SMECO Bill

SamSpade

Well-Known Member
What does everyone here typically pay, for your average single family home? I'm trying to find a way to cut energy costs, and I know that this year and next, there are tax benefits for upgrading your home.
 

John Z

if you will
In the last year, I think our average bill for our 2500 sq ft rambler is $280/month. I was almost giddy that our most recent bill was a scant $167 (down from $300+). :cartwheel:
 

sugarmama

New Member
Our varied b/w $280 and $480 this summer. :yikes:
however, once we got the $480 bill, I cut off the A/C (this was beginning of september, so we just had to sweat it out for a few days), and we turned off our downstairs hot water heater (we have one upstairs, which is the only one we need for our hot showers). After that, our bill went down to $280 again.
 

SamSpade

Well-Known Member
Ok - so far, everyone's experience jibes with what I suspected, taking into account the size of the home and time of year - more or less.

Has anyone tried saving electricity by:

Upgrading appliances?
Replacing heat pump?
Adding wood stove?
Replacing water heater with one of devices that heats it as needed?
Covering windows with those ugly thermal things?
Getting a programmable thermostat?
Replacing windows?
Use flourescents?

Anything else?

I've been checking around the house trying to find what we waste energy on - some devices don't really turn off when you think they're off, or still use a bit of energy in "energy-saving" mode.

I did do the SMECO energy audit a couple years ago, and it saved - a *little*. I just think the energy bill is too much.
 

SamSpade

Well-Known Member
aps45819 said:
Mine's been running about $80 a month this summer, usually goes down in the winter.

I'm guessing you do NOT have electric heat?
But DO have A/C?
 

itsbob

I bowl overhand
Have you thought of an outdoor wood burning furnace/boiler?? I used to see them all the time in PA, but not much around here!!
 
W

White Buddah

Guest
2500 sq ft house: no more than $125 in the summer and under $40 in the winter. Natural gas around $140 in the winter and under $20 in the summer. :larry:
 

pixiegirl

Cleopatra Jones
1800 sq ft rambler with cathedral ceilings and insulation in the floor and ceiling. Right around $100 in the winter (oil heat and hot water) and a little over $300 in the summer. Granted this was our first summer in the house and the other half turned off the oil so that the hot water would be electric. HUGE difference! I do a lot of laundry and we take a lot of showers. Our window are more than likely the original storm windows (house was built in 63) and they BLOW. When sitting by one you can feel hot/cold depending on the season. We're replacing them soon as well as Upgrading the entire HVAC system so that we'll run electric heat in the winter and the oil will only be a back-up when temps drop below a certain level.
 

sugarmama

New Member
SamSpade said:
Ok - so far, everyone's experience jibes with what I suspected, taking into account the size of the home and time of year - more or less.

Has anyone tried saving electricity by:

Upgrading appliances?
Replacing heat pump?
Adding wood stove?
Replacing water heater with one of devices that heats it as needed?
Covering windows with those ugly thermal things?
Getting a programmable thermostat?
Replacing windows?
Use flourescents?

Anything else?

I've been checking around the house trying to find what we waste energy on - some devices don't really turn off when you think they're off, or still use a bit of energy in "energy-saving" mode.

I did do the SMECO energy audit a couple years ago, and it saved - a *little*. I just think the energy bill is too much.

Hubby and i have a newly built house, so our appliances are new and those special energy-saver ones. Windows also new, and good insulation, so i can't help ya there.

We turned off one of our hot water heaters, and have just been using our boiler for hot water (for the 1st floor). The only thing we need hot water for down there is the dishwasher and sink anyway, so it's worked fine.

Have a programmable thermostat, and that has helped. In the summer, i turn it way up to about 83 during the days when we're not home (and even at night, but shhhhh do'nt tell the hubby). I keep it at 78 while we're home, and that made a difference. Before we received the huge electric bill , i kept it at about 75 all day.

We also had SMECO come out and put on an energy-saver box-thingy on our outside units, and on the hot water heaters. It saves a few bucks a month at least, and all it does is give them the power to shut it off when they're lacking energy. It was free.
 

Pete

Repete
2 person household, 2200 sq feet, oil heat, central air, programable thermostat, timer on the water heater, hot tub, 4 loads of laundry per week. Highest power bill was this August $189, lowest $126 in April, average about $145.
 

John Z

if you will
SamSpade said:
Has anyone tried saving electricity by:

Upgrading appliances?
Replacing heat pump?
Adding wood stove?
Replacing water heater with one of devices that heats it as needed?
Covering windows with those ugly thermal things?
Getting a programmable thermostat?
Replacing windows?
Use flourescents?

Anything else?

Well, I did replace an old AC system with a new heat pump and new ductwork a couple of months ago. I'm hoping this will drop both heating and cooling costs (I had baseboard electric heaters). But it will take awhile to recoup my $10K expense for this (granted, 40% of that cost was the new ductwork).

I like to use compact flourescents where I can, but it is hard. I have dimmers on many of my lights, which are incompatible with compact flourescent bulbs. Also, annoyingly, the compact flourescents take about 30 seconds to reach full light output. This is bad for lights you switch on and off a lot.

I do have a wood stove, and I do like to use it to keep electric heating costs down. Whenever I have an opportunity to use "free" wood in it, I do. Isabel brought me two nice oak trees, a neighbor had a few trees taken down this spring, and there will be other trees I'll have removed as time goes on. Sure, the chain saw costs money, and the wood splitter rental costs money. But that must reduce my heating costs somewhat.

I like the idea of the inline water heater or whatever it is called. My parents have one, and it works fairly well.

I do have programmable thermostats, but to be honest, I don't utilize the programability. I'm not convinced that for short periodicity it makes sense to cycle the set point up and down. In addition to air in your house, all your "stuff" must be heated and cooled. There is so much thermal inertia in that stuff that I don't know that it makes sense to kick the temperature down in the winter when you aren't home for 8 hrs at work (for example). Maybe I'm wrong.
 

SamSpade

Well-Known Member
John Z said:
I do have programmable thermostats, but to be honest, I don't utilize the programability. I'm not convinced that for short periodicity it makes sense to cycle the set point up and down. In addition to air in your house, all your "stuff" must be heated and cooled. There is so much thermal inertia in that stuff that I don't know that it makes sense to kick the temperature down in the winter when you aren't home for 8 hrs at work (for example). Maybe I'm wrong.

Dunno. I have a friend who said it worked for his (at the time) girlfriend.

I used to be able to save money by restricting where I was in the house during the winter months - and during the hottest summer months. I had a window AC unit that I would just use in my bedroom with the door closed - and the rest of the house I let get warm. Similarly I used small space heaters at night and let the house cool down, in the winter.

Of course, that house was a LOT smaller than the one I live in now. And there was just me living in it.
 

pixiegirl

Cleopatra Jones
SMECO Bill 10-05-2006 08:57 AM tard--electric heat is not the way to go. Your bills will be huge.

I'm the tard? :killingme I guess oil for the oil heat is free? Even if our electric bill triples we'll still save money over having out 550 gallon tank filled at least twice if not three times in the cooler months.
 
pixiegirl said:
SMECO Bill 10-05-2006 08:57 AM tard--electric heat is not the way to go. Your bills will be huge.

I'm the tard? :killingme I guess oil for the oil heat is free? Even if our electric bill triples we'll still save money over having out 550 gallon tank filled at least twice if not three times in the cooler months.
You're right. I have heat pump with oil backup. Just installed last year and the overall savings are huge. I'm using WAY less oil and about 20% less electric.
 
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