The Haunted Farmhouse With Impossible Electricity Bills

Bill Rich was downstairs using the bathroom when he heard heavy footsteps crossing the floor above him. They sounded like a large man walking around in work boots, so he went upstairs to see who was making all the noise.

His wife was feeding their baby, and his teenage son was asleep. Nobody else was in the house.

Bill searched around but couldn’t find anyone. He had no idea that this was the beginning of several very expensive years.

They Had Found Their Dream Home

It was 1989, and Bill and Liz Rich had recently moved into Heol Fanog, a remote farmhouse near Brecon, Wales. The property sat beneath the Brecon Beacons, surrounded by hills and farmland.

They were renting the house, which had been converted from an old barn. It offered plenty of room for the growing family, and Bill, a successful artist, had a large studio upstairs.

Their first summer was wonderful. Bill’s paintings were selling, Liz had a baby boy named Ben, and the family was enjoying life in the countryside.

But by autumn, things had started going wrong. Doors slammed unexpectedly, and the family heard footsteps in empty rooms. Sometimes the sound came from upstairs, while other times it seemed to be someone walking down the stairs.

Strange smells also appeared around the house. Some reminded the family of sulphur or strong incense, and the temperature sometimes seemed to change suddenly for no reason they could find.

The Electricity Bill Was Enormous

One day, Bill opened an electricity bill and stared at the amount. £750 for three months.

The family couldn’t believe it. They weren’t running a factory or operating heavy equipment, and their heating didn’t even depend entirely on electricity.

Bill worked out how much power their household appliances could possibly use. Even if they ran everything around the clock, he believed the total would be nowhere near what the company was charging.

He contacted SWALEC, the local electricity supplier, and complained. The company sent someone to inspect the property, but couldn’t identify a problem that explained the bill.

Then another bill arrived for £512.13. The family was expected to pay, even though nobody could tell them where all the electricity was going.

The House Was Getting Stranger

While Bill argued with the power company, other unusual things were happening. He reported paintbrushes flying around his studio. The family also described figures appearing inside the house, including a dark shape that sometimes seemed to be watching them.

Liz later spoke about seeing an elderly woman. Other members of the family reported frightening dreams and the uncomfortable feeling that someone was nearby when they were alone.

Bill’s painting career also began to suffer. His work had been selling well before the trouble started, but now customers were cancelling orders, and he was having difficulty earning enough money.

The family was struggling with bills, a young child and a house where they never knew what might happen next. The Riches began wondering whether the frightening experiences and the electrical problems were connected.

People Came to Investigate

As word spread, paranormal investigators and religious visitors began arriving at Heol Fanog. Some believed the house was haunted by people connected to the old buildings that had once stood nearby. Others suggested that something had been brought into the converted barn with the stones used during construction.

One visitor told Bill that a man murdered centuries earlier might be responsible. Another claimed Bill was being troubled by someone he’d encountered in a previous life.

The explanations became increasingly strange. According to Bill, one American religious visitor even claimed he had been chosen by the Antichrist to help bring evil spirits into the world.

Liz eventually became fed up with the stream of visitors. She told a newspaper that she would rather put up with the ghosts than have certain investigators come back. But no amount of prayer or investigation had solved the electricity problem.

The Meter Kept Running

SWALEC sent engineers to examine the house. They checked the electrical supply and inspected the meter, looking for faulty equipment or electricity being taken from somewhere else.

The family still received huge bills. Bill said the meter sometimes seemed to run faster when strange activity was happening inside the house. He became convinced that something was drawing power without their knowledge.

The bills were a serious financial problem, and the family couldn’t simply refuse to pay them without risking having their electricity disconnected. According to later newspaper reports, the company eventually replaced the meter several times. Yet the unexplained readings continued.

In November 1995, newspapers reported that engineers had returned to investigate another quarterly bill of around £900. By then, the mystery had been going on for years.

The Inspector Couldn’t Explain What He Saw

During one inspection, an engineer noticed that the small wheel inside the electricity meter was still spinning. He told Bill there must be something switched on somewhere in the house.

Bill insisted that everything was off, but the engineer didn’t believe him. So Bill took him from room to room, showing him that the lights and appliances had been switched off.

They checked everything they could find. When they returned to the meter, its wheel was still turning. According to Bill, the inspector admitted that he’d never seen anything like it.

This was exactly what Bill had been trying to tell the electricity company. The engineer had witnessed the problem himself, and Bill hoped that would finally help the family get some answers.

Bill asked the inspector to put what he’d seen in his report.