It's the peak of summer. For most, that means it's time for peak energy consumption. But how much electricity, exactly, is your AC guzzling? And might there be a more voracious energy hog among your appliances? The DIY experts at Stack Exchange offer a few tips on hunting that hog down. My electrical bill is outrageous. I pay three times as much my next-door neighbor, and four or five times what my neighbor across the street pays. Of course, the bill is worst in the summer (I live in central TX), but I've had the air conditioner inspected, and while the house is right at the maximum capacity for our unit, the unit should still be able to take care of the load. That also doesn't explain why our winter bills are larger than the comparables. How do I go about figuring out where my money is going?— Originally asked by mos) For devices that plug into an electrical outlet, you can use Kill A Watt or an equivalent device to monitor how much electricity the appliance is using.

If that doesn't help you hunt down a clear culprit, go low-tech and look at your electric meter as you turn off circuits at the service panel one at a time. When you see a big change in speed at which the wheel is spinning (for older meters) or the digits are changing (newer meters), you've found your hog.large window air conditioning unitsAlso, it might be time for an energy audit.package type air conditioning unit — Answered by Niall C.proper size of ac unit Open up your electrical panel and measure the draw on each circuit. This will show you which circuits are drawing the most.An alternative method: As Mike Powell points out, you can clamp on to the main lines and turn off each breaker, noting how much the value drops as each breaker goes dark.

(You will have to do this for each leg of the main). Once you know which circuits are drawing the most power, you can start eliminating devices on that circuit until you find the largest consumers.To figure out how much your devices cost to run, see these formulae:Watts = Amps * Volts Kilowatt-hours = kilowatts * Hours used Cost = kilowatt-hours * cost per kilowatt-hour Cost = (((Amps * Volts)/1000) * Hours Used) * Cost per KilowattYou could also do like I did and split an old extension cord (so you can clamp on to a single wire), then plug one end into the wall, and your device into the other end. Then you can measure the draw of just that device. Depending upon how much time and money you want to invest, there are several home energy monitors on the market, some of which are DIY installs.The Blueline Powercost Monitor is a definite DIY install (for the most common meter types). It is a little box which interfaces with the meter (even analog meters), and monitors the usage in real time.

It integrates with Microsoft Hohm (now discontinued), and delivers real-time statistics, recent usage history, fancy graphs, etc. The other big contender is the TED 5000. This device offers pretty much the same story (statistics, history, graphs, etc.). It is essentially an ammeter hooked up to the electric line coming in your house. Because of this, it is more accurate than the Blueline. The downside is that you have to open up the breaker box to install this (which may or may not be DIY for you). Compared to the standalone ammeter (~$80), the TED 5000 is significantly more expensive (~$250). However, the usage statistics over time may help you to reduce your overall electric consumption once you have found and eliminated the main hog(s) in your house.If you find your air conditioning is the culprit, check out how long it might take to make your money back after buying a new, more energy efficient AC.More reading: Engadget Review of the Blueline - with some comparisons to the TED5000.

— Answered by James Van Huis Brultech offers a solution called the ECM-1240 Home Monitor that will show you how much each circuit uses. You might need an electrician to install it. It works like the ammeter. tracks usage over time and can send live data to your iPhone.When conducting a one-time measurement of an appliance's energy consumption, you must take into account that appliance's duty cycle. For example, your heat pump may draw exactly the amount of current it's supposed to, but if it's running constantly instead of for 15 minutes per hour, that's 4x the expected energy usage. Think you know monitor your home electricity consumption and hunt down a hog? Disagree with the wisdom expressed above? Downvote or upvote an answer, or submit your own at Stack Exchange — a place to freely trade expert knowledge on diverse topics from software programming to cycling to scientific skepticism... and plenty in between.Cool runnings – How much electricity does a portable air conditioning unit use?

It makes a nice change to have a summer in which keeping cool is the only problem! There’s certainly been a rush for fans in the shops this year, with portable air conditioner units becoming the ‘must have’ electrical item this summer, whether it’s to cool an office or home environment.  So how do they work? and more importantly how much do they cost to run? An air conditioner works in the same way as your fridge, cooling your room by passing warm air over a cold evaporator coil, and then blowing cooled air into your room.  This process also generates hot air that needs to be vented out of the building by an exhaust hose, usually placed through a window. Another often forgotten element of this cooling process is that it generates water and dries the air, that’s why portable air conditioning units have water tanks that need to be emptied. How do I keep my room cool and my air conditioning unit running efficiently? Carrying on the fridge theme… if you think of your room as a fridge, the last thing you’d do is leave the fridge door open, the same applies to the room you’re trying to cool.

Keep your space well sealed by closing doors and windows, this will ensure you get the best out of the air con unit. Closing blinds and curtains will reduce the heat from sunshine through windows and doors. Good levels of insulation will help keep rooms cooler in summer, as well as warmer in winter.  Hot summers may be a rare experience for the UK, but travel to Europe – France, Spain, or Italy and you’ll find plenty of external shutters preventing the suns heat entering the room. What do you look for when buy an air conditioner?  A thermostat is pretty crucial!  You don’t want to waste energy trying to get your room too cold, and a timer is good bet also.  Like other electrical applicances, air conditioners have energy efficiency labels, graded from A to G for energy efficiency; go for the best you can afford and save long-term. Washable pre filters and odour eating carbon filters are useful features. How much do they cost to run? Just check the power consumption figures, then use Sust-it’s energy cost calculator to see what that will cost to run per hour. 

Click here to see the potential air conditioner running costs. Air Conditioning Units ranked by annual running cost See the most energy efficient... Compare running costs & prices You can compare the running costs and prices of thousands of electrical products with Sust-it, simply choose from the options below: Energy Efficient Electricals WASHING & DRYING  · Upright Fridges - SmallUpright Fridges - MediumUpright Fridges - LargeLarder Fridges - SmallLarder Fridges - MediumLarder Fridges - LargeUpright Freezers - SmallUpright Freezers - MediumUpright Freezers - LargeChest Freezers - SmallChest Freezers - MediumChest Freezers - LargeFridge Freezers - SmallFridge Freezers - MediumFridge Freezers - LargeAmerican Style Fridge Freezers PRINTERS & COPIERS  · Home & Business Projectors Low Energy LED Bulb Prices Bayonet Fitting / BC / B22 LED Bulb Golf Ball LED Bulb L1 Dedicated Low Energy Bulb Screw Fitting / ES / E27 LED Bulb