Electricity Crusade

August 23rd, 2008 by Potato

It looks like it might be time for me to go on another electricity usage crusade. My power usage is more than double what it was for the same period last year, and I don’t think I’ve been using the A/C that much (especially since this has been a much more mild July/August than we’ve been subjected to in the past). To top it off, the security light’s been broken, so we don’t have that 175W load all night. The only change I can think of that would lead to more power usage is the dehumidifier running in the basement. Considering it’s doing next to nothing for the problem it’s supposed to fix, I’m going to shut it off and see if that fixes the problem. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will: I’m looking for 20 kWh/day in excess usage (compared to 16 kWh/day used total this time last year), and at 470 W the dehumidifier should only be 11.3 kWh/day, and that’s if it’s running full out all the time (the compressor does seem to cycle a bit). Maybe I can borrow a Kill-a-Watt meter from the library to see if it’s drawing more than it’s rated for, but unless it’s almost double I’ve got another power drain somewhere. I guess the next thing to check will be that the breaker for the security light is off so it’s not draining any power while it’s not illuminating the back lot…

2 Responses to “Electricity Crusade”

  1. Netbug Says:

    Whoever dies with the biggest carbon footprint wins.

  2. Wayfare Says:

    I think you’re forgetting to factor in the fact that instead of two people living in the house for July and most of August, there was only one. One who likes to keep the house *really* freakin’ cold. All the time. With additional fans.