Utility Bills

[mac_daddy]

Solar panels to assist?

Yeah, in Houston, we've set our programmable thermostat at 84 during work hours and 78 when home. Still, I used 1600 kw in June. In 05 June we used 2200 kw. We just saved only $3.00 this year at the sum of $270.00.

Jeez! I dunno. Anyone know about supplementing with PV panels? I know the initial hit is high, but I am seriously wanting to get off the grid the way prices are skyrocketing.

[Kristofor]

I'd try insulating more first on the bang/buck front...

For my utility information:
I know they don't build houses to be particularly well insulated down south, but I have to believe that's becoming more cost effective these days. I have my house set to 78 during the day (when I'm at work) and 72 when I'm home. My largest summer electric bill since the roomies moved out was $115, normally it's $85-95 (runs $60-70 in the winter). However, that's obviously with temps in the 90's not 100-110's.

It's not uncommon to keep a 70-100 degree temerature difference for weeks at a time up here in the winter and I've never had a gas bill over $140 which also covers hot water, and the stove. Gas prices bounce around way more than our electric rates seem to so it's hard to get a feel for year over year usage now that they stopped printing that on the bill. We use many inches to a few feet of insulation in the attic these days (I think R49 is the minimum allowed now, I know one of the bullet points on my house (~5yrs old) was R66 attic insulation).

It would be harder trying to keep heat out I suppose (walls vs. ceiling, radiation, etc). Folks may not really want foot thick walls, but I think if I was looking at $600-$1K/mo. I'd be fine with lots of window seats, planter boxes, and thick, well insulated walls...

Water here is $0.007/gallon, but that's high for the area and varries widely by city. Other suburbs I've lived in were as low as $0.0012/gal. With taxes and fees my montly bill is usually ~$25.

Each city is different, but here sewer rates are calculated based on water usage in the month of March (assumes you're not watering the lawn, etc). This year I was traveling for 3+ weeks in March so my sewer is only ~$6/month, previous years it's been about $30.

Trash and recycling are $48/quarter for the large (90 gal?) container. I only put trash out every 2-3 weeks normally, but the smallest container is only $6/quarter less.

8Mbit/750Kbit internet feed is $45/mo

I guess those are the important ones.

Kristofor.

[coach]

I am getting sick of the way they rape us in Texas. I am very energy efficient. We have all flourescent lights in fixtures that will accept them, programmable thermostats, and we turn off all unused energy users. I got my last bill for $649. I think we are being taken advantage of because this area is too hot to not use air conditioning in the summer.

I thought it was, perhaps, that the house wasn't energy efficient enough; or maybe not insulated well enough. However, we have NG heating, hot water, stove, and dryer. In the winter, we have yet to have a NG bill over $60, and we like to keep it toasty on "slightly less warm, Texas winter days".

I think that if I plan well enough, save money when I can, and make good financial decisions..... I can move back to Oklahoma someday.

[bigsteel15]

Bwwwwwwwwaaahahahahahaha.

$.06 a kwh? You nearly get FREE ELECTRICITY.

Here in Dallas Texas it's 105 degrees and I'm paying $.14/kwh!

Our electric bill last month (granted the HVAC units needed servicing, but even so....)


$635.00

If I wasn't on 12mo. averaging (I pay $365/mo) I'd be having a triple-byass rightnow.

HOLY CRAP!!!
I'm never complaining about electric prices again. Mind you I'm not paying market price because I signed a 5yr contract at $.065/kWh that is almost up.
But even at I think around $.08 I won't be complaining.
Natural Gas in the winter here though usege is obviously high.
My average bill for power and gas throughout the year is $250-300/month
That does include a government rebate in the winter of about $.05/GJ for gas, depending on the market price different rebate levels kick in.
But consider that our gas in all right under us, don't get me started about market impact on local prices.
Dereg, deschmeg, what a load of you know what.

[mater]

You guys sure must have some large homes. We are all electric and pay $140.00 a month on 12 month averaging and my wife said we were ahead by about $80.00 for the year. The water and sewage is about $110.00 a quarter and the sprinkler system when in use is about $30.00 a quarter.

[430752]

cheap!

my elec is about $0.14 total for the juice and delivery. We've gone to the split price system, one for the stuff (generation) and one for the delivery. I think the generation is .095 and delivery is .045 kwh. This is, in theory, so that you can buy the stuff elsewhere. Good luck with that.

water? don't have a bill handy, but for like 7K gallons, our water bill is like $33 a month. Sewer is charged separately.

oh yeah, any my property taxes on a 3 bed, 1.1 bath, 8 room colonial on a 60'x80' foot piece of tiny turf is $7,400.00 this year (agin, sewer is a couple hundred extra per year).

Hope that helps you feel better about yer situation!

curt j.

[bigsteel15]

We're looking at acreages to possibly purchase next spring and I saw one house that has $600/year heating bill (pellet stove)
My boss has coal fired furnaces on his farm...$300/year delivered. This heats house and 40x80 garage/shop.
Up here gas is always the biggest effect due to heating season. probaqbly offset by most southern climate summer cooling bills.

[Hellrazor]

Hrmmm...

868KWH was $90.82

Jeff: Met-ed sucks

[Jeffrey Schronce]

oh yeah, any my property taxes on a 3 bed, 1.1 bath, 8 room colonial on a 60'x80' foot piece of tiny turf is $7,400.00 this year (agin, sewer is a couple hundred extra per year).

curt j.

Ya, but you're on the Jersey side! LOL!

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I am getting sick of the way they rape us in Texas. I am very energy efficient. We have all flourescent lights in fixtures that will accept them, programmable thermostats, and we turn off all unused energy users. I got my last bill for $649. I think we are being taken advantage of because this area is too hot to not use air conditioning in the summer.

I thought it was, perhaps, that the house wasn't energy efficient enough; or maybe not insulated well enough. However, we have NG heating, hot water, stove, and dryer. In the winter, we have yet to have a NG bill over $60, and we like to keep it toasty on "slightly less warm, Texas winter days".

I think that if I plan well enough, save money when I can, and make good financial decisions..... I can move back to Oklahoma someday.

Is TX on the verge of having major problems ie bond failures, etc? Seems everything is outragous there. I know there are some good local economies as far as job growth such as Houston and Dallas/Ft Worth but seems that there are a lot of negatives going on there. I know people paying $3600 a year in Homeowners insurance for $130,000 property with completely normal risk. Medical is out of control (as is here in PA), your electrical cost seem horriable, etc. Whats going on down there?

[MilDoc]

Seems everything is outragous there.

Well, see, we had elec deregulation recently. Supposed to save money, never has worked anywhere else but of course it would work here. Yeah, right. Then, most of our power comes from natural gas and/or oil fired plants. That doesn't help either. TXU wants to build a LOT more coal fired plants. There goes the air! I guess fines from Uncle Sam for bad air weren't considered.

And, of course, Tx couldn't possibly ever have an income tax. So we have among the highest property tax rates in the nation! And we tax everything else out the a$$, including sales tax. Example, my license fee doubled this year, from $350 to $752, and if you smoke the tax on cigs will go up $1 per pack in Jan '07. Meanwhile the business tax laws were so full of holes many paid $0.

Time to scrap all tax systems, and make them simple, stupid!

[dlminehart]

Coach, what's your actual electrical usage (kwh)? Is it a flat rate or, like ours, one that ramps up the more you use? Those AC bills in hot (or even warm) and humid places can really add up. Photovoltaic panels are getting a lot of attention in our area. There are still good rebates on them, and they apparently last about 30-40 years. But it would hardly power a full house AC system in the summer. Guess one has to expect to pay a growing energy and/or water premium to live somewhere that few lived before furnaces, AC, and major aqueducts.

[coach]

I'm paying 14.98c per KWh. I used just over 3500. Part of the problem may be that I live in a two story house (totally my wife's decision on that one.... "but the kids need bigger rooms, and there is more sq. feet"). I gave in to her, because I rarely do.... and I'm paying for it now. I also think we should get more efficient units, at least one for the upstairs.

[MilDoc]

One thing for sure -- my next home will not have cathedral ceilings, or any ceiling higher than 7 feet. Just heating and cooling dead space!

[Jeff]

$334 for 31 days of 1400kwh.
I wish I could power the house with water.