Omg! 0.30 kW/hour!!
- Thread starter ZeroLot
- Start date
NEW -> Contingent Buyer Assistance Program
It's how the circuit breaker's are labeled. FAV stands for the house fan + AC unit.
Porch lights include all the circuits from the garage to the entry way to the house number to porch lights.
Next step is we are switching off ONLY the FAV switch for now to confirm.
Then we will turn the circuit back on and just turn off the FAV only switch in the attic and figure out if it's just the FAV or AC or both.
Either way, the builder will be the one to fix this whole mess.
I don't read the meter, this is a long story all covered in the solar panel thread ... http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,11554.msg240074.html#new
But thanks for pointing that out to me ... I'll bring up how ridiculous this phantoms energy draw is.
I read the sce.com hourly kW usage. Hence I was joking I broke it when it went down for over 6 hours today.
I've been checking my hourly energy use for since my house was vacant and I haven't moved in ...and it was using 0.64 kW an hour consistently in the middle of the night from 11pm to 6am.
When I moved in the 11pm to 6 am draw spiked up to 0.94 kW / hour from 11pm to 6am.
It was giving me a $250+ electric bill every month because no matter how little electricity I use the sce.com hourly rate would always be at a super high amount. I went as far as unplugging everything including the fridge just to convince Edison it's NOT the fridge. So they trained to blame the cable box and I already unplugged that too.
Builder already sent out an electrician and he said all the wires are fine.
So after weeks of experimentations ... We are very close to concluding that if we flip the FAV circuit breaker switch ... We would save 0.60 kW / hour.
But we won't know 100% until we get our hourly read for today's electric use until tomorrow on the sce.com website.
Is there not something in the thermostat schedule that changes between 11PM and 6AM? That would be a clue.
The killawatt won't help you with this, but they are very useful. I did an energy audit on my house and my parents' house. Dropped my bill down I think $30 a month. Turns out my parents' old fridges were gobbling over .3kw each on average. Replaced the fridges with new energy stars and their bill dropped about $100 a month. You think SCE is expensive...my parents pay a flat $.35/kw-h. Even with the savings on the fridges, they still got solar about 3 or 4 years ago, and now pay $18/month. They spent a LOT on their system, and I didn't want them to do it as the payoff is a good 10 years after factoring in state/fed incentives. But they liked the idea of saving the planet.
Tested that. We flipped the main circuit breaker and no HOA lights turned off.
I do. The older one has been complaining its hot in the house and I feed her ice cream and ice water. The baby runs around with a diaper on only. Although then poor thing just broke into a heat rash this week.
I'll just mist them down with the hose until the builder comes to fix this mess.
ZeroLot
New member
yaliu07 said:
It's how the circuit breaker's are labeled. FAV stands for the house fan + AC unit.
Porch lights include all the circuits from the garage to the entry way to the house number to porch lights.
Next step is we are switching off ONLY the FAV switch for now to confirm.
Then we will turn the circuit back on and just turn off the FAV only switch in the attic and figure out if it's just the FAV or AC or both.
Either way, the builder will be the one to fix this whole mess.
irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
It never was.ZeroLot said:
irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
My question here is how will the builder fix the .6 extra draw?
Is there something wrong with the wiring?
Is there something wrong with the wiring?
nosuchreality
Well-known member
Are you miss reading your meter?
A .94 kW per hour phantom draw would he the equivalent of ten 100 watt bulbs on at once and on continuously and would be a 600 kWh monthly run on the bill
A .94 kW per hour phantom draw would he the equivalent of ten 100 watt bulbs on at once and on continuously and would be a 600 kWh monthly run on the bill
Is the .94 the power draw (kw), or the pricing tier ($/kw-hr)? Are you saying these items are drawing power even when you don't use them?
That's one thing I really don't like about the new "smart" meters that SCE has installed around here. Used to be, with the dials I could actually read my power draw right away, and know that my electric dryer was consuming 5kw. These new meters don't give you that info How is that smart???
That's one thing I really don't like about the new "smart" meters that SCE has installed around here. Used to be, with the dials I could actually read my power draw right away, and know that my electric dryer was consuming 5kw. These new meters don't give you that info How is that smart???
ZeroLot
New member
nosuchreality said:
I don't read the meter, this is a long story all covered in the solar panel thread ... http://www.talkirvine.com/index.php/topic,11554.msg240074.html#new
But thanks for pointing that out to me ... I'll bring up how ridiculous this phantoms energy draw is.
I read the sce.com hourly kW usage. Hence I was joking I broke it when it went down for over 6 hours today.
I've been checking my hourly energy use for since my house was vacant and I haven't moved in ...and it was using 0.64 kW an hour consistently in the middle of the night from 11pm to 6am.
When I moved in the 11pm to 6 am draw spiked up to 0.94 kW / hour from 11pm to 6am.
It was giving me a $250+ electric bill every month because no matter how little electricity I use the sce.com hourly rate would always be at a super high amount. I went as far as unplugging everything including the fridge just to convince Edison it's NOT the fridge. So they trained to blame the cable box and I already unplugged that too.
Builder already sent out an electrician and he said all the wires are fine.
So after weeks of experimentations ... We are very close to concluding that if we flip the FAV circuit breaker switch ... We would save 0.60 kW / hour.
But we won't know 100% until we get our hourly read for today's electric use until tomorrow on the sce.com website.
Just read that entire thread (all 14 pages). Yikes! I would be so afraid of a fire starting if there's a short somewhere. I mean, if it hasn't yet, it probably won't, but whatever it is, it's probably pretty warm. Maybe turn the breaker on and run an infrared thermometer around the attic unit and around the outside evaporator.ZeroLot said:
Is there not something in the thermostat schedule that changes between 11PM and 6AM? That would be a clue.
The killawatt won't help you with this, but they are very useful. I did an energy audit on my house and my parents' house. Dropped my bill down I think $30 a month. Turns out my parents' old fridges were gobbling over .3kw each on average. Replaced the fridges with new energy stars and their bill dropped about $100 a month. You think SCE is expensive...my parents pay a flat $.35/kw-h. Even with the savings on the fridges, they still got solar about 3 or 4 years ago, and now pay $18/month. They spent a LOT on their system, and I didn't want them to do it as the payoff is a good 10 years after factoring in state/fed incentives. But they liked the idea of saving the planet.
ZeroLot
New member
First off, thanks for taking the time to read the 14 page thread.
I'm glad our place hasn't burned down either. We've turned off the thermostat since May because of the ridiculous electric bill. There is no AC being used by us, if it turned itself on we would hear it.
The only item left is the FAV. Any idea what a FAV is suppose to do???
Also I'm this close to pulling the trigger on this item:
The Dewalt DCF895D2. I like the 3 speed option. It gives Mr. Z the chance to acclimate himself with the tool with a slower speed until he gets used to an impact driver.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DSUV4RW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
I'm glad our place hasn't burned down either. We've turned off the thermostat since May because of the ridiculous electric bill. There is no AC being used by us, if it turned itself on we would hear it.
The only item left is the FAV. Any idea what a FAV is suppose to do???
Also I'm this close to pulling the trigger on this item:
The Dewalt DCF895D2. I like the 3 speed option. It gives Mr. Z the chance to acclimate himself with the tool with a slower speed until he gets used to an impact driver.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DSUV4RW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Sweet! Like Christmas in August! Keep in mind it's just a driver. If you want to upgrade the drill, that's a separate tool. If you're not in a rush and like the thrill of the hunt, you can find decent deals every so often on sets. This is a good combo, though there are others with even more stuff if you fancy saws, angle grinders, reciprocating tools, etc:http://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DCK286D2-Lithium-Brushless-Hammerdrill/dp/B00DG7SYYI/ref=pd_cp_hi_2
Definitely get lithium batteries. Not sure if Nicads are even offered anymore, but stay away if they are.
I thought FAV was the breaker for the air conditioner? If so, I would guess it stands for something like Forced Air Ventilation or Fan/Air/Ventilation. It will run whatever heater/cooling unit you have, unless the heater is also gas powered. Like your fridge, the compressor would take the largest share of the energy, but as you said, you would hear it running. The breaker also provides power to a fan in the unit and a fan on the evaporator. I was thinking a stuck relay or solenoid could draw power, but I can't see it drawing 600 watts (and it wouldn't switch on and off at the same time every day by itself). Just because the thermostat is off doesn't mean there isn't a fault in the wiring or within a component somewhere. The thermostat is just a remote switch; the current that powers the AC doesn't actually travel through the thermostat.
Definitely get lithium batteries. Not sure if Nicads are even offered anymore, but stay away if they are.
I thought FAV was the breaker for the air conditioner? If so, I would guess it stands for something like Forced Air Ventilation or Fan/Air/Ventilation. It will run whatever heater/cooling unit you have, unless the heater is also gas powered. Like your fridge, the compressor would take the largest share of the energy, but as you said, you would hear it running. The breaker also provides power to a fan in the unit and a fan on the evaporator. I was thinking a stuck relay or solenoid could draw power, but I can't see it drawing 600 watts (and it wouldn't switch on and off at the same time every day by itself). Just because the thermostat is off doesn't mean there isn't a fault in the wiring or within a component somewhere. The thermostat is just a remote switch; the current that powers the AC doesn't actually travel through the thermostat.
nosuchreality
Well-known member
Given the time frame. My guess is the common area security lights are wired to your connection. Particularly if FAV isn't turning off the AC.
irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
I wonder how often this happens in new builds (ZL did say they had mentioned it before).
I bet some FCBs don't even notice because they don't have a comparison on what an electricity bill should be.
I bet some FCBs don't even notice because they don't have a comparison on what an electricity bill should be.
ZeroLot
New member
eyephone said:
Tested that. We flipped the main circuit breaker and no HOA lights turned off.
aquabliss said:What a mess and a headache... I don't know how you've lived without AC for the past 2 months, I'm guessing you don't have kids
I do. The older one has been complaining its hot in the house and I feed her ice cream and ice water. The baby runs around with a diaper on only. Although then poor thing just broke into a heat rash this week.
I'll just mist them down with the hose until the builder comes to fix this mess.