Confused about this months gas bill.

[hollytheteacher]

I really expected my gas bill to be much lower this month. We were on vacation for two weeks in Florida.

I live in Vermont. We usually keep the heat around 68 to 70 degrees. While on vacation we lowered the heat to 50. Also nothing else (like our washer and drier) was running while we were gone.

So why oh why is my bill 200 dollars? and why oh why is it only 8 dollars less than the previous month.

The weather has been about the same both months (friggen cold) and with my heat down so low for 2 whole weeks i just cannot fathom this...

[Carson]

you need to compare each bill side-by-side to see what changed. Our gas bill is based on the number of therms used at a variable cost per therm, plus a monthly delivery charge.

Additionally, check to see if the number of therms used was based on an actual reading or an estimated reading. If it's an estimate, check your gas meter and compare. If your gas meter reads lower, you should be able to call your utility and they'll reissue your bill.

[pollyanna]

Did you also turn down your hot water heater? I found my gas bill went down just by turn my water heater down by 10 degrees.

Pollyanna

[CarrieMF]

It may have been estimated based on previous months.

Was your vacation time during the billing time? Our "months" are half of 1 month & half of the other month.

Our furnace pilot light is gas, but it runs on electricity so we would only notice the difference on our electric bill.

[jeliphish]

may have been an estimate...call and have them do an exact reading, they will do it and adjust your bill accordingly.

[cristina47454]

That's happened to me before, but I never thought to follow up on it. I just got irritated and then promptly forgot about it. Please keep us posted! Next time I'll know what the deal is!

[mightymoo]

It's also possible this bill is an actual bill, but last month was an estimate. If you used more last month and less this month, I could see them estimating last months bill at a typical amount and having it come out to about the same when they took the actual reading this month.

[bobandjess99]

great ideas..check what is going on..was this month or lst month estimated or "real"...what was the actual usage in therms, and has the price changed? for example, if your usage was half what it has been, but the unti price doubled this paast month, that would still equal about the same total bill, etc.

[lmonter]

Originally Posted by CarrieMF

Was your vacation time during the billing time? Our "months" are half of 1 month & half of the other month.

Yup, our company does this. Kind of annoying sometimes. Or check your meter readings.