Today we got our power bill. I was a little frustrated because it was $12 more than I had budgeted.
Now as I sit and watch the local news (I never watch it, but am waiting for an interview done with my friend that runs extreme couponing PEI), they were talking about heating oil going up in price. The average monthly expense for oil is $500 a month! My jaw dropped!
I'm complaining about my bill being up $12. My monthly heating expenses are around $70. I don't know how we would ever have $500 a month. I'm so grateful for my woodstove and our electric convect air heaters for back up or on extra cold days.
How much do you spend on heat each month? How do you save money on heating?
Enjoy!
Frugality is being more economical and less wasteful.
Showing posts with label energy tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label energy tips. Show all posts
How to keep your cool on a hot day.
Thankfully, summer has arrived. We have had a very cold, wet spring here and I am so glad that summer and it's sun and heat are here. Now, I know there are people out there that aren't so happy with the heat, and maybe you can't afford or don't want air conditioning in your home. Here are some of the ways that we use in our home to keep it nice and cool without air conditioning -even when the humidex is reading 32 degrees C.
-first thing in the morning open all of the windows in the house full height
-all fans go on to high setting and are set in front of the window to draw in the morning cool air
-windows are then closed about after an hour or two (or when you leave for work) and fans stay on
-once the sun starts coming around to the side with the windows, blinds and curtains are closed to keep the sun out
-once the sun starts to go down, the windows are opened again and cool air comes in
-some days when it's really too hot and it's starting to get warm inside anyway, we set a bowl of ice in front of a fan and it blows the cool air from the melting ice around the house and it cools down
-cook outside on your bbq or place your slow cooker even outside, just don't use the appliances inside. Even the slow cooker puts off heat and can slowly warm the house up
-use the clothesline instead of the dryer (smells better and more environmentally friendly)
-keep lights off in the house, these carry small amounts of heat also and it will stay cooler when it's not bright
-put your feet in a pan, or a kiddie pool, of cool water. All of your blood goes through your feet in thirty minutes they say, and it will cool you down quickly.
What do you do to keep your house cool on a hot day?
Enjoy your day!
-first thing in the morning open all of the windows in the house full height
-all fans go on to high setting and are set in front of the window to draw in the morning cool air
-windows are then closed about after an hour or two (or when you leave for work) and fans stay on
-once the sun starts coming around to the side with the windows, blinds and curtains are closed to keep the sun out
-once the sun starts to go down, the windows are opened again and cool air comes in
-some days when it's really too hot and it's starting to get warm inside anyway, we set a bowl of ice in front of a fan and it blows the cool air from the melting ice around the house and it cools down
-cook outside on your bbq or place your slow cooker even outside, just don't use the appliances inside. Even the slow cooker puts off heat and can slowly warm the house up
-use the clothesline instead of the dryer (smells better and more environmentally friendly)
-keep lights off in the house, these carry small amounts of heat also and it will stay cooler when it's not bright
-put your feet in a pan, or a kiddie pool, of cool water. All of your blood goes through your feet in thirty minutes they say, and it will cool you down quickly.
What do you do to keep your house cool on a hot day?
Enjoy your day!
Staying Warm While Not Going Broke -it can be done!
Everyone wants to save a dollar or two. One of the best ways to save money during the winter would be to save money on heating. I can see you nodding.
In our home we have electric heat as a back up source here. It's always set at the absolute lowest setting and has yet to kick in as we have a wonderful wood stove. Our monthly heating bill, prorated over the year, is $48. It's that low for two main reasons, one I am home in the day to keep "the home fires burning" (couldn't resist), and secondly because we have a Pacific Energy Woodstove. I highly recommend this brand if you are looking for a stove.
However, if you aren't home all day, here are a few more heating tips that may help you out.
-On a frosty morning, before the sun gets warm enough to burn the frost off, head outside for a look at your roof. While standing on the lawn, take a look up at your roof and see if you can find any spots that are melting away now. Those are your heat loss areas and they need your first attention. See about adding extra insulation there or what other measures can be taken to keep your heat inside the house.
-Check the caulking and weatherstripping around your doors and windows. All those little permeations can let out a lot of heat. By redoing those, you can cut down on your heating bill substantially.
-Open your windows. Yes, you read that correctly. Opening your windows, or your air exchanger on full, for a few moments each morning allows fresh air in to your home. It's much cheaper to heat fresh air instead of stale air.
-Close the bedroom doors and heat just the main area.
-If you have an upstairs, think about covering your stairwell opening with a blanket to keep the heat downstairs.
-Set your thermostat back when you leave the home or go to bed. Your home doesn't need to have those balmy temperatures while you are out at work or wherever, nor while you are sleeping. A person sleeps better in a cooler environment. If you're chilled, just add an extra blanket to your bed. Every degree you turn your thermostat down will save you 1% or more on your heating bill for the year. May not sound like much at first, but knocking 10% of your bill surely could come in handy.
-Get a programmable thermostat to help you remember to change the heat in the day and night.
-Wear a sweater and slippers in your home. By doing so, your thermometer can be set lower, and you will still be warm.
-Add a plastic covering to windows that are very leaky.
-Open the stove when you are finished cooking and baking and allow the heat you've already paid for to warm up the rest of the home (keep in mind to be safe around little children).
-Drink a warm beverage or some soup. Warming up on the inside helps the outside of you to regulate temperatures.
-Close the curtains when it's dark to keep the heat in. Open them in the day to take advantage of the solar heat from your windows.
-And last, but certainly not least, is body heat. Snuggle up to stay warm during those cold months!
Enjoy your day!
In our home we have electric heat as a back up source here. It's always set at the absolute lowest setting and has yet to kick in as we have a wonderful wood stove. Our monthly heating bill, prorated over the year, is $48. It's that low for two main reasons, one I am home in the day to keep "the home fires burning" (couldn't resist), and secondly because we have a Pacific Energy Woodstove. I highly recommend this brand if you are looking for a stove.
This is similar to our stove.
However, if you aren't home all day, here are a few more heating tips that may help you out.
-On a frosty morning, before the sun gets warm enough to burn the frost off, head outside for a look at your roof. While standing on the lawn, take a look up at your roof and see if you can find any spots that are melting away now. Those are your heat loss areas and they need your first attention. See about adding extra insulation there or what other measures can be taken to keep your heat inside the house.
-Check the caulking and weatherstripping around your doors and windows. All those little permeations can let out a lot of heat. By redoing those, you can cut down on your heating bill substantially.
-Open your windows. Yes, you read that correctly. Opening your windows, or your air exchanger on full, for a few moments each morning allows fresh air in to your home. It's much cheaper to heat fresh air instead of stale air.
-Close the bedroom doors and heat just the main area.
-If you have an upstairs, think about covering your stairwell opening with a blanket to keep the heat downstairs.
-Set your thermostat back when you leave the home or go to bed. Your home doesn't need to have those balmy temperatures while you are out at work or wherever, nor while you are sleeping. A person sleeps better in a cooler environment. If you're chilled, just add an extra blanket to your bed. Every degree you turn your thermostat down will save you 1% or more on your heating bill for the year. May not sound like much at first, but knocking 10% of your bill surely could come in handy.
-Get a programmable thermostat to help you remember to change the heat in the day and night.
-Wear a sweater and slippers in your home. By doing so, your thermometer can be set lower, and you will still be warm.
-Add a plastic covering to windows that are very leaky.
-Open the stove when you are finished cooking and baking and allow the heat you've already paid for to warm up the rest of the home (keep in mind to be safe around little children).
-Drink a warm beverage or some soup. Warming up on the inside helps the outside of you to regulate temperatures.
-Close the curtains when it's dark to keep the heat in. Open them in the day to take advantage of the solar heat from your windows.
-And last, but certainly not least, is body heat. Snuggle up to stay warm during those cold months!
Enjoy your day!
Want to save money on your electric bill?
Our electric utility that we are with has a program each December to entice you to lower your power bill. You have to be 10% lower than your bill was the previous December and they double your discount. Now, I'm not sure of all of the ins and outs of the program here, however, I did sign up for it this year. I am competitive by nature and love to see how much lower I can get a bill.
The electric utility calculated that I was able to use up to 1075 kwh for the entire month. That was based on 10% lower than last year, and that may seem high to you, but we were building on to our home and had power tools going like mad last year. That's why I signed up for this year. I knew that there wouldn't be the tools happening as much so I knew that it was an accomplishable goal to have.
I have taken our usage amount allotted for the month and broke it down by day. I'm pleased to say that we are currently 15 watts lower than our allowance.
We wash in cold water, have a wood heat, hang our clothes to dry, turn off lights and all of the normal things that one would do that I am sure you are already doing. But would you like to save more?
Here are the top 15 ideas that my utility company says can help you save electricity and a link to the other 85.
| Looking for ways to save energy? Here are our suggestions; you’ll just need to put them into action. |
| 1 | Install a programmable thermostat. A properly set programmable thermostat can reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 10 per cent. |
| 2 | Set back thermostats by 5°C when I’m away from home. |
| 3 | Set my heat/thermostat at 20°C when I’m at home and 18°C or lower overnight. |
| 4 | Close the flue damper on the fireplace when it’s not in use. A wood burning fireplace can actually draw heat out of the house, unless you have glass doors or an insert. |
| 5 | Use area rugs on cold floors – if my feet are warm the rest of me feels warm. |
| 6 | Put on a sweater if I feel cold rather than simply turning up the thermostat. |
| 7 | Use insulated drapes or energy-saving blinds in the winter. They help to keep the heat inside your home. |
| 8 | Open south facing blinds and drapes on sunny winter days. |
| 9 | Improve the insulation in my home. Adding insulation to your attic and basement tend to give the biggest energy savings. |
| 10 | Replace my oil furnace with a high efficiency ENERGY STAR® qualified model. High efficiency oil-furnace systems can deliver significant energy savings. Financial assistance is available from the PEI Office of Energy Efficiency. |
| 11 | Caulk and weather strip around doors, windows and attic hatches. |
| 12 | Use foam gaskets behind light switch and outlet cover plates. |
| 13 | Have my furnace cleaned once a year. |
| 14 | Avoid heating unused rooms by closing doors. |
| 15 | Landscape for energy savings. Evergreens, like pine or fir, planted on the north side of your home will provide an energy-saving windbreak. |
To see the rest of the ideas check out this link.
I must say, the conspiracy theorist in me asks me why would my electric company want to HELP me save money? Isn't this counter productive for them? Electric rates are going up constantly, we are currently at $0.15/kwh, I wonder if they put them up because of all of these measures we are taking to save electricity and now that need to make money?
Anyway, like I said, it's the conspiracy theorist in me.
What are you doing to save electricity?
Enjoy your day!
Entertainment Environmental Frugalness
I am assuming that since you are reading here that you are trying to find ways to save money or redirect money for the things, events, life that you want. One of my biggest compliants is my power bill. December is ALWAYS my highest month. I don't even have a lot of Christmas lights. Some candles in the window and lights on the tree. However, with the dehumidifier running in the basement, power tools going for the reno and it staying dark way longer, our power bill goes up. Our kwh rate here on the Island is currently $0.14/kwh. I know that if it's not the highest in the country it's close to it. Whomever is reading this do me a favour and comment and tell me what your rate is for your electric/hydro rate is wherever you live, it only takes a moment.
In our home we like to every once in a very blue moon go out to eat as a family. I have a hard time justifying someone else cooking for me and entertaining our children at the restaurant when I can do the cooking at home and the children can play before and after dinner. Since we are a family of 6, going out to eat can cost a pretty penny. Doing anything like movies, amusement parks, festivals, etc can cost a fair amount, but I don't want my children to never experience fun away from home. So we have a deal and I'd like to propose (since it is the month of love) it to you, my readers.
Take a look at your budget for your power/hydro bill. It's the most you want to spend right? Pick an event, place or whatever you want to do as a family. Now, every month that you spend less on your power bill then what you have budgeted, sock it away until you reach the amount you need for your family celebration! If you do this as a family, you will be surprised how quickly you can achieve your goal! Everyone starts turning off lights and doing things that don't require as much electricity and you are helping the environment! Win win situation!
In our home, for the December bill (our power bill is monthly here) was just over $200. We have an electric hotwater heater and renos and what not. Usually, I have it around $150-$160 in the winter. So now every month that it is less than $200 that money goes towards a trip to Shining Waters, or another event this summer for our family or if we decide to go out to eat one night.
Let me know what you do in your home to save for events that you want to do and how much you pay per kwh. I would love to hear from you.
Enjoy your day!
In our home we like to every once in a very blue moon go out to eat as a family. I have a hard time justifying someone else cooking for me and entertaining our children at the restaurant when I can do the cooking at home and the children can play before and after dinner. Since we are a family of 6, going out to eat can cost a pretty penny. Doing anything like movies, amusement parks, festivals, etc can cost a fair amount, but I don't want my children to never experience fun away from home. So we have a deal and I'd like to propose (since it is the month of love) it to you, my readers.
Take a look at your budget for your power/hydro bill. It's the most you want to spend right? Pick an event, place or whatever you want to do as a family. Now, every month that you spend less on your power bill then what you have budgeted, sock it away until you reach the amount you need for your family celebration! If you do this as a family, you will be surprised how quickly you can achieve your goal! Everyone starts turning off lights and doing things that don't require as much electricity and you are helping the environment! Win win situation!
In our home, for the December bill (our power bill is monthly here) was just over $200. We have an electric hotwater heater and renos and what not. Usually, I have it around $150-$160 in the winter. So now every month that it is less than $200 that money goes towards a trip to Shining Waters, or another event this summer for our family or if we decide to go out to eat one night.
Let me know what you do in your home to save for events that you want to do and how much you pay per kwh. I would love to hear from you.
Enjoy your day!
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