Spending LESS $$ - Electricity & Fuel

 

My home is all electric, no natural gas for cooking, heat or hot water, so unless I am wise it would be very easy to have a HUGE power bill.  But, there are several ways I limit my power consumption and in doing so I’ve yet to have a HUGE power bill.  Let me tell you what I have done.

 

Energy efficient appliances are a big part of limiting my electricity use.  Quite some time ago I updated all of my appliances – stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, washing machine & dryer, deep freezer, the hot water heater and even my baseboard heaters throughout my home with eco friendly models.  I don’t own appliances larger than what I need.  The washing machine and dishwasher are usually only run with a full load, same with the clothes dryer.  I also will use a clothes drying rack or the outside lines from time to time.  My energy efficient hot water heater is set mid range as recommended by my plumber friend.  Not only is that safer, but it costs less to run and will make it last longer.

 

Good insulation, especially in the attic is the biggest attribute that helps me keep my home comfortable all year long.  I have extra insulation in the ceilings that was added to the attic many years ago.  The walls in my garage are also insulated and I added additional insulation to the ceiling through the attic in there as well.  I’ve also added insulated panels to the garage door and updated the rubber gasket when it needed to be replaced.  The garage stays relatively cool in the hot summer and rarely gets below freezing in the winter unless we get a long stretch of subzero temperatures which hardly ever happens here.  It is amazing how much an insulated garage helps.

 

I’ve replaced most of the windows in my home with newer low e glass and vinyl windows.  I’ve also replaced the doors.  Every year I check caulking and replace as needed to keep them well sealed.  I also hang blinds or thermal curtains to help keep heat in or out depending on the season.  The rubber seals on the doors are also checked and replaced as needed.

 

In the winter I keep the thermostat set low day and night and wear layers plus warm socks or slippers to help me stay comfortable.  I have an electric fireplace in my living room which on its own is enough to heat my home at the beginning and end of the winter season.  I prefer to sleep in a cooler room at night so I don’t heat the upstairs at all and just allow the ambient heat from downstairs to rise.  Both bathrooms have their own heater so I only need to turn it on in the upstairs bathroom when I’m showering.  The downstairs bathroom stays warm enough on its own.  Every year I challenge myself to see how long I can go without turning on the main heat and how early I can get away with turning it off again in the spring.  This just helps me to be mindful of whether or not I truly need the heat on.  There is no point, in my mind, to heating up the house in the morning just to have to open a window and cool it off in the afternoon.

 

In the hottest part of the year, here it is July and August, I install window A/C units in the upstairs bedrooms.  To cool my house it is the opposite in the summer as to winter.  I am cooling the upstairs and the downstairs remains cool on its own.  In early mornings, if the temperatures are in the 60s as is often the case, I will open the downstairs windows and the back door to allow the cool air inside.  I use a box fan at the back door to bring in the cooler air and then after about an hour or so I close everything up until the afternoon when I turn on the A/C upstairs.  On any given year I only need those units from 4^th of July weekend until Labor Day weekend.

 

I personally do not care for ceiling fans as I don’t find them as effective as I would like them to be and they are a pain to keep clean.  I also do not care for how they look.  Instead I prefer to use box fans year round to circulate the air, especially as I can move them around to where I need them.  Depending on the weather I will open my windows as often as possible to heat or cool the house and to bring in fresh air while helping to control humidity and any mustiness.  I always find fresh air much more preferable to A/C refrigerated air and I also enjoy the white noise of a fan at night to drown out the sounds of the city so I can sleep better.

 

For the most part I heat up and cook my food using an array of low voltage appliances – electric skillet, slow cooker, coffee maker, toaster oven and microwave.  Now that it is mainly just me I am cooking for I typically just use those appliances.  Occasionally I use the stove and oven.  Whenever I use the oven I try to bake in bulk and make heating up the oven really count.  In the winter when I am done baking I’ll leave the oven door open a little bit while it cools down just to add that extra bit of warmth to my kitchen.

 

When it comes to fuel for my vehicles I set a budget for gasoline purchases and stick to it.  Having a budget for fuel helps me to make a point to not be wasteful.  I try to limit the number of days I run errands and group them according to the area of town I need to be in.  In between using my vehicle to go places I can easily get by with my bike or walking.  If I’m attending an event that has limited available parking or charges you to park I will also use the city bus and leave my vehicle at home altogether.  With the high price of gasoline these days I find myself using alternate methods of transportation more and more.