How can I reduce my electricity bill?

[happy_momma]

Anyone have and savy tricks for reducing their electricity bill? I know the normal ones but I would be someone has ideas I have never thought of. Also what do you keep your AC at?

[heatherweh]

I don't have any spectacular ideas, but I think a/c is the real killer. Our electic goes sky high during July and August, then settles back down. DH and I are at war on that thermostat, every time he sees it he turns it down to 74 or 75 and every time I go by I put it up to 76 or 77 (degrees).

If you have gas at all, we blew out or turned off that little pilot light on our fireplace and I think that alone lowered our bills like $30 a month or something crazy like that. I love a fire and gas is so easy but its just too expensive (plus LOs in the house).

[pbjmama]

We keep our ac at 78 at night, 80-82 during the day.

Do you have an automatic thermostat (can't remember the proper name)? I think that made a big difference for us and I think it cost $20. We also put in attic fans.

I also have budget billing on our electric and gas, that way I know how much it is going to be each month and I don't 'feel' the hot of summer or cool of winter in our bills.

[phatchristy]

Attic fans, long term are EXCELLENT. They also have solar ones now, that pay for themselves in a couple of years. That is, if you live in a sourthern state like I do!

I prefer the A/C around 78. DH always lowers it (grrrr....)

A plasma TV eats a lot more electricity. If you have one, make sure to set it to energy saving mode!

Unplug ALL appliances when not in use. And, yes, they do drain it.

There is a device you can buy that can actually tell you how much electricity you are using when you run a plug to the wall through it! Can't remember what it is called, someone here will!

Keep your freezer STOCKED! As in, don't be cooling air. If you don't stock it, everytime you open it the cold air escapes and it is less efficient. The electricity guy told us that.

Most power companies offer a free energy audit.

Every 7-10 years have extra insulation blown in.

Recaulk, replace worn weather stripping on doors.

They also have energy saving window film!

Consider using alternate, more energy efficient appliances --like crockpot, rather than oven, or stove.

Set your thermostat to 120. Take quick showers. Always wash in COLD water whenever possible. Air dry your clothes if possible, or at least don't overdry (use automatic dry cycles).

Chance all bulbs to energy efficient ones.

Turn computer off instead of standby, standby though is better than being on unattended.

Just some off the top of my head!

[Norasmomma]

Line dry your laundry, seriously it saved us 1000 KW in 2 months. 500 a month, it was the only thing we did differently. I was pretty amazed, so much we will be getting more thing to hang them up inside in the winter even.

[i0lanthe]

I think that not fixing our central a/c (it died last year and we use the attic fan instead) has saved us the most. When it is broken there is no question of willpower LOL.

We have a gas dryer (which I guess I am glad for ). Also if you don't want to plug/unplug your vampire appliances all the time, get power strips with switches.

[lisalulu]

I'm wondering the same thing. Does anyone here use a "blanket" for the hot water heater? I've heard that can save (if yours is electric of course) but haven't bought one yet myself.

[Drummer's Wife]

A/C does cost a lot if you run it often. Our last bill was $325... I'm looking forward to it cooling down a bit.

[EmsMom]

I keep all instant on type appliances on power strips. When I switch the "on" switch, then I can turn on all of my computer appliances (printer, monitor, etc) at the same time. The same for the tv, dvd player and cable box. The cable box has to reset every time it is unplugged, though. We don't watch much tv so it isn't a big deal, but you could skip the power strip on that one. I also lump all my computer work into one set time as much as possible so the computer is off most of the day. Use lots of fans rather than air conditioning. And I avoid air conditioning in stores, etc whenever possible so my body doesn't get used to it. If I worked in an office, I think I would find it impossible to go without any air conditioning at home...

[1growingsprout]

Originally Posted by Drummer's Wife

A/C does cost a lot if you run it often. Our last bill was $325... I'm looking forward to it cooling down a bit.

Welcome to my world....

[Mpenny1001]

One little thing that made a big difference for us was our coffee pot. DH would make a pot of coffee and leave it on all morning while he drank through it. He took the time one day to measure how much energy it was drawing, and we realized it probably cost us $12-$15 a month to do that. Now we brew the coffee, turn off the pot, and pour the coffee into a carafe. We noticed the difference right away on our bill.

[bzmum]

Originally Posted by Mpenny1001

Now we brew the coffee, turn off the pot, and pour the coffee into a carafe. We noticed the difference right away on our bill.

There are also coffee makers that brew directly into the carafe...mine is made my Cuisinart...got it with loyalty points at the local grocery store.

[bzmum]

Originally Posted by Mpenny1001

Now we brew the coffee, turn off the pot, and pour the coffee into a carafe. We noticed the difference right away on our bill.

There are also coffee makers that brew directly into the carafe...mine is made by Cuisinart...got it with loyalty points at the local grocery store. There's no hot pad or whatever so it just turns off once the coffee is brewed.

[Amys1st]

In our state (IL) Com Ed has a energy saver credit during summer months. You can usually only enroll in the fall (after the summer months). They give us a $10-$20 credit each month from May- Sept. They are allowed to turn off our a/c during peak energy use. In 5 years they have done it twice I think. We were at the pool both times and I dont even think the a/c was even running but on standby.

We line dry during spring summer and fall and hang dry clothing during the winter months. We also while using the dryer put a dry towel in there and it cuts the time by 30%. We also have dryer balls but you can use tennis balls too.

If using a freezer, fill up milk cartons and place in open space, if the power goes out, its easier to keep a loaded up freezer frozen than an open one. I have had months where an entire shelf has frozen milk cartons.

Unplug any appliances not in use. They take energy even if not in use.

Buy a preset thermostat. It pays for itself sometimes within one month.

[Ruthiegirl]

I can cut my electric bill in half with two simple things -- hanging laundry and turning off the a/c. It stinks though. We sweat a lot and I work hard to keep up with the laundry. Since my mom moved in (and pays a little rent) we use the a/c more since she is not accustomed to our frugal ways. Her rent money is essentially eaten by the electric bill.

[~Laura~]

Totally impressed by the hardcore non-A/C people. We keep ours at 71 at all times and totally notice when it's at 73, let alone higher. We are definitely people who need cold! Of course, we have had 100+ temps pretty much all summer and I am more than 8 months preggo, but still this is our standard. As of this month, we have brand new windows, new R-49 insulation, new radiant barrier, new attic fan and a new roof ridge vent (with a new roof), so it will be interesting to see how our electric bill changes for the month of August (well, Sept will be the first full month and it will still be really hot here).

Here are our electricity bill amounts since 9/08 for a 21-year old 2-story home with single pane aluminum windows and none of the aforementioned energy improvements with both A/C units cranking to stay at 71 degrees and 5 computers on (among other things, like non-stop washing and drying clothes/sheets/towels):

July 09 - $341.46
June 09 - $255.41
May 09 - $164.77
April 09 - $65.14
March 09 - $84.10
February 09 - $55.37
January 09 - $100.73
December 08 - $114.08
November 08 - $89.22
October 08 - $175.33
Sept 08 - $277.55

Laura

[MommaJayla]

all I have is the window A/C units, but I keep those at 78.

if you have an electric dryer - line dry your clothes. I was sooo surprised how much $ per month this saved me. Like $60+/month, and I still dry all the clothes for 5 or so minutes when I take them off the line and the occassional load when I am lazy or behind.

[Amys1st]

The house we bought a few years ago was at one time a 2 bedroom ranch. Someone in the 70s put our top floor on as an addition. So there are two furnaces and two A/C. We usually when running the a/c keep it about 85 upstairs during the day unless one of us is up there. Then its at 78 and it cools off pretty quick. Otherwise we turn the a/c to 78 around 7pm and its kind of chilly by bedtime.

We run the mainfloor one while in that area and turn it up if leaving. Again, its pretty quick to cool off the area so no issues. Our electric bills for this house are lower. We also usually just keep the windows open and enjoy the breeze that blows thru.

[yeahwhat]

If you use a/c, turn up the temperature and also use a fan to circulate the air in the room you're in. It will make a warmer temperature feel more comfortable.

[TEAK's Mom]

Never using the clothes dryer makes a huge difference. It also helps to cook double portions since re-heating takes less energy than most cooking. We also find that a programmable thermostat saves us since we can turn the heat way down at night (no AC, we live in Alaska) and at times when we are always gone.