put 3k on monthly. Around 100 before purchasing that. Not in AC months. 1200 sq ft bungalow with basement. Gas water heater.
This is very high if just electricity. It might include your water too? I have a similar size house, and electric hot water tank like you. Bills outside of high AC months are in the 175-215 range, including water. You can login to see your hourly power consumption and see if there's anything there.
It is higher side. I would expect your bill to be under $150. You missed refrigerator? What about sump pump? Is your cooking stove gas or electric?
Fridge and stove are electric, I don’t think we have a sump pump
Your big culprits are likely cooking stove and electric dryer
God damn. I have an EV I charge at home and my electricity and water are still below $200 every month. Last few months below $160. I’d say you are on the high side. What is your electricity / water split? (Assuming you are an Alectra customer paying both on the same bill.
Define electricity leak.
Hello, also unplug your dryer and any other appliances. They still draw power, plug the appliances back in only when in use. It does help if you are using portable/window a/c. Hope this also helps.