just wondering, i have a 400watt 150watt and two 75watt lights going at 24hrs the moment. but im going to 12 12 soon with same lights. im just kinda scared that the police might look at the light bill records and will bust me. im not suspicious at all, i have a steady job and just do this shit on my free time so i dont have to buy it, just personal use to save money. i have 10 plants going... will the cops look at the light bill because it went from $45 to $77 dollars in 4 months gradually going up. how many watts can i use and for how long before they come get me? any ideas or advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks guys.
The electric company watches radical increases in energy use and they will notify police if it is a significant amount... 30 dollars in not a large amount to arouse anyone.
for all they know you collect/breed various reptiles in your basement. or have kids with expensive gaming computers. or you just leave all your damn lights on and AC running all the time. who gives a fuck why your bill is higher than your neighbors.
Not nearly enough of an increase to warrant a notice, and way too many legit reasons your bill could have gone up. You're fine.
I was thinking about this a few days ago and tbh even i was overly paranoid. -Imagine setting up a 100 gallon fish tank, how much would that run a month? -Got a new bearded dragon? Lights, heat mat, ect. -4 bulb ceiling fan fixtures with (actal) 60-100w bulbs on for hours. -Hell, I'd left my 400w MH in my garage (big garage) on for two months straight. No problems, just pay the bill. I honestly think it'd take like 4000w constantly for anyone to really notice. Oh and OP - it's gradual, not a 100$ a month spike You're perfectly safe.
Plus, it's turning into winter/Fall in most of the US now so for all they know you're running electric heaters.
In some places, the cops have a deal with the power company and/or individual employees. For example, they may have a deal with a meter reader to give him $50 for every home he smells a grow, something like that. Problem is, you will never know if such a "deal" is going on in your area or not.
thanks everyone, you all just made me a lot less paranoid. fuck yea i can grow a little more easy minded now, i really appreciate it. peace
I think it was actually toasty that said it before and I'll agree til the day i die. A healthy dose of paranoia is a good thing with this hobby. Sometimes it just gets to the best of us :]
And the local lawyers would be having their dreams come true with law suits filed against the police. The person in charge would get reprimanded and/or fired. The judge who issued the warrant would be worried about being voted out of his position. The electric company would also be sued for providing information to the police without probable cause, increased usage is not probable cause
I disagree with that, any lawyer would be in the court room asking for whats called Discovery. The police would have to tell how they came about the information that lead to the warrant being issued. Local news would then be reporting that with the help of the "local Electric Company" a bust was made. The citizens have electric provided from a public company with the right to "reasonable privacy" Discussing your electric bill with the local police without them initiating a warrent to your monthly records to do so is illegal and an invasion of your privacy.
Very naive thinking. The meter reader tells the cops, then the cops can claim they walked by your house, just checking out the neighborhood and doing their job and all, and they smelled it. Now can they get a warrant? Hell yeah. They can even say, "Gee, I wonder if anyone else has also smelled it? I know, before we ask for a warrant let's go ask the meter reader!" Now they have corroborating accounts. This isn't my opinion, I know that it most definitely happens.
I retract what I said before and will say anything is possible. Where I am at the meters are electronic and the meter reader sits in a small truck with a laser and scans the meters, it takes him/her all but a couple seconds and he/she is on their way. I dont let weeds grow to where my meter cant be read They dont need a meter reader either, all they would have to say is they was investigating a prowler in the neighborhood
A noticeable change in your electric bill would be 200-500$+ Anything under that can be explained with legitimate reasons. If you plug in a extra freezer and refrigerator that would produce an extra $50 a month. Plus the winter months coming means more electric heat (stated in thread before). I wouldn't worry about it. Just keep your mouth shut and pay your electric bill and everything should be fine. As far as cops investigating your house, you win some and you lose some. You can't do much if a cop decides to look around your property and has a k9 unit with him. Just make sure you have no light leaks and if your venting out air from your grow out of your house it goes thru a carbon filter! best of luck bro, Chiddy
lemme put it this way, my neighbor had 11 inlaws from puerto rico come up and stay in his 2 bedroom apartment over the summer. They ran the air conditioning 24/7, cooked mad shit and watched tv nonstop. his balance went up to $2000 because of it and no cops knocked on his door. the utility company's are more worried about people paying off what they owe right now. pay for what you use and you won't have a problem. just make sure it doesnt smell like skunk all the time outside your house.