How much do you pay? roughly between $150 & $180 a month (all electric, no gas)
We do run our AC A LOT!! Not my choice, believe me...I wear sweats year-round because of it! But we just had insulation put in this morning, so hopefully that will drop significantly. We'll see.
I don’t think it’s really possible :). I’ve gone through it all in my mind so many times! We really aren’t doing anything to excess. We keep the thermostat set at 68 in the winter and only turn on the a/c for a few hours to cool the house in the evening if it’s excessively hot inside (and it’s really just a handful of days when a/c is needed). The house had new insulation put in 10 years ago and more energy efficient windows/doors.
I don’t want to limit my use of the dishwasher or washer/dryer! But I think that’s all that’s left that could be considered big energy users (and I use them both every day). I really don't know where I would cut back!
My son swam at a friends over the weekend, and they have a heated outdoor pool!!!! OMGoodness, can you imagine the bill they will get!!
How big is your house? 2200 sq ft PLUS the unfinished basement that we've semi-finished ourselves
How much do you pay? During the summer months last year it was close to $200
I hung SUEDE curtains all over the house this past year and it really helps to keep it warm in winter and cooler in the summer. You can also buy room darkening mini blinds to cut out heat. Those new fangled light bulbs are supposed to save tons of energy, but they contain mercury so be careful NOT to break one! Turn off the heat dry on the dishwasher. Wash in cold water. TURN LIGHTS OFF. I even read that things like your tv, cell phone chargers and appliances actually still draw electricity even when they're off but still plugged in. Can you unplug that coffee pot?
We live in Canada. No idea how big my house is. Not very big. I only have a window a/c unit in summer and a gas furnace and hot water heater. My gas runs $90/month more or less and electricity is $80/month, more in summer when I have the a/c unit on. Its very expensive up here and because of the cold winter my gas bill was $187 the last few months to make up for what I wasn't paying the months before (equal payment plan).
I didn't know that about those light bulbs. I'm slowly changing out regular light bulbs for those. I do know that you cannot use those with a dimmer switch, so my living room will have to keep using the incandescent bulbs.
I do know this though:
incandescent uses 90% of the energy used to produce heat
for the life of the bulb, the CFLs are cheaper to buy (yes, they are pricey when you get them, but it'll be worth it) (let's say the incandescents last 90 days at 75¢ a piece--I'm making up numbers here, and the CFLs last 3 years at $2.50 a piece)
CFLs use less energy overall and don't produce heat
CFLs require less energy from YOU because you change it less often
Several years ago, I started using CFLs on my carport light that I keep on 24/7 (we don't have a sensor on it) and they usually last between 2-2½ years running 24/7!
I wish we had basements in Ca. I don't think many people have them here. Would be nice to have that extra space! My house is big, but full of stuff...we need to get rid of more things we don't really need! And my house needs new windows and probably insulation, too.
Thanks for all the answers! Sounds like it's expensive everywhere.
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Where do you live? Louisiana
How big is your house? almost 2100 sq ft
How much do you pay? roughly between $150 & $180 a month (all electric, no gas)
We do run our AC A LOT!! Not my choice, believe me...I wear sweats year-round because of it! But we just had insulation put in this morning, so hopefully that will drop significantly. We'll see.
Alysha
Where do you live? - SF Bay Area
How big is your house? - 1400 sq ft
How much do you pay? just got my bill for gas & electric - $145.79. I probably used the a/c a couple of times during this billing period.
Lynn
I don’t think it’s really possible :). I’ve gone through it all in my mind so many times! We really aren’t doing anything to excess. We keep the thermostat set at 68 in the winter and only turn on the a/c for a few hours to cool the house in the evening if it’s excessively hot inside (and it’s really just a handful of days when a/c is needed). The house had new insulation put in 10 years ago and more energy efficient windows/doors.
I don’t want to limit my use of the dishwasher or washer/dryer! But I think that’s all that’s left that could be considered big energy users (and I use them both every day). I really don't know where I would cut back!
My son swam at a friends over the weekend, and they have a heated outdoor pool!!!! OMGoodness, can you imagine the bill they will get!!
Lynn
Where do you live? Denver, CO
How big is your house? 2200 sq ft PLUS the unfinished basement that we've semi-finished ourselves
How much do you pay? During the summer months last year it was close to $200
I hung SUEDE curtains all over the house this past year and it really helps to keep it warm in winter and cooler in the summer. You can also buy room darkening mini blinds to cut out heat. Those new fangled light bulbs are supposed to save tons of energy, but they contain mercury so be careful NOT to break one! Turn off the heat dry on the dishwasher. Wash in cold water. TURN LIGHTS OFF. I even read that things like your tv, cell phone chargers and appliances actually still draw electricity even when they're off but still plugged in. Can you unplug that coffee pot?
Denise
Where do you live? Illinois
How big is your house? Around 2600 SQ---it is a two story with a full finished basement as well
How much do you pay? We are on the budget plan and currently pay $270 a month
ANd we run our AC all of the time and
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I didn't know that about those light bulbs. I'm slowly changing out regular light bulbs for those. I do know that you cannot use those with a dimmer switch, so my living room will have to keep using the incandescent bulbs.
I do know this though:
incandescent uses 90% of the energy used to produce heat
for the life of the bulb, the CFLs are cheaper to buy (yes, they are pricey when you get them, but it'll be worth it) (let's say the incandescents last 90 days at 75¢ a piece--I'm making up numbers here, and the CFLs last 3 years at $2.50 a piece)
CFLs use less energy overall and don't produce heat
CFLs require less energy from YOU because you change it less often
Several years ago, I started using CFLs on my carport light that I keep on 24/7 (we don't have a sensor on it) and they usually last between 2-2½ years running 24/7!
Alysha
I wish we had basements in Ca. I don't think many people have them here. Would be nice to have that extra space! My house is big, but full of stuff...we need to get rid of more things we don't really need! And my house needs new windows and probably insulation, too.
Thanks for all the answers! Sounds like it's expensive everywhere.
I live in Pennsylvania
2600 sq feet
It was 180.00 last month.
It has been very hot here lately
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