Did you know that the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has several metering programs available to homeowners? Having the right metering program can potentially save a lot of money over each billing cycle, and there are several money saving programs to choose from.

When my electricity bill spiked last month I phoned the DWP and after waiting online for 55 minutes, that’s right 55 minutes (they did offer me the option of phoning me back, but I was eager to have my questions answered right away), I spoke with a very friendly and helpful representative and discovered a money saving program called Time of Use metering, TOU for short. Whereas standard billing is based on a Tier system of usage and is based on a high rate, the TOU program is based on how much energy you use during the day and the rates vary depending on the time of day you consume the majority of your energy. Here is the chart.

If 65% of your consumption occurs during the base period then this program can save you money. The electric rate of the base period is about ¼ of the cost of the High Peak Period and the Low Peak is about ½ the cost. I don’t know about you, but I’m usually not home during the weekdays from 1pm- 5pm. Lights come on sometime after 5 pm as does the radio, TV and other electrical appliances. Sure the refrigerator and other devices in the house are using electricity all day, but that meter really starts turning before I leave home in the morning and again once I return home late the day.

If you have a chance to go online check out the DWP website and look into this potentially cost saving program. You can take a short questionnaire that may indicate if the program is right for you.

You can also go to www.ladwp.com and look into this program and other cost saving programs available to homeowners. There is even a special program for separate metering for your EV.