Ouch!!!

[DianaB]

I want to say that if you're total electric you get a different rate, but I could be wrong on that.

We use gas for our clothes dryer and hot water heater so we're not total electric. I think that I save a lot by keeping my thermostat turned up. I'm comfortable with it higher because I don't handle it much cooler than 75* (Thanks to low thyroid). When my family is hot we just turn it down a notch and usually are comfortable. We have a pretty effecient home with Pella windows. Our home was built in 1999. We pay less for utilities than we did in our old, old home that was half our size!!! Did I mention that it was really old?

[Tink]

We used 890 kWh last month @ .09675 for a total bill of $124.67.
My refrig is 16 yrs old, my range 6 yrs old, my dishwasher, washer and dryer are too old to even remember when we got them; and we have 3 window air conditioning units going. I thought OUR elect bill was high till I saw Marilyns! LOL

We have natural gas for the water heater and furnace.

[gja1000]

I live in HOT Austin Texas - 100 right now at 5:45PM. Last month I used 2196 KWH for $230.60 (.1051 per KWH) Our home is about 27 years old, 2000 sf. total. 1200 sf is 27 years old and not well insulated; 800 sf we built on 6 years ago and it is very well insulated. We have two AC units - we put a separate one in the new addition. We have a den and my office in the new part and we stay out there almost exclusively except to sleep, of course. We keep the thermostat on 78 out there with two ceiling fans in the den and one in my office.

We keep the "main" part of the house at 80, unless I cook and then I turn it down a little. I don't cook much in the summer - we eat lots of sandwiches, fruit salads, etc. or cook out on the grill.

At night we turn the air down to 74 to sleep. My hubby has a heart condition and has to use oxygen at night. The oxygen concentrator (separates the oxygen from nitrogen in the room air) creates lots of heat, so our bedroom usually stays about 76-77. We use a ceiling fan and a floor fan blowing directly on us. We have two yorkies and they sleep under the covers!

My water bill was $50 because I have to water some trees every week. I planted trees a few years ago in front, side and back and they are getting big enough to provide some shade and help keep the house cool - but they do require some water right now. They are very drought tolerant, after they get a good start I won't have to water them so much.

[Dobie]

Wow- it must be because some of you are in very hot climates and are used to it, but I couldn't imagine having the house in the 70's. We keep most of the house at 68 and our bedroom is at 64 - I don't feel bad about keeping the house a little cooler now, because we only set the thermostat at 52 in the winter (and I still walk around the house in just shorts and a t-shirt). I really can't stand the heat, I guess I'm lucky I live in New England and not a warmer part of the country.

[Tink]

52!?!?! Dobie, I'd be one huge goosebump at your house!
I keep my thermostat at about 70-72 year around. With hypothyroid, my body doesn't regulate it's temperature well, so either extreme hot or cold really get to me.

[Dobie]

Originally Posted by Tink

52!?!?! Dobie, I'd be one huge goosebump at your house!
I keep my thermostat at about 70-72 year around. With hypothyroid, my body doesn't regulate it's temperature well, so either extreme hot or cold really get to me.

I'm lucky that Jim also likes it at 52 in the winter, unfortunately, I think the dogs are ready to go live a grandma's house - they like it nice and toasty.

[Marilyn]

gja1000, you are so fortunate to have the lower rate available to you in Austin. If you paid our rate, $0.167 your bill would be $366.73. Not too far below us.

Hubby and I have been talking about it, and we are going to start raising the thermostat and see if we can handle it higher. We'll do it gradually. We had it at 75 in the bedroom last night, and slept fine, and did not use the ceiling fan. I'm going to raise it to 76 tonight and see what happens. We're going to try to get to 78 all the time with the fans going if needed and see what we can do. I hang quite a few of our outer clothes on hangers to dry, but have to dry the towels, sheets, and underwear. I've raised the thermostat upstairs to 80. We'll just see what happens. We had all of our blinds closed all day today (I don't like being all closed in, but oh well) and changed out a few more bulbs to the small florescents.

We also pay the bill at hubby's office, and he said his last bill was around $180, but he has not received the latest one yet. He's expecting it to be over $200. He pays a higher rate than we do at home because it is a business. Phone, internet, everything is much higher than for a residence. His office is six rooms if you count the restroom and little kitchenette. He's taking a fan to work to put on his desk while he's drafting on his computer. He has to keep it comfortable for meetings in his conference room, though. Can't have the clients uncomfortable.

Diana, we don't get a break here for total electric, and Janet, the temperature differential is so small when we raise and lower our thermostats during the day that it does should not affect the efficiency that much. If we shut the units completely off and were trying to cool down a hot house, that would be different. We're just talking about a few degrees, and the recovery time is pretty quick.