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water heater and spike in electric bill? Jeremy Hine 02-11-2005
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Posted by Colbyt on February 11, 2005, 5:56 pm



> >
> > My daughter had a ruptured element in one that added $175 to her bill
> > one month. It did not trip the breaker. It just fed 30 amps to
> > ground for a period of time.
>
> ???? How is that possible? Where did the heat go? What limited it
to
> 30 amps?
>
Frankly I don't know. The breaker never tripped. I assume no heat was
produced by the ruptured element. The internal wire in the element was
completely burnt through. It was an upper element so duty cycle was a lot
less than for the lower element.


Colbyt




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Posted by Robert Barr on February 11, 2005, 9:08 pm


>
> ???? How is that possible? Where did the heat go?

I had this problem a year ago, and that's how I found the problem: My
water was suddenly ferociously hot when I'd shower. The short feeds
through what would be the neutral side (bypassing the thermostat).

I'd get just a little bit of discharge when I opened the T&P valve
manually, so I guess it was just on the verge of overpressure or overheat.

You could hear the localized boiling just by standing next to the water
heater.


What limited it to
> 30 amps?

I was wondering the same thing. It's not a dead short, but very very
low resistance.
>
>
>>Colbyt
>
>


Posted by Joseph Meehan on February 11, 2005, 10:50 pm


Robert Barr wrote:
>> ???? How is that possible? Where did the heat go?
>
> I had this problem a year ago, and that's how I found the problem: My
> water was suddenly ferociously hot when I'd shower. The short feeds
> through what would be the neutral side (bypassing the thermostat).
>
> I'd get just a little bit of discharge when I opened the T&P valve
> manually, so I guess it was just on the verge of overpressure or
> overheat.
> You could hear the localized boiling just by standing next to the
> water heater.
>

Thanks. I was thinking that about the only way it could be absorbing
all that power would be if some of it was duping out the T&P as very hot
water or steam. I would think most people would notice it.

>
> What limited it to
>> 30 amps?
>
> I was wondering the same thing. It's not a dead short, but very very
> low resistance.
>>
>>
>>> Colbyt

--
Joseph Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math




Posted by Dr. Hardcrab on February 11, 2005, 1:24 pm




> What would cause an older 240 waterheater to increase my power bill. I
> also have electric furnace that regularly gets a new filter each 6 weeks.
> AC/heater unit (outside) was serviced in late Dec, had both sequencers
> replaced. Same goes for electric dryer around October. It might not be
> the waterheater at all, its just the only thing that hasnt needed any
> immediate attention. I can bet its never been flushed, elements replaced,
> or anyother maintenance done to it.
>
> I'm in a 25 year old singlewide mobile home in Northcentral Florida.
>
> Any suggestions?

One: Did you power company raise their rates? A lot of companies did around
the first of the year. (Our local co-op raised our rates 30%!!!) Look at
your last bill and see if the rates went up or if your usage went up. If the
usage went up then you can:

Two: Have the power company come in and do an "energy audit". Most companies
do not charge for this service and it is a good way to find out what is
using all of the electricity in your home.




Posted by Ross Mac on February 11, 2005, 2:13 pm



> What would cause an older 240 waterheater to increase my power bill. I
> also have electric furnace that regularly gets a new filter each 6 weeks.
> AC/heater unit (outside) was serviced in late Dec, had both sequencers
> replaced. Same goes for electric dryer around October. It might not be
> the waterheater at all, its just the only thing that hasnt needed any
> immediate attention. I can bet its never been flushed, elements replaced,
> or anyother maintenance done to it.
>
> I'm in a 25 year old singlewide mobile home in Northcentral Florida.
>
> Any suggestions?
>
> -Jeremy
>

If you have an amp clamp or can borrow one you can measure your current
usage. Just pop the panel, if you are comfortable with that, and clamp onto
the appropriate breakers. There are also devices you can plug into that will
tell you the KWH you are using....just google around...there are
many....Good Luck, Ross




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