July Utilities Bill Too High?

I live in a 1 bedroom apartment in yangsan with 1 wall mounted air con.  In July my girlfriend said it was too hot for her to sleep so we turned on the air con almost every night.  We never had it any colder than 22 degrees the whole month.

Last week the apartment manager called my boss to say that our electricity usage was unusually high.  I guess Koreans use their air con only a few times during the summer?

Anyways got my bill yesterday and it was 450,000 won.  Is this normal for the amount of usage I described?

By the way, the apartment and the air con are fairly old and our bill is usually around 85,000 won.

Re: July Utilities Bill Too High?

That seems a little high, but if you put your AC on every night, all night then I can see it getting that high. My bill (before summer) was about 20,000-30,000) but I'm usually out all day and only use electricity at night for a few hours generally. During the summer I use the AC a lot but its usually only for 3-4 hours a day. I've left it on for about 12-13 (at 18 degrees) hours straight maybe 5 or 6 days because I forget to turn it off before going to work and my bill has sky rocketed to about 60,000-70,000. I'd say I use it maybe a third or a fourth as much as you do, so maybe 450,000 is a little high but its just my experience...

 

The electrical company can test your house to see if you are "leaking" electricity. When my electric usage went up, they came to my apartment to make sure it was on purpose. They just turn off everything with the electrical box and then check a random outlet or two.

Or it could be that since you might have an older Air con that it is less energy efficient than a newer one and drains a lot of electricity.

Also you can try just buying a fan and that will cut down a lot on your bill.

Re: July Utilities Bill Too High?

It's right!!!!The rates increase above certain useage. Korea has upped its charges this year by a large % figure.Get a fan with cooling function, or a fridge mat.

Re: July Utilities Bill Too High?

The rate for electricity goes up if you use over a certain amount of electricity.  450/month is common in my neighborhood.  Some of my neighbors average between 800-1000 per month in the hot summer months.  I also have other neighbors who have aircons but they are mainly for show.  I have never seen them turned on, because they don't want to pay the high electricity rates.  Yes, 450 is a huge jump from your previous payments but it could certainly happen.  Check your energy efficiency rating on your aircon.  It may be old.

Re: July Utilities Bill Too High?

I'm surprised at the amount of people who are saying it could be right! I only really turn on my aircon to cool the room down and then turn it off after 10minutes.... my bills are about 4-5000 a month. I'm starting to think some people have miss read the post or added an extra zero as a typo.

Re: July Utilities Bill Too High?

I don't have much advice (just moved here) but I wonder if you can call your gu's government # and inquire about the charges. Just an idea. Hope you can figure it out soon.