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Electricity in Your Home

The holes in most of the electrical plugs/outlets in Indonesia look like this and this . For more information on Indonesian electrical outlets and their needed plugs, see What Plug?

Looking at the Electricity in a Home before you move in

Electrical concerns should be high on your list as you're looking at potential residences. In order to run the many electrical appliances a typical expat house has, as well as air conditioning for most rooms, you will find the electrical capacity of most houses in Indonesia to be inadequate. Look at the number of electrical appliances and electrical outlets already in the house when you view it. Turn on every light, all the air conditioners, the water pump and other electrical appliances in the house. See if the circuits become overloaded and switch off. An expatriate house with abundant applicances typically needs at least 6,600 watts (30 amps or more, rated as R1 category of residence by PLN). This should be confirmed by inspecting the electric meter or asking an electrician.

If the electricity is inadequate, ask your landlord to increase the current capacity in the house before you move in. Higher capacity means that you will pay a higher rate for electrical usage, so be sure the new capacity is adequate for your living and entertaining needs, without being excessive. Ensure that your contract clearly states that the landlord must install adequate electrical capacity to meet your needs. After you move in, test the capacity by plugging in all your appliances and using them for a period to see if your capacity is adequate.

Once you occupy your new home, you may find that the electrical phases need to be balanced. There may be too many appliances on one circuit, while another circuit has unused capacity. If the phases are properly balanced, it will help ensure adequate current where you need it. Include in your contract the stipulation that after your move in and an initial period of residence (so you've had a chance to obtain and use your appliances), the landlord will balance the phases, if necessary.

If the landlord will be purchasing new appliances or air conditioners for the house, insist on energy efficient appliances. New appliances, as a rule, consume less electricity than old run-down appliances, so the new energy efficiency features will help you save money on your electric bill. Although appliances purchased in Singapore do not need transformers (and the adapter plugs are very easy to find in Indonesia), you may want to check the power consumption rating on the box. Singapore dwellings are wired with far more eletrical capacity than Indonesian homes, so even the same model of clothes iron will have a higher watts rating if purchased in Singapore. Non-CCF refrigerators are also available in Indonesia.

Ambient charge can cause very mild electric shocks if sockets are not properly grounded. Please ask a qualified electrician to test all electrical sockets to make sure they are properly grounded! If necessary the electrician can run a ground wire from the metal frame of your computer in order to draw away the ambient charge.

Paying your Electric Bill

PLN (the national electric company) sends electric bills to most home addresses in Jakarta. The bill shows the calculation of your monthly bill. In the fine print at the bottom of the bill, you will see that you are being charged Rp 4,000 on your monthly bill for this service. If you don't agree, check the box that says “tidak setuju” and return the form and the statements will probably stop being delivered.

When you move into a new house, ask the landlord for a copy of the last bill he has paid, as well as the location where you must make payment. Your neighbors will also know the closest place that you can pay the electric bill.

If you don't know the amount ahead of time, send your driver or helper between the 5th and 20th of the month to the payment location to ask what the amount of the bill is. They will show the copy of the old bill from the landlord to see the account number/service address and then they can tell you the amount so that you can return and make payment later.

Alternately you can check the website of the State Electricity Company - Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN). It's in Indonesian but it is relatively simple to enter your customer ID in the section “Rekening Anda” on the home page to find out the amount of your monthly electricity bill. Enter the month and year then click on the button “lihat” to see the amount you have to pay.

You can actually calculate the approximate amount of each bill by reading your meter and dividing your total (jumlah rupiah tagihan) by the kilowat usage (pemakaian kwh). This gives you your rate per kilowatt hour. Check the card hung by your meter for the last reading and multiple that usage by your rate to get an approximate total for your next bill. After a few months residence, you'll have a good idea of the approximate amount of the bill and can send the driver with the correct amount of money.

Electrical Repairs

Poor workmanship and/or poor quality materials often used in Indonesian houses, as well as the rigors of the tropical climate can lead to problems with electrical wiring and breakdown of electrical appliances.

Check regularly to ensure that electrical outlets are clean and not broken, and that plugs of appliances are not damaged or the cables frayed. Your household staff may not understand the serious dangers involved in faulty cords and may not inform you of any problems they discover.

If you have electrical problems in your home, you can call a tukang listrik (electrician). However the quality of workmen varies widely and it may be best to hire a company whose work has been recommended by other expatriates who are accustomed to international standards of workmanship and safety. Another option is to contact a housing management agency that can assist you in inspecting the house for maintenance safety concerns, as well as handle your repairs.

Disruption of Service

Disruption of electrical service is common in Indonesia, particularly when it rains as the tropical storms can cause broken connections, broken cables or debris falling onto the power lines. Rolling brownouts or outages are becoming more common as well as the power grids production capabilities no longer meet demands from consumers.

The reason for most power outages are not obvious and are almost always unannounced. The State Electricity Company (Perusahaan Listrik Negara, PLN) has a 24-hour service line where you can report outages anywhere in Jakarta. Call 123 for a pre-recorded message in Bahasa Indonesia and press 1 to leave your message. You may need to have a staff member or Indonesian-speaking friend leave the message for you. If you can ever manage to get a PLN staff member on the phone, they are usually not of much assistance and are unable to tell you how much longer the power outage will be. However, it is still suggested that you call PLN as they may not be aware of the problem and could then send someone to the effected area to investigate the cause.

for Electricity Complaints - Dial 123

July 2010 Rate Hike

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