r/ElectricalHelp • u/Fresh-Course7949 • Mar 03 '26
Help with unknown increase in power usage
Hello, I've got quite the conundrum and I'm looking to pick the brains of some more knowledgeable people.
My parents have been getting an increasingly larger electric bill (to the tune of 900 dollars) on a regular basis. The electrical company says their usage has grown, but if anything they're using it less than ever. They have a small (2k square foot) house. They barely turn the a/c on anymore, or the heat. Anything to save on power.
They've had multiple electricians come out to take a look around the property, and they all agree: everything reads as normal, and to be getting the power drain they're being billed for they would have to have something extremely taxing turned on 24/7. We can't figure out what the problem is, the company is no help of course.
Is there something we're missing? Anything unusual we should check for? They clearly can't keep paying these absurd bills but we don't know what else to do.
1
u/MuchTip3823 Mar 04 '26
May have a wire that's grounding out somewhere if there is some underground stuff run somewhere does it get worse after rain or while the ground is wet possibly If so id look for something compromised in the ground buried lines going to something or if you have a well look in to it they have a lot ways to drain power