An August power bill can be ugly without meaning that something suddenly went wrong with your Richmond rental. Before blaming the thermostat, the air conditioner, or one especially hot week, check what period the bill actually covers and how much electricity you used.
An August statement may include electricity used during late July and early August, and the number of billing days can vary. Once you understand the usage, the three things that are most realistically under your control are your thermostat habits, how much heat you let into the home, and whether the cooling system has clear airflow.
Key Takeaways
- Check the service dates, billing days, kWh, and average daily usage before deciding what caused the increase.
- A higher dollar bill does not always mean your electricity use increased by the same percentage.
- Richmond summer weather, utility rates, insulation, window exposure, and HVAC efficiency are not fully under a renter's control.
- Your three practical levers are thermostat use, indoor heat gain, and HVAC airflow.
- If the system itself starts behaving differently, that becomes a maintenance question rather than just a utility-bill question.
Start With the Bill, Not the Thermostat
For Dominion Energy Virginia customers, the Understand My Bill guide is a useful starting point. It shows where to find the service-period dates, current billing days, billable usage in kilowatt-hours, and usage history.
Those details matter. A 33-day billing period will naturally contain more usage than a 29-day period if everything else is equal. An August bill can also reflect electricity used during the last part of July, so today's weather may have very little to do with the amount currently due.
Look at kWh and, where available, average daily usage. If those numbers climbed substantially, higher household use is part of the explanation. If usage is similar but the dollar amount changed more sharply, look at the rates and other bill components too. Dominion explains that electric bills reflect both household usage and the cost of generating and delivering electricity.
Why Summer Cooling Can Push Usage Up Quickly
Air conditioning is one of the largest seasonal electricity loads in many homes. Dominion specifically notes that greater reliance on air conditioning tends to produce higher bills during peak summer months.
The home matters too. Richmond Metro rentals include older detached homes, brick houses, townhomes, and newer construction. Window exposure, shade, insulation, duct layout, equipment efficiency, and the amount of afternoon sun entering the home can all change how hard a cooling system has to work.
That is why comparing your bill with someone else's is usually not very useful. It is better to compare the home with itself over time.
The 3 Things Actually Under Your Control
1. How You Use the Thermostat
You do not need to make the home uncomfortable to reduce cooling demand. A steady, reasonable setting and a schedule that reflects when you are actually home are more useful than constantly chasing the thermostat.
The U.S. Department of Energy's energy-saving guidance for renters recommends using programmable thermostat scheduling where available so temperatures can follow your daily routine.
If the bigger problem is that the home feels unusually hot even while the system is operating, our guide to why a Richmond rental can feel hot in summer goes deeper into thermostat settings, humidity, filters, and AC performance.
2. How Much Heat You Let Into the Home
Direct afternoon sun can heat a room quickly, especially through windows with strong western or southern exposure. Closing blinds, curtains, or shades before the sun is already pouring through the glass is one of the simplest renter-controlled ways to reduce that heat gain. DOE specifically recommends window coverings to block direct summer sunlight.
Indoor activities add heat too. On especially hot afternoons, using the oven for a long meal, running heat-producing appliances unnecessarily, or doing every warm household chore at the hottest time of day can make the space harder to keep comfortable.
Fans can also help you feel cooler without trying to cool an empty room. For a broader set of practical heat-day habits, timing ideas, and places to cool off around Richmond, use our Richmond Summer Survival Guide for renters.
3. Whether the Cooling System Has Clear Airflow
A cooling system needs clear airflow to work properly. Keep supply vents and return grilles open and unobstructed by furniture, rugs, boxes, or heavy curtains.
If HVAC filter replacement is assigned to you, follow the schedule provided for your home or resident program. ENERGY STAR explains that a dirty filter slows airflow and makes heating and cooling equipment work harder.
If you are not sure what basic check applies to your system, start with the PMI James River Resident Maintenance guidance rather than guessing at the equipment.
For the bigger year-round picture, our Seasonal Maintenance guide for Richmond renters explains what is worth checking as the home moves through heat, storms, cooler weather, and winter.
When a High Power Bill Becomes a Maintenance Question
A high bill by itself does not prove that the air conditioner is defective. The system's behavior is more useful than the dollar amount.
It is worth reporting when something appears to have changed, such as:
- the system starts blowing warm air;
- there is little or no airflow from vents that normally work;
- the thermostat stops controlling the system normally;
- ice or unexpected water appears around HVAC equipment;
- the system develops a new unusual noise or odor; or
- the home suddenly stops responding the way it normally does under similar weather.
Before submitting a non-emergency request, complete the safe basic checks that apply to your home and include useful details such as the thermostat setting, indoor temperature, whether air is moving, whether the air feels cool or warm, when the problem started, and whether the filter is current when that is your responsibility.
For portal access, maintenance requests, and other resident tools, keep the PMI James River Resident Resources page handy.
The practical order is simple: read the bill first, then work the three things you can actually control. If the cooling system itself has changed, report that separately so the maintenance issue can be evaluated on its own facts.
Published: November 1, 2026
