Air Conditioning & Heat Pump diagnosis & repair Q&A about the cause and cure for high electricity bills or other operating costs.

Page top photo: air handler and furnace located in a closet can raise both return air flow and furnace safety hazard questions as well as increasing the operating cost of a poor-performing system.

This article series helps diagnose and fix problems with air conditioners & heat pumps can help troubleshoot various operation and control problems.

A/C & Heat Pump Operating Cost Troubleshooting FAQs

These questions & answers about diagnosing trouble with air conditioners and head pumps were originally posted

at AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS

A good place to look for diagnostic procedures is DIAGNOSTIC GUIDE A/C or HEAT PUMP.

Also see this list of A/C & Heat Pump Diagnostic FAQs sorted by major topic at AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMP SYSTEM FAQs

Photo: an electric meter, one place to start tracking the effect of running an air conditioner or heat pump on your electricity bill.

Really? Before trying more difficult or expensive steps to lower your heat pump or air conditioner electricty bills, be sure you've addressed the basics such as installing a clean air filter, making sure that the blower fan is clean, and making sure that the retur or supply air ducts are not blocked, leaky, or disconnected.

Article Contents

• HEAT PUMP ELECTRICITY COST FAQs - too high

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High Heat Pump Electricity Bill FAQs

My daughter lives in a 3 year old apartment with two Heat Pumps mounted in the outside walls below her picture windows. One heat pump is in her small bedroom and the other one is in her living room/kitchen area and runs the most I believe.

Her electric bills the past two months have gone through the roof, I am wondering if one of the heat pumps might be the cause? If so, how might I diagnose the problem and determine which heat pump is the cause.

Details: It is mid-winter here in NJ but the temperatures have not been too bad, a mild winter, very little snow. During past winters, her electric bill has ranged around $30 to $50 max. per month. However, her last month's electric bill was $65 and her current electric bill jumped to $103!

Her usage of her TV, lights, refrigerator and microwave remain constant and doesn't explain her much higher electric bills the last two months.

She keeps her Thermostats on each Heat Pump always set at 72 degrees.

I just learned that heat pumps might have an electric back-up heater built into them that comes on when the outside temperatures drops too low for the main Heat Pump Function to operate well to give sufficient heat inside. Might one of my daughter's heat pumps be malfunctioning resulting in higher usage of electricity and higher electric bills?

I can envision that if the main heat pump with its freon is not working or not working well, then the built-in back-up electric in the heat pump might be kicking in and doing all or most of the heating at a much higher cost.

Is my theory correct and if so, how might I diagnose the heat pump to verify the problem before calling and paying for a Heating and Cooling Repair Company or bothering the landlord to do the same? On 2019-02-27 by Gary

Reply by (mod) - measure current draw for abnormal amps; check easy causes of long on-cycles

Thank you for an interesting question Gary.

What you can do is

1. check for obvious mistakes that increase the heat pump operating cost in heating or cooling mode such as things that cause longer than needed run cycles

• dirty or blocked air filters
• dirty or blocked cooling or evaporating coil
• ductwork blockages, leaks, disconnected sections
• closed air supply registers
• closed duct dampers

2. ask the heat pump or air conditioning service technician to measure the current draw at the compressor units to see if there's an abnormal behavior indicating that there's something wrong with the equipment.

 

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Continue reading  at DIAGNOSTIC GUIDE A/C or HEAT PUMP or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see this AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMP SYSTEM FAQs INDEX Q&A on air conditioners or heat pumps that won't turn on or won't run properly.

Or see these

HVAC repair guides

• AIR HANDLER / BLOWER UNITS - home
• COMPRESSOR / CONDENSER REPAIR - home
• DIAGNOSTIC GUIDE A/C or HEAT PUMP
• DIAGNOSTIC DETAILS A/C or HEAT PUMP
• AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS - home

Suggested citation for this web page

AIR CONDITIONER / HEAT PUMP OPERATING COST FAQs at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

Or see this

INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMPS

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Citations & References

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