Hey everyone, not sure if this belongs here but figured you'd know better than anyone. My sister just opened a coffee shop in Southeast Portland and her first PGE bill was $847 for one month. That seems insane for a 1,200 square foot space with just espresso machines, a couple fridges, and LED lighting. She's on Schedule 32 (Small Nonresidential Service) and the demand charge alone was $180. Is this normal or should she be worried? She's freaking out about whether the business is viable.
Coffee shop in Portland - should I be worried about this electric bill?
Kira, that does sound high for a coffee shop that size. I see similar issues with small businesses here in Pennsylvania all the time. The problem is usually the demand charges kicking in when they shouldn't. Those espresso machines can create huge power spikes when they heat up, especially if multiple units cycle on at once. Has she looked at the actual demand reading on her bill? If it's showing anything over 15-20 kW for a space that size, something's definitely wrong.
Sylvia's right about the demand spikes. I had a client down in Mobile with the exact same issue - small cafe, huge bills. Turned out the electrical contractor wired everything to the same phase and all the equipment would hit peak draw simultaneously. Alabama Power was charging them based on a 35 kW demand when they should have been seeing maybe 12-15 kW max. Tell your sister to have an electrician check the load balancing and maybe install some demand control equipment.
Thanks guys! I had her check the bill more carefully and you're absolutely right. The demand reading shows 28.4 kW which seems crazy high. She remembers the electrician mentioning something about putting everything on one circuit because it was "simpler." Sounds like he created an expensive problem. I'll have her call PGE to see about getting the demand charge reviewed and find a different electrician to fix the wiring issue.
Good catch on diagnosing this! For future reference, PGE usually allows one-time demand charge adjustments for wiring problems if you can document the issue was caused by faulty installation. I helped a restaurant owner in Cincinnati get about $2,800 back from Duke Energy for a similar situation. Have her keep all the documentation from the electrician's fix - she might be able to get some of those charges reversed retroactively.