Who Really Has the Power over Power?

Today I shall complain about my power bill.

Alabama Power Complaints

We live in Southern Alabama - in a downtown suburban neighborhood of Mobile - and have noticed a very unusual thing; exceedingly inconsistent power bills. Now, granted, power usage will fluctuate due to factors like seasonal usage (a/c and heat), power surges, daily activities, etc. However, when you look at the history of usage and see that every once in a while, for no reason known or imagined, the power will spike into multiples higher than any other month; it gives you pause to consider that something is amiss.

For the last 5 years we've seen a huge jump in our power bill - usually every January - by about three times (3x) the typical monthly amount, or more. And on the bill it shows a remarkable enormous spike in the supposed Usage. In the past we have complained, but were told it was "Normal" for the cold winter months for it to climb; due to running the heat more often (same goes for the A/C in the dead of summer). Being from the far north, I can understand how that goes. Although, when comparing it from one month to the next, it seems unlikely to be so vastly different. They have sent a tech a few times, and claimed everything was working properly. Despite our insistent grievances, nothing more was done, and we were forced to pay the bill; the AL Power CSR convinced us it was on our end, and suggested we get an electrical inspector to check our internal lines. We did and, other than having many older wires that are worn and should be replaced when possible - as well as a lack of whole-home grounding (only partial) - everything else checkout out fine. Plus, we were told, if there were a problem with power-bleed, bad grounding, or anything else, that it would be a CONSISTENT problem; i.e. our power consumption would ALWAYS be irregular (high or low).

One year we weren't even home for almost a month, and it still absurdly spiked up to 3-times the amount (from about $90 to a whopping $287). And there is seemingly nothing you can do about it; they just tell you, "We have a new digital meter that CLEARLY shows your usage. It's a "Smart" meter and can never be wrong.". Riiiiight, sure, because nothing ever goes wrong with electronics [sarcasm]. I would suspect that since it is a digital meter, that means it is susceptible to any number of potential factors that might cause a problem, including; mechanical/component malfunctions, bad/corrupt programing, system errors, outside influence, and incorrect installation. I would assume that it has also been designed to be shielded from things like power surges or electro-magnetic interference, (I would suppose/hope), however I cannot be certain. Therefore, I also wonder if rogue signals might cause a misreading as well? Likewise, since it is digitally controlled, it can therefore can also be remotely manipulated with falsified readings. I'm not saying they do this, but it is POSSIBLE that something like that COULD be done - by who or whom is up for debate.

For further examples, this winter (2011-2012) the weather has been more like spring; unseasonably warm with temps in the 60s & 70s, with almost no cold days (and no lower than 27 at that). Therefore, we have hardly ran the heat-pump at all. I work all day, and my wife works evenings so she sleeps until at least noon. She typically keeps the air off if possible, or at the lowest setting to reduce usage - this year she's told me it has not been running much, if at all, during the day. And yet, this January (2012) I have received a bill of $244 - when the previous month's bill (Dec 2011) was only $85, with no significant change in our known usage. I just don't see how that is possible in the least; the numbers add up, but seem falsified. I was an electrician in the US Navy, and I know how to read a meter - there is no way that thing is working properly, OR they are fudging the numbers on their end to increase winter revenue. Plain and Simple. I am about to have my own electrician take a look at it and give me a full report. Likewise, I intend to send a series of letters, in detail, to several Government officials; it will show our usage rating and monthly charges from the last few years, as well as a record of the temps from those dates, and  - which should cast doubt on the legitimacy of the bills.

UPDATE - April; the bill for last month (March 2012) was for $86, which is on the lower end of our average. Which makes sense because we were not home for about 5 days. So we'll see what next month's bill is.

I plan to come back and place a chart with a year worth of recorded usage and the amount we were billed - it's seriously crazy when seen in chart form.

UPDATE - May; the bill for last month (April 2012) was for $120, about the average for what our power bill normally is.

Boxes

I'm a bit of a hoarder.

And if you think I'm bad, my wife is at least twice as worse.

That being said - without going into too much detail (that's for another day and another post) - I've been making efforts to whittle down my amassed storage of belongings; much of which consists of my lifetime of paperwork, artwork/doodles, books, magazines, 'collectibles', and other various clutter. I have had things in boxes for many a year, and have never really gone through them completely due to space restrictions and living arrangements.

Ever since I joined the Navy - almost directly out of high school - a majority of my belongings and 'gatherings' have been packed away, stored, and eventually ported around with me throughout my years. I have moved more times than I would have liked, never really having a place of my own; that is until just over 5 years ago, when we (my wife and I) purchased our first home. Ever since then we have been putting off the monumental task of sorting through our combined possessions.

Areas within our home resemble something like a storage facility. Or a quickly thrown together rummage sale. It looks we are either packing to move, or have just moved in and haven't completely finish unpacking yet - either way, we're living in a constant state of flux. We have too many things - be they in boxes, bags, or just loose - stacked, piled, and propped up to really be very comfortable to live in or feel settled.

As mentioned above, we have far too long had a bit of the hoarder mentality.
It needs to change.

Transitions. Inside Transitions.

Spoiler: Prepare yourself for another one of my world famous rambling rants. Seriously, I really spend a lot of time explaining my thought process, while building up to a flimsily constructed and poorly formulated point. Usually I completely lose focus from my original intent during the course of the post. Welcome along for the ride!

Ok, now that the pleasantries are out of the way, onward with the topic.

On the radio this morning, there was a funny little discussion going on.

Ok, well, it wasn't, "Drop down, pee your pants" funny. I'm mentioning it because, unlike most mornings, I actually tuned my brain in long enough to follow - though briefly - the current minutia of a subject they were babbling about. It was more that what they were bantering about was mildly amusing, and made the little voice in my head chuckle, than anything shockingly political or world changing revealing.

Thinking back now, I do believe that for a moment my head may have shaken almost undetectably side-to-side a few times with a barely noticeable smirk that no other drivers would likely have detected - unless they were watching me with stalker-like eagle eyes. Which is a real fear my wife holds over my head where ever we go; assuming suspicious, judging eyes follow our every move, just waiting for one of us [i.e. ME] to do something embarrassing or criminal.

As usual, I digress. Surprise!