Comments on: Investigate Larger than Average Bills

By: Rich

Rich — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 00:40:58 +0000

We received a water bill that was tripled normal at our business.
$18 to $54 dollars for a month. The flapper seal in one of the toilets had a slight leak. Replaced it and still had a leak. Was told to make sure to use a flexible rubber seal, not one of those rigid plastic ones. Changed it again and our water bill this month was back to normal. Natural gas heating bills are tougher to monitor since the price per therm varies so much as well as the range in daily temperature. I have a spreadsheet where I compared the monthly degree days to the therms used. I was able to increase my heating efficiency by 20% over three years by comparing natural gas used to monthly degree days and adjusting programmable thermostats and adding insulation. I am looking forward to next year to see the improvement from changing out five drafty basement single pane windows to better sealed double pane windows!

By: Stephen - NYC

Stephen - NYC — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 20:08:02 +0000

Here in New York City, we’re about to get hit with another 14% water rate increase. Since they are separate from the rest of the city budget they seem to be able to ram through just about anything they want. Of course, they claim it’s because they’re building the 3rd water tunnel (yeah, they are, big deal). The real problem comes from the fact that the mayor steals the surplus that’s generated and puts it into the general fund. So the water board needs more money. And we have a minimum usage rate, so even conservation doesn’t help. As a single guy, I usually don’t go over the minimum (except when the pipe to the outside water spigot broke and flooded my basement – but I thought it was a rain problem due to water backing up from the shower in the basement’s bathroom). And yeah, keep an eye on the toilet bowl tank. It’s amazing how much water will leak if the seal isn’t perfect.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:57:22 +0000

Maryland’s water bills have stayed about the same, but the electricity and gas bills in this state are ridiculous. They seem to charge what they please. Some people complained of having bills of over $800 a month just for gas and electric and no politician seems to be standing up to them.

By: SmartSecurityPeople.com

SmartSecurityPeople.com — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:12:17 +0000

Keeping on the topic of toilet seals and the longevity of them… You want to make sure that the pretty blue tablets that you drop in your tank to color the water don’t contain bleach. Bleach can be very abrasive and it will shorten the lifespan of your toilet seals immensely.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 04:51:37 +0000

We had a much larger than expected electricity bill recently. The culprit was not what I was expecting. It was a leaking faucet! Apparently it was dripping hot water. We got that fixed, and things are back to normal.

By: eemusings

eemusings — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 04:49:19 +0000

Too true. We’ve just discovered our water cylindre is faulty – explains why our power bills have been soaring AND why our water bills have been reading so high. Sigh.

By: Chewbakka

Chewbakka — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 02:27:17 +0000

Very true! Toilet seals don’t last forever…in fact, in places where there is hard water, the seal flaps tend to build up with mineral deposits that contribute to the shortened seal life. This can apply to any water outlet in some way.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:32:37 +0000

I live in North Plains, OR and my monthly water bill is 95 dollars. I thought maybe that was pretty high. I have noticed over the last few months that the toilet in the master bedroom does that sound like it is refilling the tank fairl frequently. I will have to check into why it is doing that. I wonder if I were to stop that if my bill will go down. I’ll repost if that works.

By: Jim

Jim — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:20:17 +0000

Hahaha, true, true.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:04:20 +0000

Um… by definition half of your bills are “larger than average.”

By: DebtGoal

DebtGoal — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:26:38 +0000

This is true not only for water and energy bills, but those with financial concerns should apply this process to any recurring monthly expenses. Since recurring monthly bills are some of the most profitable for service and product providers, and sellers know that they tend to be the least reviewed items in a budget, checking them for fraud is a must in this economic climate.