Knocking Cents Out of the Electric Bill

[Ken Scharabok]

This is an offshoot of Kenneth's SHTF thread. They were also looking for ways to cut down on their electric bill.

Perhaps an informative thread: What have you done (or heard of others doing) which helped to deduce the monthly electric bill.

I'll start. I have a timer on my electric hot water heater. Comes on for 2 1/2 hours in the early AM. Then off the rest of the day. I (and note I'm a family of one) have all the hot water needed during the day.

For those who don't want to invest in a timer just turn on the water heater for a couple of hours in the AM and then turn it off at the fuse box.

I also set the A/C at 80 degrees. Most of the time that is comfortable. If not, ceiling fan goes on.

[ArkansasLady]

line drying my clothes, all compact fluroscent bulbs, we have window units instead of central and we only run one at a time (except at night we run the two 110's in the bedrooms) we also use floor fans and ceiling fans to move the air around. we also only turn the window units on at noon for the big one and it goes off at bedtime and the two small ones go on at bedtime and we have LOTs of insulation in our house too... another thing I wanna try is bamboo shades on the outside on the east adn west side of my house...

~C~

[FourDeuce]

Our central air quit working last year(before the summer) and we never got it fixed yet. That has reduced our electric bill quite a bit.

[mpillow]

Anyplace where you need AC regularly...would certainly heat a solar shower and a solar cooker....

We dont have AC, water is heated by oil boilermate....but my kids go swimming at the lake most everyday so its unecessary for them to bathe everyday....
we hang all our laundry and make sure its worn until dirty...2 days max. washed in cold water.
We use CFL even in the chix coop

In the cooler seasons we heat and cook with wood almost exclusively.

I am guilty of having 3 chest freezers and a fridge....all full.

My light bill was $66 this month....not bad for 5 people

[whitewolf]

The 3 things that have made the biggest difference in our electric bill have already been mentioned: line drying clothes, turning off hot water heater for most of day and night, and using minimum a/c. Just line drying my clothes cut my electric bill almost $50.00 per month.

Whitewolf

[farmergirl]

If I could heat water with solar instead of propane, I'd save ALOT of money each year because I could return the propane tank and never have to buy propane again. Its price fluctuates like gasoline, so the high price hits at just the wrong time! MPillow, can you tell me how to heat water with solar?

[Dahc]

We replaced all of the lights in the house with incandescents. For every hundred watts we used to use, it's now 26 watts for lighting. We hooked all the electronic equipement into a single switch surge protector. When we arent using them (like the TV), we shut it off at the source.

We also do the hotwater heater thing but $120 for a good timer is unreasonable to us so we do it manually. We let it run for 3 hours in the morning and have enough hot water to get us through the day.

We also only use the dryer in certain situations like when drying towels. The towels we have are pretty nice but when you line dry them, they are very "scratchy" on the tender spots. I line dry my pants and shirts and stuff like that. I only dry towels because I'm able. We didn't have a dryer until my dad bought a new one and left his old one on the front porch. It was a great gift, but truth be known, has driven up the power bill even though we only use it about once a week.

When we did these things (without a dryer) it was right before Katrina. It slashed our electric bill 30% right off the bat. Since that time, the bill has gone much higher than it was before but that's due to what we are being charged, not what we're using. Our usage went down, not up.

[Barb]

If you have a TV (and reception) leave it off and unplugged unless you are watching a specific show - no mindless watching shows like Oprah.

Unplug all clocks in unused rooms or you really don't need.

Going away for a couple of days? Unplug micro, TV, VCR and computer. Unplug them anyway unless you are using them.

Keep a sheet with an inventory of what is in your freezer - no standing with it open trying to decide what's for dinner. Keep it organized to get foods out quickly.

After meals put all cold things in the fridge immediately - together - open fridge once. Put hot things in when they cool some. I put hot things in when the dishes are done. In the winter the top of the grill outside the door serves to cool hot things off and even get them frozen for the freezer.

If your dryer is electronic like mine, throw the breaker for thr line drying season. Ohterwise it is on low like the TV.

Running a pump or have a water bill? - if you only have a few dishes in the morning like a couple of cereal bowls and glasses, leave the dishwater in the sink to use to wash dishes between meals or baking pans. A little hot water and you are set to go again.

Turn out the lights except in the room you are in and then only if you need it. The lights are never on at night here if we are watching a tape on TV.

[Ramblin Wreck]

I turned the air up 2 degrees on the AC and I'm also running an Energy Star rated dehumidifier. It's amazing how much more comfortable I feel in the drier air with less AC use. I use propane for hot water, but I have it set on "Vacation" mode for the Summer. The water is plenty hot for the shower. I'm switching to more energy efficient (and cooler) light bulbs as the old ones die.

[mpillow]

5 gallon solar shower http://store.sundancesolar.com/sosh5ga.html

Batch heaters..

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects...er_heating.htm

http://www.dulley.com/solar.shtml little of everything

[WildernesFamily]

Originally Posted by FourDeuce

Our central air quit working last year(before the summer) and we never got it fixed yet. That has reduced our electric bill quite a bit.

You and me both! LOL!

Power$mart Booklet - great tips!

[Ken Scharabok]

I had my electric water heater timer put on at the same time the trailer was set up. I believe it cost about $20. If you go to eBay and do a search on water heater timer you will find about a half-dozen for about that price plus less than $10 S&H.

Should be a stock item at electrical/plumbing retail outlets.

Easy to install. Basically you need to purchase an additional couple of feet of 220v rated wire. The wires going into your heater are taken off put on the in terminals in the timer and then the new wire put on the out terminals and connected to the water heater. You may have to use shielded wire.

Say it costs $30 to install and saves you $5.00 per month. Pays for itself in six months.

Most of these have an override switch so it can be manually turned on and off as needed for special purposes.

Heck I haven't used a drier in probably eight years. I put up a clothesline along the side top of one hallway. Just do a load at a time and hung them up to dry. Then pull of to wear. I occasionally use the outside umbrella-type or just put items to dry on the porch rail.

Humors me to see people thinking bath towels are one use only before being put in laundry basket.

[Ann-NWIowa]

We have only used the dryer a couple times in a year. We hang outside during decent weather and in the basement in the winter. Run the a/c only when dh has trouble breathing and set it no lower than 78. Use fans as needed. We replaced our furnace, central air, refrigerator and dehumidifer with energy efficient models. Next will be an energy efficient deep freeze although even an older chest model is fairly efficient if you don't open it often. We keep shades closed on west windows in the afternoons. In the winter we keep thermostat set at 60º at night 65º during the day and only bump it to 68º when we shower. We layer clothes until we're comfortable and keep blankets handy for when we sit down. Heat water with natural gas no electric involved. We hand wash dishes. When washing clothes we make sure we have a full load. By the way you can line dry towels then put them in the dryer on air fluff for a few minutes to soften them.

[gilberte]

I wonder about the timer on the water heater. I've heard it said that just as much electricity is used to bring the water back up to temperature after being off, as would have been used to keep it there had the heater just been left on.

With just the two of us in the house we are considering replacing our 40 gallon water heater with a twenty gallon though.

[jnap31]

[QUOTE=farmergirl MPillowpr, can you tell me how to heat water with solar?[/QUOTE]
There are a lot of good threads on that topic at the alternative energy forum

[jnap31]

Originally Posted by Ken Scharabok

Humors me to see people thinking bath towels are one use only before being put in laundry basket.

I use mine atleast a week. We air dry all our cloths unless it has been raining three days straight in the winter. use incandecents turn off lights when not in use, no air con, But our bill is to high as I need to get rid ofour ancient freezer and fridge asap. Guess as soon as I get home they will be gone, I had not realized the diffrence they make until I read posts at the alternative energy forum.

[WisJim]

Originally Posted by gilberte

I wonder about the timer on the water heater. I've heard it said that just as much electricity is used to bring the water back up to temperature after being off, as would have been used to keep it there had the heater just been left on.

Not true.

Back to the question at hand.
We have done many of the things suggested, water heater timer, compact flourescents, no Air conditioning at all, got a newer more energy efficient refrigerator to replace our 30 year old unit (was hard to find one with manual defrost!), dry clothes on lines. The water heater timer and compact flourescents each made a noticeable difference in our electrical usage. Our biggest use in winter is the 1/3hp blower fan motor on our wood burning furnace, and we plan to get a different furnace with a different blower set up that will gravity circulate better.

When our electrical usage gets over 300kw-hrs a month, we get upset, but it happens in early spring when we have lots of plants under lights in the greenhouse.

[whiterock]

Since I became a "family"of one in may, I bought a window unit ac and put it in the bedroom. The central unit is either turned off or set on 85, unless I have some company. The dryer is used sparingly. water heater and cooking is gas. I haven't done much cooking since 1 doesn't require much.

My elec. is less than half what it was last year for the months of May, June, and July. More than enough to pay for the window unit and then some. If I feel warm, I go outside. After being in 104 for a while the 85 in the house feels pretty cool and I lower the setting on the window unit before going to bed and up it when I get up.

[QBVII]

I'm also running an Energy Star rated dehumidifier

We desperately need a dehumidifier! I'm hoping to find a second-hand one.

[mightybooboo]

Originally Posted by WisJim

Not true.

compact flourescents each made a noticeable difference in our electrical usage. .

Yep,me too,that was my biggest savings.

We did use 548 Kw/hrs last month,my biggest ever,it was the window A/C that did that,along with 2 ceiling fans.

BooBoo