[Solved - high home HVAC use] Crazy electric bills from home charging. Is charger function to blame?

[HighVoltOverland]

$0.16 per kWh sounds amazing. We’re at $0.42 in the middle of the night and $0.83 during the day…. California ?

Is that a pG&E thing?
Can you not get on TOU prime for your ev?
My rates are $.0.25 off peak with Edison

Sponsored

 

[CharonPDX]

I think I have variable pricing too which is why I am trying to just focus on usage. My usage for this bill is 3079kWh.
My usage for charging (just the R1S) was 540kWh. (Cross verified wattage from Rivian and Chargepoint apps’ history)

My max usage for this season, based on history (without EV) is 900-1000 kWh. So, no I don’t think so.

If both the vehicle and the EVSE report ~540 kWh, then that's what EVSE is sending. As mentioned, when not actively charging, the EVSE should only use a watt or two, so should be negligible.

It sounds like you have something else going on that just happens to coincide with adding the EVSE.

 

[Hillbilly]

My usual electric usage was almost tripled in my most recent bill ~3000 kWh. in the same period, I've charged around 500kWh

I have not added anything new that could increase usage so much - sure it was hot several days but no way my AC ate this much.

This isn’t my first bill since the charger install but my usage has had an uptick because of a couple of road trips.

the only reason I can think of is my charging schedule - it was only on my Rivian and not at the charger level AND me leaving it plugged in past the scheduled time - sometimes for a whole day. During this time I’ve also had to deal with a few things at home and left the car plugged in and in the garage.

but is that how it would work? I have added the same schedule to my ChargePoint HomeFlex now but without it, does it continue to draw power if plugged in and Rivian just doesn’t use it? Doesn’t make any sense to me!

anyone can think of anything else? I’m also working with my utility company to figure this out.

Your ac very easily can use that much, especially if you have a coolant leak and it's running all the time.

 

[RivianRunner]

Make sure that the bill was not an estimated read instead of an actual read. In some cases, when meters can't be read they estimate usage based on historical usage and adjustments based on weather etc. Charger on its own should not have a parasitic load of any significance.

Honestly, if the utility estimated usage based on past history, then why would the consumption be surprising? Estimations, by their very nature, are designed to fall within the expected.

 

[Marisa]

My usual electric usage was almost tripled in my most recent bill ~3000 kWh. in the same period, I've charged around 500kWh

I have not added anything new that could increase usage so much - sure it was hot several days but no way my AC ate this much.

This isn’t my first bill since the charger install but my usage has had an uptick because of a couple of road trips.

the only reason I can think of is my charging schedule - it was only on my Rivian and not at the charger level AND me leaving it plugged in past the scheduled time - sometimes for a whole day. During this time I’ve also had to deal with a few things at home and left the car plugged in and in the garage.

but is that how it would work? I have added the same schedule to my ChargePoint HomeFlex now but without it, does it continue to draw power if plugged in and Rivian just doesn’t use it? Doesn’t make any sense to me!

anyone can think of anything else? I’m also working with my utility company to figure this out.

We set our charging time from midnight to 5am. That’s when electricity is the cheapest, in our area. Even though it’s plugged in, it doesn’t turn on until midnight.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Your charge point should tell you how many kwh were delivered to the car. There are some losses between what the EVSE delivers and what actually goes into the battery.

When you leave it plugged in it will top off the battery as needed unless you have a charging schedule set.

As far as getting a handle on what is using the energy in your home I recommend the Sense Home Energy monitor. It's fairly inexpensive...not perfect...but still a great value for the $$$.

I use it here for a couple years now. Lots of insight.

https://amzn.to/3uwVGk4

 

[mpshizzle]

Is that a pG&E thing?
Can you not get on TOU prime for your ev?
My rates are $.0.25 off peak with Edison

I live in Utah and even I know PG&E is straight up Devil's spawn

 

[Jiji]

My usual electric usage was almost tripled in my most recent bill ~3000 kWh. in the same period, I've charged around 500kWh

A comparison of an all electric house kept at 74° with three EVs charging for July (perhaps a slightly cooler location) with total consumption of 2075kWh:

Use is dominated by charging and HVAC, I doubt you have a charging problem but your AC usage is likely the culprit. Can‘t help if it is hotter but make sure your filter is clean and have the system serviced in case you are leaking refrigerant or your exchanger is dirty and icing up.

And a comparison with June 2024, total usage was 1733kWh, AC was the biggest change.

 

[stewart]

Honestly, if the utility estimated usage based on past history, then why would the consumption be surprising? Estimations, by their very nature, are designed to fall within the expected.

They adjust past usage based on changes in the weather. So if you were charging a lot in cooler months but not in the current hot month, they would index up the previous usage based on the cooling degree days for the current month. I have had this happen to me in the past. Swinging the bill by hundreds of dollars.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

I live in Utah and even I know PG&E is straight up Devil's spawn

Yeah Rocky Mountain Power has been one of the better utilities I dealt with.
SCE honestly hasn’t been the worst.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Is that a pG&E thing?
Can you not get on TOU prime for your ev?
My rates are $.0.25 off peak with Edison

I have seen multiple LA county residents claim it's PG&E gouging... passing cost of multiple fire settlement onto customers.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

I have seen multiple LA county residents claim it's PG&E gouging... passing cost of multiple fire settlement onto customers.

Damn.

California utilities really getting in the way and making EV ownership untenable for most individuals who aren't off-grid solar based home owners

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Damn.

California utilities really getting in the way and making EV ownership untenable for most individuals who aren't off-grid solar based home owners

Yup. Essentially legal monopolies.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

Yup. Essentially legal monopolies.

It's a good thing they made solar adoption harder!
I was worried about there profit margins for a couple years

 

[nc10]

My usual electric usage was almost tripled in my most recent bill ~3000 kWh. in the same period, I've charged around 500kWh

I have not added anything new that could increase usage so much - sure it was hot several days but no way my AC ate this much.

Mine definitely went up a LOT in July in South Carolina. (Charlotte meteorologist said it was the 5th hottest July in last 150 years )
My EV billing rate is about half my non EV Rate.

Month	Non-EV KWH	EV KWH	Total
4/16-5/17	1181	635	1816 ($192)
5/17-6/18	1195	749	1944 ($199)
6/18-7/16	2743	515	3258 ($358)

Relative to much of the country my rates are pretty low, but still a pretty big hit. The first 1000 kwhr I use per month is at a lower rate. (So I need to double check for problems here also.....)

If you are "using/losing" an extra 1000-2000 kwh /month in the area of the charger, I'm sure you'd notice something getting really warm......

Sponsored