First electric bill with nobody home
 

We received an electric bill of $58 for last month. The house was unoccupied during the billing period. The A/C was set at 80. Next time, I'll set it at 82? Also my friends who have been stopping over to check on the house also ran the dishwasher once. I guess electric is needed for the sprinkler system and of course the fans are running. We have no gas.in the house. I turned off the hot water heater. Is this bill reasonable? There are no appliances to unplug at this time.

Tom, last month was very, very hot...mid-90's most days, so your air would have been cycling off and on fairly regularly. Sounds to me like you got off cheap.

Tom, don't feel bad, mine was $92.00 :cus: and we were there for one week after closing. The entire time we were there the thermostat was never under 77 degrees and our house we very comfortable.

When we left, we turned the A/C to 82, turned off the hot water heater, left the ceiling fans running on high, the sprinkler system, the refer and of course the yard lamp. Nothing else. I thought this was very high.

I'm looking into options

When I was in my house the month before for one week, my bill was a shade over $100. But the $58 was basically with no activity for 30 days. I can try upping the temp to 82 but I can't see what else can be done to cut costs. Yes, California Girl mentioned how hot it was last month and I'm sure it had something to do with the A/C running more.

Never heard of leaving the ceiling fans on - - -

Rationale please.

Thanks


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Ceiling fans forces the cold air down which lowers the A/C bill. I run the A/C all the time. The only fan I turn off is the one in the lanai. If I am wrong with this assumption that fans LOWER the A/C bill please let me know.

u can probably reduce your elec bill by installing a humidistat, that's what I have. my electric bill during the summer when we are not there is $25, your results may vary. i leave my ceiling fan on in the living while we are gone for the summer just to keep the air circulating, my rationale is circulating air is better than stagnant air....gn

Yes GN- I was going to install a humidistat when I'm down there in November. Good idea about the fans in the other rooms. They may not be needed. Something to think about

The fans really don't need to be run. They're better to keep on when the house is occupied because doors are opened and closed more, but when empty all they do is waste electricity. Just keep the thermostat on 82. Tell your friend to do the dishwasher on rinse only -- don't need to do a full wash. If you have a fridge in the house, turn it down to "2" or up to 40 for the freezer. Otherwise, $58 really isn't that unreasonable for last month.

Hot air rises not cold. The fans will mix the warmer and cooler air but I don't see the advantage.

The A/C will circulate the air.

I don't think ceiling fans will hurt anything but seems unnecessary and will add bucks to the electric bill and wear out the fans.

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Ooops! Although I did turn off the ice maker on fridge... I should have lowered the temp in the fridge and freezer. I think I will shut down the fans but as GN says- I'll leave the living room on.

What does opening and closing doors have to do with running a fan. Why would you run the refrigerator when you are not there....gn

Refrigerators get stinky when left off.

And to keep the beer cold.

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Chuck has made a strong and convincing argument. I believed otherwise. He might be 100% correct. What do I know. I have no experience in this issue. Help me people. Does Chuckie's suggestion hold water.

you have to prop the doors open on the refrigerator, i use towels draped over the top to hold the doors open, if you do that why would it smell any different than the rest of the kitchen....gn

The following is taken from SECO's website about conserving energy:

4. Ceiling fans don’t cool a room; they just make you feel cooler. Use them, but turn ceiling fans off when you leave the room.

Here's the link to the page I copied the above from:

http://www.secoenergy.com/saving_energy.html

You don't need to run the ceiling fans.

I set temp to 85 when I am gone. Freezer and refrig to setting of 1. Turn Fans off. Usually runs about 50-60 per month when I am away for a month.

Our bills run from $15 to $35 in the summer months. We have a humidistat. We leave all our fans running on low for air circulation. We turn our fridge off and it doesn't stink (we prop it open of course). We leave bowls of coffee in every room.

Bowls of coffee????

With Cream and Sugar???

What size bowls?

(we leave stuff in the refrig that would stink if it was turned off)(ketchup, mustard, soy sauce, salad dressings, etc, etc, etc)(and BEER)

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Yearly operating cost of an average refrigerator is $60, divide by 12 = $5 Why turn it off?

The $58 bil I had was in a designer home (IRIS) Perhaps a smaller home would be less expensive. Okay- Looks like I can kill the fans, raise the temp to 82, lower the fridge, and get a humisistate.

The fresh coffee grounds will absorb any odors in a room. Give it a go - it does work! :)

Bill

I love the smell of coffee, but I would think "So would bugs." Wouldn't insects and other four legged creatures be attracted to the odor.

I usually set the AC to 82 and my brother, Jeffie, raises it to 85. 85 works fine and lowers the bill by about half.

(1750 SF house)


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Tom - I've used the coffee grounds myself in a confined space (a closed up 'car bag', used for sealing up and storing a car long term). Hence no issue with bugs, etc. getting in given that it's closed. A couple of small cans of fresh coffee grounds always does a good job of attracting the gasoline odors inside the bag - keeps it from getting attracted to the car's upholstery, etc.

My sister has used the coffee grounds concept in a small home (in FL) they leave unattended for months at a time. The coffee does a good job for them - she's never mentioned anything about it attracting unwanted pests. We stopped by their place for a few days this past June (they hadn't been there since March) and we noticed no bugs or anything.

Bill

Chuck? Does your brother Jeffie kill the fans also?

If left on he would.

He also shuts the garage door to the house left open by my son when he was in the house for three days last month. And rotates cars and carts from our place to his and to brother Jimmy's place.


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Sounds llike you are keeping Jeff busy. You better talk to you son about leaving the garage open. This is not a good thing.

Why turn off refrigerator
 

Here is something to consider.
We had a refrigerator with a water dispenser in the door. We went on a two week vacation and come home to a flood. The water dispenser was just running like someone was holding a glass under it. Ruined lots, major headache!

Better yet, cut off the water supply to the house . . .

We like to keep our gas and water hooked up in case I make an unplanned trip to The Villages.

The bowls of coffee are peace offerings to the gods to keep our property safe from bugs and gators. As Bill said, the coffee attracts odours and seems to keep the house smelling fresh. And I've never seen any insects anywhere near the coffee.

Before we return to The Villages after a long absence, I always call my cleaning company to do a thorough cleaning before we arrive. It's nice to return to a sparkling house. And we ask our Village Watchdog company to turn on the fridge and charge up the golf cart.

We'll be arriving in two weeks and this Snowbird can't wait! :girlneener:

You're very lucky Bare - we can't leave until mid January (chit).


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Same scenario, ours was $68.90, we think it was the very hot weather.

To keep the air moving.. I worry about mold and mildew and think if the air is moving, it might not have the ability to grow.

Thank you, Tommy T. I was beginning to think I was the only one who thought that. I am new at having two houses. I don't know what to think and this is the reason for my post. I received some great info from everyone - which should help me the next time I shut down for a few months. Everyone should take notes on these suggestions and maybe we can all cut down on the electric bill.
Maybe people like Shirlee ($68.90) can shave a few bucks off her bill next time around.

The best investment we've made is a humidistat. It's already saved us hundreds of dollars over three summers, if not thousands.

Also, a Housewatch Company is an excellent idea for seasonal residents. (We use Village Watchdogs). They will suggest a bunch of clever things to do to protect your appliances, avoid mold and mildew, keep snakes out of your drains, and save money. They'll check on your house as often (or as little) as you require. And they'll send you pictures of any problems that occur.

A Humidstat is on the menu.

Snakes out of the drain???? EWWWWW! Tell me more about that wonderful experience. I don't like what I hear.

Go around your house and unplug all the wall mounted transformers for cell phones, Internet routers, etc.
If it feels warm when not in use you pay twice. Once to heat it up and once to cool it down.
When we are away we unplug cable tvboxes, tv sets and the electric cart charger.

hot air rises. i think youre wrong on this!

We also unplug all wall mounted transformers, weather radio, cable boxes, TV sets, etc.

We do not unplug our electric golf cart charger. Our Housewatch Company keeps it charged for us. Our type of golf cart needs to be charged most of the time to protect the battery (I called the mechanics to ascertain this).