wrobert

So they are installing the new meters which offer off peak billing at reduced rates. Anyone taken advantage of that yet? Did it save you anything?

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Susan Horn

I call myself reading my mail and trying to keep up, but somehow I missed this. So I went to Chelco's website and here's the page about it:

Alternative Rates - Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, Inc. (CHELCO)

There's a brochure you can download. Wonder if anyone's done the math to see if it saves you $$, since there's a monthly charge to do this ($24 or $36)? So. You have to pay extra for conserving energy and saving the co-op from needing to generate more power? And you have to initiate it, and it only works with certain meters.... Could they make it any easier for their customers to help them out on reducing peak power consumption?

Wouldn't it make all kinds of sense if this were just automatically how they billed everyone (as well as a fair price in customers' net metered sales of power back to Chelco)? I am told that in other parts of the country this is just the way it's done, and people quickly figure out how to schedule certain activities and uses, how to set timers on water heaters and lights, delay wash and dry cycles, etc., to get lower power bills and reduce carbon emissions too.

Lots of very interesting idaes about this sort of thing in a book I just finished -- Hot, Flat and Crowded.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

Smiling JOe

I missed it too. I used to hear ideas that washing clothes, running dishwasher, etc was less expensive if done late at night, but I've never lived anywhere the power company charged more for peak times, and less for off-peak times. It makes sense to me, regarding the demand, especially in California where they have critical black-outs. It would also make sense for the power companies to charge less for this service, yet they are charging MORE!

Susan Horn, if you like the book, to to Charlie Rose's website and look for the archived interviews with Thomas Friedman, they are very good, better than reading the book, with a summary of the book's ideas. Charlie has interviewed Friedman several times.

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goodwitch58

So, Susan and SJ, let me see if I understand this correctly:

if one wants to be charged the lower rate for using electricity during off peak times, then one needs to sign up, have a different meter installed, and pay an additional monthly fee?

That doesn't make any sense to me. Won't the additional cost offset any savings realized by using power at peak time?

and, if customers are using off peak power, they are still charged for peak power unless they have done the above?

Why not just charge the lower rate when the cost is lower (at low peak)?

I'm confused.

It's kinda like the grocery store charging more for the "organic" products: they don't have all the added perservatives, did not use the chemcial fertilizers and pesticides, so to have less, we pay more....

what is wrong with this picture? or I am I seeing it wrong?

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"If people cannot write well, they cannot think well, and if they cannot think well, others will do their thinking for them."
George Orwell

scooterbug44

Many municipalities already do peak/non-peak during summer months, but they don't do a special meter, they just shut the power off if you use too much!

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"I hate to break it to you, but this year (and probably the next few) was going to suck even if Jesus himself was president. These problems were not created overnight and they aren't going away overnight." -Jdarg

carmen

In Minnesota I am on a program during the summer called "Saver's switch" The utility company limits access to power during peak demand hours, which limits how low the AC can go. Being part of the program saves me quite a bit of money, but there's no monthly charge for the privilege. And yes, believe it or not, it gets really hot in Minnesota--lots of times it is hotter there than here.

wrobert

Either your meter has already been replaced or it will be soon. All of them north of the bay are already done.

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Susan Horn

Zackly what I was saying. That's what it looks like to me. Crazeeeeee.

I hope to find time to look at those Charlie Rose Thomas Friedman interviewes real soon.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

SWGB

Gulf Power has done the peak/off peak metering and billing for years. There is an additional program they offer for certain situations that allows them to shut off your power remotely during peak times. It's supposed to be good for 2nd homes, people who travel a lot, etc. Guess what they generally do it on the hottest days of the year.

I know that Gulf Power also has flat billing for people watching their money. Basically they average your year and charge the same amount every month. It's then adjusted annually. It's really good for folks on a fixed income and saves them from huge bills in the summer and cold snaps.

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InletBchDweller

Here in Pville we had "that meter" on our house. We were given a credit on our bill each month when we used it but we could not use max power during certain times of the day. (the hottest)

When the upstairs of our house got so hot b/c the air conditioner was getting turned off b/c of the blasted thing we called the elec company and told them to take it off, and they did. Our power bill did go up in price but it was worth it.

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Smiling JOe

I do not believe that is true. There are many north of the Bay which have not been changed.

I'm still waiting for utilities to get their feces coagulated so that there can be inter-connectivity, saving much money, bundling services, and reducing carbon emissions. Currently, technology exists to create meters which not only track varying rates for various times of usage for things such as power, but also allows you or your home computer to monitor usage and control demand, by having appliances on timers, as well as AC controllers, etc. There are even companies currently producing remote switches such as controllers on your mini-blinds, which would enable you to control from your handheld device or PC. In addition, they can link into your thermostat and adjust the blinds to block out light as the AC turns on more frequently, thereby lowering the temp in the room, reducing the need for AC (and more importantly, reducing the demand for power) . The technology for new utility meters (not the ones currently being installed, as I understand it) will also allow the meters to be automatically read without ever leaving the Power Company office, eliminating the need for expense on labor, fuel, vehicles, field monitoring equipment, etc, which should more than cover the costs of the new meters over time.

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wrobert

Maybe I misunderstood but Chelco is the one that told me the meters north of the bay had been changed. Gulf Power does still operate north of the bay, I do not know about their situation. I do believe that the school district and gulf power are doing some sort of a test project with solar at one of the schools in the coming months.

I got my bill and electricity is regularly seven cents. So if I go to off peak billing then I either pay 8 cents or 6 cents. I guess if I can use over 50% of my electricity in off peak I would be saving money.

As for the monthly fee, you pay that now, I am not understanding that to be an additional fee, but the same fee I am already paying.

I have been told that you can expect the difference between on peak and off peak to become larger in the future.

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Lynnie

Chelco is a rip off......they used to advertise having the least expensive power. BOGUS!

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Who is Lynnie?? ~~~~~~~Signed, All Y'all

Smiling JOe

Least expensive compared to what? I guess they could also say that they are the most expensive, since their is no current viable alternative for the masses. Having a monopoly on the utilities, doesn't fair well for end users' wallets, and anytime you pay one power company to buy their power from another company, you know the mark-up on the power is going to cost more in the end. In that same way, South Walton buys their water from Freeport. If you live in Freeport, your water is cheaper than South Walton.

To really get people to conserve power (fuel resources), a trivial savings of the amount wrobert noted won't be enough to make people jump through hoops. Not only do you have to make a substantial monetary savings to make people reduce their pull, but you also have to make it simple.

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Lynnie

Their ads used to state that they were the cheapest on the Gulf Coast! If they are, I'd hate to see what other power companies are charging.

Same with Regional Utilities! Outrageously expensive! Atlanta has serious water issues, an infrastructure that has been outgrown; and, my bill in Atlanta is around $18/mo. (actual usage), while at the beach it's $60/mo. (the minimum)......whether I am there or not. Why can't I be charged on my usage?

Walton Co. might qualify as one of the most expensive counties in the country to live! Hang in there, Y'all~~~~~~~

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Who is Lynnie?? ~~~~~~~Signed, All Y'all

Smiling JOe

I hear you on the minimum charges. That is indeed a ripoff way they make mucho money, and it sure doesn't persuade people to conserve. In fact, it may encourage people to waste water. I've never used more than the minimum for which they charge. Some people would feel like they want to get their money's worth, and would be likely to waste it, since they were charged for it regardless.

Again, both South Walton Regional Utilities and Chelco, purchase their water and power from other companies, so everyone in South Walton is surely paying a premium. It is similar Restaurant X buying food from Restaurant Y, then selling it to you, under a different name.

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30abob

I share your frustration, I came from South GA where the "water bill" was also cheap.

The main reason you pay more for water in SoWal isn't actually the cost of water it's the "sewer" portion. Due to the home building explosion of years past there had to be a new treatment plant in order to meet federal & state requirements for the anticipated population estimates XX years out. They built the new plant and the only way to recover the cost was to charge enormous tap fees for new development and a "minimum" monthly fee for all existing customers; acknowledging that most residences in SoWal would have almost no metered usage during off peak months.

Most municipalities in GA built their systems years ago and pay for major upgrades with bonds counting on predictable "consistent" monthly usage to pay back the loans.

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If you can't fix it with a hammer... you've got an electrical problem.

30abob

Basic economics teaches that "monopolies" are necessary evils (and may not actually be so evil) for certain services. In order to guarantee that everyone has access to "basic" services such as those offered by government and the utilities they need to be monopolistic to survive.

The utilities of Florida are highly regulated and spend enormous sums of money (under compulsion) on services and programs that have little or no benefit today, or for the foreseeable future, without renumeration. You can see exactly how much money Southern Company (parent of Gulf Power) makes on their annual SEC 10-K, the others can't make a "profit" by regulation they can only upgrade with excess funds (after approval from the regulators). There are basically three types of electrical utilities in the state; Investor Owned (Gulf Power), Member Owned (Chelco), and Municipal Owned (Tallahassee - closest that I know of). These entities are regulated as power distributors. All "enjoy" a monopoly in the areas they serve for residential customers; while the fringes of each market sometimes have competition for major commercial/industrial customers. Almost all (including Chelco) also engage in power production through affiliates but NO UTILITY in Florida produces ALL of the power they sell to customers; they all buy some portion from outside third party companies.

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If you can't fix it with a hammer... you've got an electrical problem.

Lynnie

You hit the nail on the head. In retrospect, perhaps I shouldn't have tapped a well there to water my garden. I should have spent that money setting up a catchment system and cistern in Atlanta. (But, at least I am doing something kind for the environment.)

As far as reaching the minimum, am told it's near impossible. You can water your yard, run the D/W and do three loads of clothes a day and not reach the min. I had gotten in the habit of taking my laundry from Atlanta to my cottage at the beach to do it there.

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Who is Lynnie?? ~~~~~~~Signed, All Y'all