question about hydro and high rise apartment buildings

does anyone know FOR SURE if larger scale (more than 5 floor) apartment buildings that offer all inclusive hydro (tenant doesn't pay hydro) have all seperate hydro meters for their apartments?

i kind of chose my apartment i have now because i pay my own hydro, therefore the landlord wouldn't notice the hike in the electric bill.

so do large apartment buildings get to see what each tenant uses for hydro?

please only reply if you know for sure. trying to decide if i should move or not.

thanks

i assume by hydro u mean water bill.....if so then unless u r growing a few hundred plants u dont have to worry about getting cought by ur water bill, ur electric bill is usually the way u get cought, but again unless u have a massive grow i wouldnt worry about it. maybe look in to renting a house

I believe they do. When I lived in Vancouver, The building I stayed at had individualised bills for hydro.
I used to get my bill, even though it was paid for by the building owners.

I would also imagine that this control over an individual housing unit would be vital for any land lord.
He could cut off your power for non-payment of rent, as a precursor for a warning and eviction etc.

Go alternative

mconn333 said:

i assume by hydro u mean water bill.....if so then unless u r growing a few hundred plants u dont have to worry about getting cought by ur water bill, ur electric bill is usually the way u get cought, but again unless u have a massive grow i wouldnt worry about it. maybe look in to renting a house

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Hydro is electric in canada.

yes im talking about electricity

learn something new every day

currently im only running 1x600 watt but im planning on running anywhere from 2400 to 2600 in lighting alone, plus all the other necessities such as fans and crap like that

i think in highrise buildings if its inclusive it would be one main meter . unless its sub meterd . it all depends on the building if you ask me and the company who owns it . im a contractor for property mgmt. ive seen many electrical rooms and when i do im nosey always looking around in them, i have yet to see a building thats got 1 meter per floor. buildings ive seen with seperate meters are smaller buildings 4-5 floors and under . i know alot of buildings where i could start something up and id like too but i would jeapordize losing contracts (that arent mine , someone else would be a victum) so thats where i draw the line. id like to try the apt thing . just venting is an issue , using the window creates exhuast noise. thats where im stumped . running 6 to 8 kw an hour for free sounds awsome lol . ive also wondered if buildings do energy audits using IR camera to look for heat loss in the winter . they would find grows that way . hope this post and your thread helps us both .

Wow! Big grow, eh?!

May be worth renting some space.
Your only other means would be generating your own power.

mconn333 said:

i assume by hydro u mean water bill.....if so then unless u r growing a few hundred plants u dont have to worry about getting cought by ur water bill, ur electric bill is usually the way u get cought, but again unless u have a massive grow i wouldnt worry about it. maybe look in to renting a house

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Your electric bill does not get you caught ! maybe if you didt pay it

that's some good info. thanks

as far as the noise, i would search and apply to move into only top floor corner units.

i would be living there as well.

please if anyone else has info, pass it along.

Generally the older apartment buildings (more than 15-20 years) wouldn't be individually metered. The problem being there's not alot of power available without changing the breaker panel...for example, my buddies apartment has one 220v 60 amp circuit for the stove and six 15 amp circuits for everything else.

Just something to keep in my mind....

A 2400watt grow will be hard to move or hide if maintenance/landlord ever has to come

Think about it...

The electric company is in the business of making money. WHy would they not like a hefty bill? They might call if you go from a $100 electric bill to a $6,000 and ask if you have a problem or if everything is okay but 1 600w light is about the same as running a playstation 3 fat and an xbox 12 hours a day.

I think you would be alright with 2400w. Shit, my computer tower is 1kw alone. I have run 1200w, my computer 24/7, a 350w stereo most of the time, 42" tv, and other daily items (fridge, microwave, etc), and never had any issues in multiple unit buildings where I did not pay elec.

Edit: and a couple fairly large vortex fans.

rucca said:

A 2400watt grow will be hard to move or hide if maintenance/landlord ever has to come

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ya but landlords never go into the bedroom. plus they have to give at least 24 hrs notice before entering (unless its an emergency)

anybody else have any comments? bump it up.

my current unit has 10x15 amp and 2x40 amp breakers. im paying my own hydro (its in a 6 apt. building)

my problem is that im on the main floor, and my bedroom faces the backyard where a family plays with their kids.

i really want to grow more than my current 600 watt. but even now i've got big time heating issues.

only way i can see it happen here is to run a big air conditioner and vent the heat into my living space but i don't think that would work. or would it?

really im just trying to figure out the best option here. yes renting a house would be ideal, but its difficult for me to get approved for that with my income level and credit rating.

another question. what would be the average current draw on a 600 watt digital ballast? can i run 2 or 3 on a single 15 amp circuit?

what do most of you bigger scale growers (2000 watt and over) do? do you all own or rent your own houses?

well i guess the main question would be....is an apartment complex that offers all inclusive electricity with rent amount going to notice and be suspicious of me using over 2000 watts.