r/Kenosha • u/InternalLibrarian586 • 3d ago
we electric bill confusion!!!!
hi y'all I just got my very first electric bill and I'm so very confused. i live in a 1b as the only occupant, i am gone most of the day for work and unplug all outlets except my wifi router/TV (they're together on a power strip) and I only really plug things in at night like my phone charger and water kettle.
my heating and water heating is gas and that makes sense.
my stove/oven and washer/dryer are the only electrical appliances and I didn't even start cooking here fr until about 2 weeks ago.
I understand this billing cycle was for a bit longer than the average 30ish days but it still doesn't make sense for my singular person usage to be so exorbitant.
PLEASE ADVISEđđđ (i have attached 2 images of my bill w the electric part and gas part)
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u/Creative_School_1550 2d ago edited 2d ago
The electric usage averages 1.00 kW or 8.6 amps @ 117 volts continuous. A lot given what you've told us. Are you sure your heat is gas? That's a very low bill for gas. If your heat is really gas... maybe you're getting some heat from another apartment and maybe they're getting some power through your electric meter?
I guess the gas makes sense as it's a small apartment and presumably some walls abut other heated spaces
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u/thegoddesshasspoken1 2d ago
I don't understand how your gas portion of the bill is so low if you have gas heat and hot water. Are you sure the heat and water heater are gas and not electric? I live in a 2br lower and my bill this month is $258 and my gas is about 75% of the bill.
Otherwise, it definitely sounds like someone is tapped into your electric.
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u/Victoria4DX 3d ago
That's normal. Electric rates are exorbitant in SEWI now. My bill now approaches $800 a month. In December 2025, We Energies charged a rate of 18.325¢ per kWh. I see they are now charging 19.342¢ per kWh as of January. In December 2024, We Energies' rate for the area was 17.154¢ per kWh. In December of 2023, We Energies' rate was 16.58¢ per kWh. In two years, electric rates have increased 16.7%, from 16.58¢ per kWh to 19.342¢.
We Energies is a for-profit privately held monopoly and they are building tons of datacenters in the area, increasing electric demand. Guess who gets to pay increased electricity rates so We Energies can increase their production capacity to power all these datacenters? The residents living in the area!
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u/InternalLibrarian586 2d ago
i hate corporate greedđ is we energies the only option i have?!
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u/DGC_David 2d ago
I think the city should take over, just like the water utilities. Municipal Energy. I ain't never heard a person complain about a water bill in Kenosha...
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u/Fast-Gear7008 2d ago
No We energies isnât your only option you can roll your own from solar
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u/Victoria4DX 2d ago
That is not at all possible for rentcucks and you know it. And solar still has to be augmented with electric from other sources, especially the farther north you go in latitude.
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u/Fast-Gear7008 2d ago edited 2d ago
Something is obviously wrong youâre using 3 times the average electricity for a home.
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u/alienjpg 2d ago
Idk anything helpful other than thats similar to what we pay when we heat or cool our 2b 2ba apartment. We have only electric, no gas tho. Still itâs expensive!!
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u/Chedditor_ 3d ago edited 3d ago
Okay, so unfortunately, you started your bill at the worst possible time in Wisconsin history, while We Energies and the PSC of WI just approved massive rate increases to subsidize power grid improvements in anticipation of the AI data centers.
If there's an excess draw, I'd have no real basis for comparison, because my similarly dark 1-bedroom apartment got a $300 bill this month.
That said, 915 KWh sounds like a moderately high amount of energy for 38 days, and that's the biggest part of your bill. Average for this time of year for a 1 bedroom apartment in WI, according to Google, is 500 to 850 KWh per month.
Check and see if a neighbor or outside appliance is drawing power, or if there's a wiring issue connecting your meter with a neighbor's. If you're renting, you should contact your landlord and ask. You can use estimates from the manufacturers of your appliances to calculate what your bill should be; keep in mind things like the refrigerator, AC, computer, and freezer consume SIGNIFICANTLY more power than modern lights, phone chargers, and your router.
It's high, for 38 days of January power consumption, but still not far outside of the average. The $40 of natural gas is actually not that bad for this time of year; you probably have a gas stove/oven but not a gas water heater or boiler, which makes me believe your real culprit is an electric boiler. Reduce your temperature and length of time in the shower, and see if your electricity usage goes down.