Utilitity Bills: Need advice please!

Just what everyone else has said.
Dump the cable, watch shows through internet.
If its just you, get a nice toaster oven instead of running the big oven.
Get supplemental heat

Amazon carries for $300. Its propane.
http://www.amazon.com/ProCom-Dual-Fu...I3NL2VNWSARERL

Block off unused rooms. Warm clothes.

I would also invest in some good power strips that make sure things are turned off. A lot of electronics even when powered off still draw about as much juice unless you have special power strips.

Good Luck!

Dump the Direct Tv and keep the internet. Get Netflix, $8/month, worth it. With the internet you can watch Netflix, Hulu, Crackle, Youtube.

Make your own tv antenna according to plans at this website. I recommend the antenna in post #289. Include a signal amplifier to capture stations from up to 50 miles away:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/show...123803&page=20


I like a lot of the suggestions other people have given for saving electricity. Use a microwave for cooking instead of the electric range. Get a wood stove. Insulate. If you stick with electric heat, keep the overall temp of the house low (<65F) and use a small ceramic heater to warm the space where you are using the computer or watch tv. I love sleeping at night with the heat down way low and lots of blankets on the bed.

If you live alone, turn the water heater off after taking a shower in the morning. Turn it back on at night just before bed.
Open curtains during the day, close them at night.

This is so true. You turn "off" your tv, but it truly isn't off. It is still using power so when you press the remote it comes on right away. Your coffee pot, your oven, microwave, computer, your cell phone charger, your VCR/DVD player, etc are all sucking electricity even when they are "off"!

You can either unplug them and plug them back in when you use them and unplug again, or get one of those power strips that has 6 outlets on it. Plug what you can into it, and turn the electric strip off.

Is it going to make a big difference? Probably not, but every little bit helps.

What are your electric bills like in the summer? If they sky rocketed since Fall - it could be your furnace/heater isn't working right. You might want to have someone check and verify it is working properly.

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Michael W. Smith in North-West Pennsylvania

"Everything happens for a reason."

I understand. We all do variations of this type of "cause and effect" guessing. I'm as guilty of it as the next person. Since I have food sensitivities, I'm often thinking to myself "did eating this cause that?" and such, driving myself more crazy tthan I already am. Also, note that I was specific on the water heaters that they needed to be of somewhat recent vintage AND the taps could have no leaks (drips, etc.) In many old houses, before someone takes an interest, that can be a common problem.

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George Washington did not run and hide.

I am used to turning on the water heater 30 minutes before using it and turning it off afterwards. Great to have the circuit breaker next to the bathroom.

The new energy star tv ratings are now at 5.3. I try to run it on its lowest setting. Will see its power usage at that level when I get out of bed.

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Please excuse my typo errors,

Greg

Not the New HDTV's mine is now over 4 years old and they are pretty much OFF when shut Off.
Mine only takes 0.2 Watts as it is shut off that is nothing at all.
And THAT is the reason they get The Energy Star Rating.
When on, mine takes 210 watts and that is for a 40 inch LCD one. `!

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Oh my, dishes yet to wash and dry

See My Pictures at
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/0903/arabianknight/

At the risk of sounding cold and heartless, high speed internet and satellite tv are not utilities. They are luxuries.

Ditch the satellite tv, use an antenna for local stations.
Dial-up internet is a mere $15 mo. Take advantage of the library or other hotspots for high speed.
Ease your thermostat down a couple of degrees at a time until you reach the coolest that you can handle.
Make/hang window quilts, but make sure that they can be moved aside on the south side of the house so you can let warm sunlight in.
Invest in a good-sized clothes rack. Even though I use a propane dryer, my electric bill doubled when I wussed out and started using the dryer after it turned cold.
If you are going to stay in that house, I strongly agree with those that suggested a woodstove for heat. So many benefits.

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The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not. -Thomas Jefferson

A lot of people are telling you to dump the Direct TV, and some are telling you to dump the Internet. If you can get your electricity under control, you won't need to dump either.

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I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

High speed internet is not a luxury for many of us. It is a requirement of business. About 99% of my business is done over the net. It also can be a money saver. I figure a savings of about $20/mo in postage, I search for items that I need to purchase and can easily save the $60 a month through sharper shopping. Because I was posting in another forum that was running a contest, I got a $500 check. Can't do that with tv.

wow, to me thats a pretty high electric bill. Having had many different types of neighbors, if any are fairly close in proximity to you, I would check all wires and cords on the outside of your home and see where they are leading. Hopefully that is NOT the problem. If you have drop windows in an older home, check that the top window hasnt slid down over time- we had one in the living room that was down about 1/2 an inch. We got it closed by hubby standing outside pushing up and me on the inside also pushing up. Its a rental house so we cant replace the windows, but we do have heavy curtains up, and weather stripping on the underside of all the windows that still open (30+ years of neglect). Also, get some foam weather striping and add it around your external doors, it will help block any drafts through uneven surfaces. Is your summer time cooling bill high as well? Are any of your appliances energy savers? have you switched over to energy saving light bulbs yet? One way to help find cracks: an a bright day, turn out all lights and cover your windows, make it as dark as possible inside each room. study the corners and around the windows for any hints of daylight. You can also do the reverse, when its dark outside, brighten the house as much as possible and stand outside looking for cracks of light. Check any closets on exterior walls, you can do that just by opening them after they have been closed awhile. If they are considerably colder, shut them off til you can insulate them (I think they will always be a little colder, but considerably colder is an issue). If you own, and you have single pane windows, look into replacing them with newer double pane. Call the power company to find out what the average persons bill with a similar sized home is in your area, or if they do not give out that info, just ask around. Check attic insulation. Im sure there is a lot more that can be done, but thats all Ive got off the top of my head. Hope it helps!

You have a problem with your electric use. I have worked for utility companies for years.

Make sure you have no leaks in your duct work.
Change your furnace filter and do that religiously.
Keep your heat set at a lower level.
Fix drafts from doors and windows.
Insulate.

Fix any hot water leaks immediately.
Turn your hot water heater down. I've read the other opinions on this, but the hot water heater is your biggest energy user after your heating. Turning it down does save energy. It takes more energy to keep that water at 160 degrees than it does at 120. That is simple thermodynamics and unless you are taking pure hot showers, you aren't even going to notice it.

Freezers and refrigerators are huge energy hogs. If you have extra ones, get rid of them. If you have old ones, replace them. Make sure the seals are good or you are just throwing money away on cold air that is leaking into your house where you have to heat it.

Ovens are made to keep heat in, not radiate it out. The residual heat from using your oven to cook is a bonus, but don't try to use the oven to heat with. It's very inefficient.

Space heaters typically use more power, but it depends on how much space you need to heat, the state of your furnace, etc. Same thing with closing off parts of the house. There's no set answer there, you just have to try it and see what happens.

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...to be a rock and not to roll...

Your heating bills are obviously the most important at this point, and insulating is the obvious
solution. The problem is having to haul all that insulation up into the attic and rolling out,
and as for your walls, unless your willing to cut holes between your studs to blow insulation in, your kind of stuck.
When I first went off grid, I lived in a travel trailer. No attic, no space in the walls, and my heating bills were killing me.
Did some searching online and found a product developed by Nassa for their shuttles.
Its essentially small hollow ceramic spheres that are a vacuum in the middle. You mix it into paint and paint your walls and ceilings with it. Several layers amounts to equivalent of R19 insulation. I applied about 4 coats and cut my heating costs by about 80% Now remember, I was living in a travel trailer with 2" walls, dont expect the same results if you have 6" walls, but no matter what, your going to reduce your heating costs.
If your interested, take a look at www.hytechsales.com, they give a much better explanation of how it works, and if your house needs to a paint job anyhow, you might be able to kill two birds with one stone.

Used that silicone powder from the same company. I thought it could hurt people like asbetos, so layered over a concrete slab in the form of a plastar mixture replacing sand from concrete. Layered it double strength. Added 6" of styrofoam insulation. Then, second layer of concrete. Hundredft of pex tubing was attached to rebar for solar water, but that is off topic.

Treat silicone powder like asbestos. It itchs your skin so would affect your lungs.

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Please excuse my typo errors,

Greg

Get a wood stove, get rid of the TV service (I have not watched it since the 90's and dont miss it at all) go outside and cut you some fire wood.
I save over $7000 a year heating with wood and we did that cal when heating oil was $2.56 a gallon. (I run my furnace a few minutes a month during the winter to keep the blower bearing lubed up. Have found that I should run it for at least an hour, so that is the new plan, burn about 1.35 gal of fuel a month)

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Ill will poisons the soul
Living well is the best revenge
Rock
http://www.doubleramericanbulldogs.com/

question, how do you get a $500 for running a contest?

What is a Toyo?

Oh, yes!

Keep your freezer full. Many people fill juice containers most of the way full of water and put them in the freezer. After they have frozen you can put the lids back on. This reduces the amount of power used.

As a bonus, if you ever have a boil order or lose your water, you have drinking water in the freezer.

City Data would be my guess. They run contests for things like "most informative poster," usually dividing a pot of $5,000.00.

Anyway, just a guess because I know Harry is a member over there.

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Whatever floats your goat!

Kitten season is here. Please spay and neuter. You'll save lives.

Yep. Zilli has it right.

Toyokuni is a kerosene heater.

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We will meet in the golden city, called the New Jerusalem,
All our pain and all our tears will be no more.....