Question about electricity prices increasing.

[Jennifer13]

Actually, I think energy prices should go up from where they were. We're getting our energy still from predominantly coal-burning electricity plants and it's not realistic to expect that it will continue to stay the same price at the expense of the environment and our natural resources.

Having said that, when our last bill was absolutely astronomical, I went onto EnergyAustralia's website to try to figure out peak/off-peak/shoulder times, so that I could be more careful about managing our use and couldn't find the info anywhere! How can I make sure that I'm running things like the washing machine and dishwasher when it's cheaper if they don't provide the information? I sent them a note to let them know as well.

I managed to find something hidden somewhere that listed the times as 7am-2pm for shoulder, 2pm-10pm for peak and 10pm-7am for off-peak. This way we can make sure our hot water is scheduled for off-peak, we throw the washing on first thing in the morning and the dishwasher as we're going to bed.

We also took out all of the non-energy efficient light bulbs we had and I've started turning off appliances at the powerpoint (or turning them off altogether). I think if I put all of the things I possibly can into practice then I'll reduce my energy bill to closer to what it was anyway and I'm using less power.

I also joined one of their GreenPower schemes, so a certain %age of your electricity comes from renewable sources.

[~Kim~]

Funny you mention that Jenn. I have been using those times since someone mentioned it on here a couple of years ago...Jodi maybe?
BUT we have gas hot water and cooking, a very energy efficient house that is brand new so meets all the standards and we only use energy efficient bulbs...

[AnyDream]

Actually, I think energy prices should go up from where they were. We're getting our energy still from predominantly coal-burning electricity plants and it's not realistic to expect that it will continue to stay the same price at the expense of the environment and our natural resources.

I kind of agree, but the way to get people to use greener energy sources is *not* to charge a premium for the green energy...the fossil fuel industries have been propped up by govvie money for decades whilst still making astronomical profits, I find it offensive that the consumer is now expected to foot the bill for the 'new' greener infrastructures...because that's what's essentially happening here.

Also, apart from peak and offpeak (which only your hot water will be connected to) unless you have a smart meter, isn't the system is unable to determine when you are actually drawing from the grid?

[Jennifer13]

My bill splits my energy usage into peak, off-peak and shoulder. So I kinda assumed that it did matter? There are different charges for me under each section. So the rate for off peak is 7.4c, shoulder is 12.8c and peak is 32.4c.

The bill provides a breakdown of the amount of energy I used in each time slot over the period too. Given that the amount for peak is more than double off-peak, I'm pleased I figured out when to stop running some of my appliances!

[AnyDream]

Out of interest, Jennifer how old is your house and what does your meter look like? We've only got two of those ooooooold wheels that spin around - one for peak one for off peak (hot water only) and I have questioned the elec company over the phone about it in the past but the person I spoke too didn't seem to have much of a grip on the pricing structure.

[Jennifer13]

I have no idea. Haven't even checked! The house would be 15-20 years old, I think. We are renting.

And our off-peak hot water is split out again, in addition to all those others I just listed. You'd think they could put on the bill what time slots they cover. I might suggest that if they email me back.

[toomanyshoes]

Our september/october/november bill was $250 and our december/january/february bill was $150.

Two adults two kids, living on the central coast in nsw. No idea how we managed to get it so low, I even rang to make sure they didn't miss a zero off the end or something.

I'm split over the rise to be honest, I can see why I guess but I also look at the increase with everything else and incomes don't seem to be matching it at all. An extra $600-$900 each year is quite a bit of money to most people.

[Jennifer13]

Black_rose that sounds pretty reasonable with a business running as well - I'm not exactly sure of what DP's business pays per quarter, but he has the same number of employees. I don't think my sanity or electricity bill would cope very well with them at home!