Soaring Electricity Bills

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joddle
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Soaring Electricity Bills

Post by joddle »

Just had our latest bill for electricity and nearly keeled over. Despite having no one in the property the bill was much higher than ever. The usage can be viewed by the hour and date so I stated to look for where the power is being used and noticed the pool pump which comes on for 3 hours in the morning and 3 hours at night was responsible for a lot of the power. However when looking closer I see that the pump (around 1hp I believe) regularly consumes about 800 w per hour for the periods it is programmed to run for which is what I would have expected but on many days the power used shoots up to twice that at 1.6 KWH and occasionally to almost three times that, the highest being 2.1kwh - and all those readings for exactly the same time of evening and when no one is in residence. Is there any logical explanation for that variance, or could there be a problem with the pump? Any ideas welcomed.
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CSE
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Post by CSE »

Are you saying the kWh is higher or the price.
If it is the latter then the costs have risen per unit.
https://www.ocu.org/organizacion/prensa ... idad120121
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joddle
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Post by joddle »

CSE wrote:Are you saying the kWh is higher or the price.
If it is the latter then the costs have risen per unit.
https://www.ocu.org/organizacion/prensa ... idad120121
The actual power used by the pump is higher some times which is what I don't understand. I accept my bill is higher due to price increases but why should the pump sometimes use only 0.7kwh some nights but 2.1kwh another night for the same setting of the timer and when no-one is at the property using electricity for anything else!!
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PanoramahausNorman
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Post by PanoramahausNorman »

The pump might draw more current (Watts) because something is blocking the flow (leafs, mud, faulty bearing...) and the higher resistance causes the motor to draw more current.

Another option is the pump consumes more power (kWh) as it runs longer maybe because the timer is not working properly.

It is hard to tell when not at the property but next time you are at the property check with a third party power meter what actually happens. I am using https://efergy.com to et a high level overview what is happening at my properties. The equipment is easy to setup and can show consumption real time in the house or through the internet wherever you like.
joddle wrote:
CSE wrote:Are you saying the kWh is higher or the price.
If it is the latter then the costs have risen per unit.
https://www.ocu.org/organizacion/prensa ... idad120121
The actual power used by the pump is higher some times which is what I don't understand. I accept my bill is higher due to price increases but why should the pump sometimes use only 0.7kwh some nights but 2.1kwh another night for the same setting of the timer and when no-one is at the property using electricity for anything else!!
Running an architect’s house from the sixties remotely from UK is a challenge. Running costs and knowing what is happening with the property while it is idle was important to us.
brendan
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Post by brendan »

I'm no expert but every time I've had a problem similar to yours, it has been down to a leak.
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CSE
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Post by CSE »

Thanks for the clarification.
I think someone has to be there to monitor the pump in action. I appreciate that maybe impossible with lockdowns.
To add to the above suggestions.
Maybe there is air in the system. This would cause surging and for the pump to work harder.
How do you clean the water?
I assume you do not heat it at the moment either. Maybe that has been left switched on?
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RichardHenshall
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Post by RichardHenshall »

I'm guessing here but an obvious question for me is: is it a 3-phase pump/supply? You've mentioned numbers doubling and trebling.

Could your cabling be exhibiting faults or your meter (if it's 3-phase)?

Two or three years ago we had problems with (3-phase) supply cables to the pool which resulted in the pump's time clock (which ran on a faulty phase) eventually getting very confused and switching on about three daily cycles each day (obviously not at the appropriate off-peak times). Eventually the underground cabling started to cause tripping once the winter rains arrived and they were persistently damp. It was only then that investigations revealed the true cause.
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joddle
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Post by joddle »

We are on a single phase supply. I had thought of damp underground cables but that would not explain why its only the pump on times where there is a surge in power use. I can't see how to add a picture to these posts as I can best illustrate this with a usage breakdown table - any one know how to add a picture?
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CSE
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Post by CSE »

Unfortunately there is no hosting for here.
Use a hosting website like one of these, there are others, and paste a link here. Highlight the link and click the Image
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joddle
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Post by joddle »

Thanks to the last poster - The link shows my recent usage - it is easy to spot when the house was being used and when not, i.e. it was last occupied on 18 Jan. Also easy to spot is when the pool pump timer cut in between 7 and 10 mornings and evenings. but the night time shows remarkable differences in power consumption which is what is confusing to me.

https://pasteboard.co/JMkcy06.jpg
Last edited by joddle on Mon Feb 01, 2021 11:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
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RichardHenshall
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Post by RichardHenshall »

I would agree that it seems likely that the pump (rather than the timer) is the problem.

I'm not a motor expert but I think that a failing motor run capacitor (which is relatively cheap) might exhibit this sort of behaviour. If you can find a detailed parts list for your pump/motor you'll be able to see if it uses one. There may also be a start capacitor.
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CSE
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Post by CSE »

Is this consumption for the whole of the property, or just the pool pump?
Maybe there is something else running?
At night in Spain we are all confided to barracks. So it is not as if someone is taking a dip then.
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joddle
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Post by joddle »

No that is the consumption for the whole property
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