Monday’s MST: Electricity Bill!!!

Monday’s Money Saving Tip: Is your electricity bill killing your budget? 

It’s August in Texas and SOOOOO hot!  The only thing to do is STAY INSIDE or immerse yourself in a pool.  The fact that we have to drive to our’s since we don’t have one, is reason enough for me to just stay inside and not go anywhere!  A higher electricity bill is inevitable during these summer months!

I’m asked a lot what our energy bill is each month, so I thought this would be a good post for August!

After looking through this year’s budget book, our average (from last August to this July) was $76.75 a month!!!  Yes, that’s right!  Our lowest bill was $30.45 in November and our highest bill was $170.97 in July.  And this was just last year when we allowed ourselves to run the AC more since we had paid off the house and had extra money.  We keep our house at 78 degrees, which is what electric companies suggest.  

Here are some tips we use to keep our bill low: 

• Turn it up when you leave
• Turn the lights off you are not using – I’m really bad about this one!
• Unplug things you don’t use often – I HATED this one, but saw it really makes a difference
• Run the dishwasher or washing machine/dryer at night or cooler times of the day
• Keep blinds/curtains closed during the summer – yes you’re house may be darker, but so much cooler.  I open the playroom blinds for B, but only in the afternoon when the sun is on the other side of the house.
• Keep your AC above 76 degrees 
• Use fans in the rooms you are in
• If you’re having company and want the house cooler, turn the AC to your desired temperature in the morning when the house is cooler – it’s too late once it’s too hot…your AC cannot run enough to get it cooled down in the middle of the day
• Remember that every degree lower is 3% more on your bill!
• Do research on electric companies to find the lowest rate and ask your friends what they pay per kwh so you have comparisons!
• When looking at companies, make sure to ask about a “base fee” – this is a fee companies often don’t tell you about until you receive your bill.  It’s a charge based on how many kwh you use per month.  For example, if you use over 1000kwh, there might be no charge; if you use 500-1000kwh, you might get charged $10; and if you use less than 500kwh, you might get charged $13!  Our electric company has a base fee of $4.79 no matter how many kwh you use, which is good for us since we don’t use many.