Any advice?

Mephisto_Helix

Mephisto_Helix

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So, here I sit, months down the line where I'm very energy efficient and my bill has cracked the R2000pm mark ......... how it has carried on going up despite there being so little on and less people in the house is beyond me. Point is, it's pay or get cut off and I simply cannot afford to pay 2k plus a month, nor do I think it's fair when every neighbor around me, every single one, has a bill no higher than R680pm. They have the dishwashers, the tumble-dryers, the extra geyser in the granny flat, etc etc but their bills are normal.

Can anyone at all give me any advice on who to contact to actually get this looked at or what to do that I can lower this ripoff? Geyser is on 2 hours a day ...... 1 light in the day, 5 at night ...... tv's and pc's off ..... phone chargers unplugged when not in use, so wtf else do I do. I really am at my wits end and any info would be appreciated.
 
Mephisto_Helix said:
So, here I sit, months down the line where I'm very energy efficient and my bill has cracked the R2000pm mark ......... how it has carried on going up despite there being so little on and less people in the house is beyond me. Point is, it's pay or get cut off and I simply cannot afford to pay 2k plus a month, nor do I think it's fair when every neighbor around me, every single one, has a bill no higher than R680pm. They have the dishwashers, the tumble-dryers, the extra geyser in the granny flat, etc etc but their bills are normal.

Can anyone at all give me any advice on who to contact to actually get this looked at or what to do that I can lower this ripoff? Geyser is on 2 hours a day ...... 1 light in the day, 5 at night ...... tv's and pc's off ..... phone chargers unplugged when not in use, so wtf else do I do. I really am at my wits end and any info would be appreciated.
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I feel your pain... My bill is also starting to hit the R2000 pm mark... and I remember paying in the R800 range about a year ago :(

Have you tried taking down your own meter readings and checking that against the bill you receive?
 
DCS said:
I feel your pain... My bill is also starting to hit the R2000 pm mark... and I remember paying in the R800 range about a year ago :(

Have you tried taking down your own meter readings and checking that against the bill you receive?
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Also which area are you in? I was also chatting to some guys I work with and last month they all received bills in the R2000 range, though they came down again to the normal R1200 the following month... I found this rather weird...

Are you sure its not the water portion of your bill pushing the amount up?
 
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If you think your meter is faulty contact electricity and they will make you pay a deposit and fit a test meter to see if your meter is faulty or not .if found faulty they will refund if not you lose your deposit .
I feel your pain bro but i pay like 5 grand a month but i have 3 places i let out and 3 geysers , that is rates included ,my place is listed as business premises.
 
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Mine spike last month BUT it was an idiot who claimed to have "read" my meter on a Sunday (which he didn't do, obviously) and that lead to an "actual reading" of almost DOUBLE my normal usage...

Check your meter vs your bill as a starting point.

Lastly, in my previous house I had a similar problem, what I started doing was reading my electricity meter daily at the same time. I would then monitor it and try to explain fluctuations. So if it dropped one day then I would try to think what we did differently eg had a braai and didnt use the oven...

This will be a starting point at least. Good luck. Let us know if you find a culprit such as a faulty appliance etc.

PS: I have heard mixed views on switching geysers on and off - some says it doesnt really save you that much - but you can test it if you read the meters daily...
 
You can submit your own readings... might be a a good way of keeping track

EDIT: I agree with the geyser... its best left alone.
 
Yeah, I've compared my readings against their 'estimated' bs and it's often not the same ...... problem is: They say they have recently done a physical reading - I'm here all day everyday and the meter is in the backyard so not possible and they don't care that my readings are different. Like literally, there is no one to speak to to challenge the readings.
 
Check online... there is a way to do it.

Then you can dispute from there, I think they are possibly reading from the main meter and for some reason you are getting the slack.
 
How difficult is it to switch an existing place to prepaid? I have prepaid at home and find it much more reliable (and easier to track).
 
ebendl said:
How difficult is it to switch an existing place to prepaid? I have prepaid at home and find it much more reliable (and easier to track).
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Its a bit of an effort to get the thing installed, but awesome once in, use what you pay for, bill has close to halved as it also makes you more electricity conscious.
 
phiber said:
Its a bit of an effort to get the thing installed, but awesome once in, use what you pay for, bill has close to halved as it also makes you more electricity conscious.
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That's my feeling as well. You can track it yourself, nobody has to come and "estimate" your spending and take a reading, and somehow I feel that I spend less (and I track it perhaps once a month). My wife and I spend like R400 a month on electricity!

Wish it was possible to get pre-paid water as well.

The best thing is, with a pre-paid system, everybody wins, as the municipality get their funds BEFORE even giving you the service - no problems with debt collection...
 
Other alternative is to get an efergy meter or similar so you can keep an eye on your consumption trends.
 
I originally did track my consumption (used to watch the little red LED flicker faster and faster when you turn on a heater), but eventually stopped.

I load R1000 every 2 - 3 months. Works like a charm.

Also nice that you can buy in bulk before the increases and load it all at once - loaded R4,000 before the increase last year and lasted months.

I run my geyser full time, my wife cooks often using the stove, use a dishwasher every 2 days. Shower every day. We do wash clothes without heating the water and seldom use a tumble dryer. No pool.
 
Mephisto : Phone the numbers on your bill, and you can give in a meter reading.... don't try talk to them or anything, just phone the number and submit your reading and see what happens.

I was getting ridiculous bills for a few months, phoned in my reading and the next month I had to pay absolutely nothing.,
 
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