Utilitity Bills: Need advice please!

You are going to have to explain the physics of this one to me. Is your theory that the water is somehow easier to keep cold than air? In what way is that going to affect the rate of heat infiltrating or radiating in? Does this actually make sense to people?

This thread has the most wrong advise of any I have read lately?

How is a 100% efficient electric oven less efficient than a microwave IN HEATING SEASON, in a house otherwise heated by electric heat?
How do off cycle losses of an electric water heater, losses into the structure you are trying to heat, run up the electric bill?
If this 'logic' is wide spread, I can see why I make so much as a heating pro. By the way, my electric bill is $120 a month for January in a colder climate for 7 people.

What happened to the original poster? We need some feedback before we can help. Unless you just need to vent, in which case you have our sympathy. Bills stink.

Yes we really need more info from the OP. Everybody is giving advice not knowing if the person Owns the House Where that house is, or even if that person IS capable to making such changes as some have mentioned.
Burning wood is great IF one can do such a thing. If it is a rented property that may not be in the owners best interest at all. Doing all sorts of changing things around to the house may not be good either IF the hour is Rented. Maybe it is in a HOA area, where you Can't change the outside looks by doing many changes of Outside Insulating around.
Many thing have to be asked and found out about before much info can be of any use to the OP. Like shutting off the Water Heater during the day. Well if it isn't set up with a Shut off box, and the only way to do that is by shutting off the breakers etc. Breakers do not like to be shut off and on and off and on like that.
Many questions have to be asked and answered yet. I know it is an old farm house owned or rented? One can not just go ahead and make many changes at all if it is a rented piece of property.

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You said it more eloquently than I could have.

The blocks of ice (or frozen food) hold a steadier temperature than air does. This reduced how often the motor cycles on and off, which prolongs the life of the appliance. And, I have heard many people say that keeping the freezer full of SOMETHING reduces their energy usage.

That last bit is anecdotal evidence, and so less reliable than the part about the appliances lasting longer.

Probably doesnt hurt to have the extra ice in the freezer when the power goes out? Thats why i do it

Here I am...the original poster! Sorry...we've been hit with a bad snow storm and I have been lambing and kidding...so things have been a bit crazy in my woods. WOW...I cannot believe all the great advice!! I thank you all so very much. Of course, now I have to figure a plan of action but here are some additional details...1) my house is heated entirely by electric baseboards 2) I usually keep the therm at 65 3) I am afraid of going with a woodstove because I am told that my home insurance won't cover me of I get one...however, I do have 15 acres or so of woods 4) I had no idea to check on the water heater...I do like my showers very hot but... 5) I did have the attic insulated with blow in but I suspect maybe there's lots more I can do. Don't want to rant...but wanted to sincerely thank you all and give you more info. I've been thinking about doing an energy audit...and yes...I had new homes built...one on each side of me by the neighbors.

Nice to hear back from you treesaw! I have never heard of wood stoves being an issue with home insurance, we've had them in every type of home; brand new, old and weird owner built homes. The homeowner's insurance market is a competitive one, switch to someone else if your current one has an issue. And a few extra bucks a month is no big deal with your heating costs.

I just had the insurance guy here with the camera, checking out the whole building. He said my wood stove was great, heat shield below, and behind it, proper collar flue an thimble. Fire extinguisher, gloves, smoke & co2 detectors. So talk to your insurance, you may have to have it put in professionally.

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Rock
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From Canada here. I have 52R in my ceiling and 20 R in walls. My heating bills right now without drywall yet are $150/month total electric. (budget)( I do get a deal going all electric .0668 cents/kwh vs 10ish if you heat with gas).

Insulation is the biggie. Especially around windows and doors and I have 13 windows, 2 doors in a 936 sq foot house. And our temps get to -40 quite a lot.

Not much can be done with baseboard, other than turning down the rooms you don't need. You do have individual room thermostats, right? If not, you should. Electric resistance heat is usually the most expensive heat.
Cheaper to operate ad-ons exist, but they cost plenty to install.
Yes, a woodstove is the best for cheap, healthy heat.
There are VENTED propane space heaters (don't go with ventless), but propane and oil have been close at second most expensive to operate. I like the Rinnai heaters.
A high end ductless mini split heat pump is cheaper than propane to run, but quite expensive to install. I like the Mitsubishi Inverter Multi split.
Talk to a wood stove installer, they have to make sure a wood stove passes code. Start cutting wood now, you might have some dry enough for next winter.

Sorry but I think I was cut off. Anyways, for those of you with wood stoves....I have lung issues and I could never live with a fireplace for example. Does a woodstove have the same effect on the air quality as a fireplace? If not, it would appear the best way to go if I could get someone to insure my home.

One more question please...if I went with a wood stove how much do you estimate it would cut my expenses if I had my own wood? Also, if I had buy wood in case I wasn't able to get it on my own?

Go on CL and check fire wood prices per full cord. from John Vivian's book on wood heat. 1cord of dry wood = 4000 KW or 200 gal #2 heating oil or 1 ton hard coal or 20,000 cuft natural gas.
There are new stoves that are way better than the 1 I have (this 1 was free so I'll keep using it) I would go with a non-catalytic model.
Around here sometimes you can get a whole dump trailer of logs for $5-600 bucks. I have also seen bulk buys (from guys with firewood processors) 8 cords cut and split for $800. That is a huge pile of wood to have to deal with, 4x4x64' but will heat me for well over a year.
At $500 per month say 60% to the heating is $7200, your pay back time for your investment in great stove, chimney & related equipment would be well less than 2 years. Good stoves last a long time, the 1 that i'm using is about 40 years old.
It is also this guys favorite spot. That screen sticking out in the back fits right into the double door opening, so It can be used as a fireplace

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

Rock,
That's a mighty handsome pup you got there!

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If you have lung issues a wood stove might not be an option. Not so much for the indoor contaminants but you will probably have outdoor smoke issues no matter how dry your wood is. I'm not real sure about particulate contaminants from the newest stoves.

Cost of a cord of wood? Depends so much on your location. A cord here costs near $180 while 80 miles west it can be as low as $100.

I about had a heart attack when I saw my electric bill yesterday. Over $100 more than usual!!!! Then dh read the meter. Meter reader misread it. Whew, load off my mind.

New wood stoves are super tight and with many of the low emission stoves (I'm forgetting what they do, I'm thinking the smoke circulates in the stove and creates more heat) you are not going to have much smoke outside. However, you still need to open it to stoke it, that lets some smoke into the house. Depends how bad your sensitivity to smoke is.

What about a monitor heater (propane or kerosene) in your main room? Keep the rest of your house cold.

Another idea. In our current house we have several rooms with no heat source. We bought ceramic "panel" heaters for $100 on Amazon. I believe the brand is EconoHeat. They are flat heaters that go on a wall, cost about $10 a year to run. It's radiant heat, no fans, great for bringing a small room up to a livable temp. We have one in a 12 x 18 room (a little big for those heaters), brings it from 50 to 65 degrees.

I don't have a modern wood stove, but aren't the EPA stoves supposed to give off less particulate? Or less something else? I know the guys at Hearth.com rave about theirs, say there is no odor inside, and almost no smoke from the chimney. You may want a new style EPA stove, but I only know my smokey old beast.
I don't know if we discussed your age and health, but if you are old or infirm, the wood lifestyle may not be for you. If you are chasing sheep in a blizzard, you can probably handle wood.