❤ mollymouser ❤
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Post by ❤ mollymouser ❤ on Jun 18, 2011 23:22:45 GMT -5
I am looking at my June 10 power bill from Pacific Gas and Electric. We used 810 KwHs for the 30-day period ending that day. PG&E charges different rates baased on a multi-tiered system, with each tier costing more than the lower tiers.
Tier One ... first 543 KwH ... 12.2 cents per KwH Tier Two ... next 162 KwH ... 14.0 cents per KwH Tier Three ... (which we hit every month) ... 30 cents per KwH Tier Four ... I think it tops out around 40 cents per KwH
I compared our electricity usage for June 2011 (810 KwH), June 2010 (816 KwH), and June 2009 (878 KwH) and have determined that we're fairly consistent in our electricity usage each June.... in fact, we've been on a conservation kick for about the past 4 years, and our usage has gone down every year.
We're able to keep our electricity usage under 1000 KwH most months primarily because we choose not to use air conditioning or heating, and we rarely use our large kitchen appliances. Most of our peers regularly see power bills in the $500-$750 range.... primarily because they quickly end up using higher priced third and fourth-tiered electricity.
But 30-40 cents per KwH? YIKES.
Just out of curiosity ... how many KwHs are you using for what size home, and what's your per KwH charge?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 18, 2011 23:36:39 GMT -5
SDG&E, San Diego area.. Total usage 688kWh. Total bill $136.99 Usage same period last year, 839kWh.. 18.2% reduction this year
Tier 1 - First 332kwh at 15cents Tier 2 - next 100kWh at 15cents Tier 3 - next 232kWh at 27cents Tier 4 - next 24kWh at 32cents
1800 sq ft 3 year old home. A lot of the power consumption is the number of computers running and much or our savings over last year is from consolidation into fewer, more powerful machines.
In 2 weeks we move into our new 2400 sq ft home. We'll see if our 33% bigger home causes our electric to go up 33%.. I expect the summer months to be more from cooling a larger home, but other months should be about the same as now.
Now watering is another story. I expect that bill to go up 3-4x's.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 18, 2011 23:36:49 GMT -5
1200 sq/ft house, mid May thru mid June - 1538kwh used, cost $141.54. So a bit over .09cents per kwh?
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Jun 18, 2011 23:38:31 GMT -5
OMG Molly, that is awful! When we lived in NYC our rate was between 17-21 cents per KwH, I thought that was high. Our bill was usually $100-150 for a 600sf apartment with no washer, dryer, or hot water heater. We used around 450 KwH per month.
Just got our electric bill today, actually... we used 836 KwH for the 32-day billing period. Total is $95.69, minus taxes it works out to about 10.7 cents per KwH. House is 3600sf but was built in 2010 so is very energy-efficient.
It doesn't hold heat well, though... we ran through $500 in heating fuel in about 2 months, and it's gone up about $1 since last summer. I learned my lesson, next winter we're huddling around an electric space heater instead of using $3/gallon gas!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 18, 2011 23:39:55 GMT -5
I'd like to add that we came from the midwest where we spent a lot to cool a house in the summer and a lot to heat in the winter. Over the 3 winters we've lived in San Diego, we may have ran our heater 20 days total. Heating costs are almost none existant (and nat gas anyway).. In summer, we may run the AC 20 days a year. While our kWh costs are MUCH higher here in San Diego, our bills on average are less than St Louis.
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Post by BeenThere...DoneThat... on Jun 19, 2011 0:14:55 GMT -5
...we've consistently enjoyed lower power bills than most of our friends, mostly due to enjoying a much smaller home... 900sf is plenty big enough for us... it's easier to condition less air, too... 79.F is plenty comfortable for us, too... ...and you're spot on about major appliances taking up a lion's share of the energy usage at home... haven't run the dishwasher much at all, either...
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schildi
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Post by schildi on Jun 19, 2011 0:25:41 GMT -5
2,000 sq.ft., 4 people, between 500 and 600kWh per month.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jun 19, 2011 0:35:11 GMT -5
I am looking at my June 10 power bill from Pacific Gas and Electric. We used 810 KwHs for the 30-day period ending that day. PG&E charges different rates baased on a multi-tiered system, with each tier costing more than the lower tiers. Tier One ... first 543 KwH ... 12.2 cents per KwH Tier Two ... next 162 KwH ... 14.0 cents per KwH Tier Three ... (which we hit every month) ... 30 cents per KwH Tier Four ... I think it tops out around 40 cents per KwH Just out of curiosity ... how many KwHs are you using for what size home, and what's your per KwH charge? molly: I have the EXACT same rate structure that you do with PG&E. For the period from 4/20-5/18 (my last bill) we used 613 Kwh and paid $102.46. Our home is 2600 sf. For the same period last year we used 483 Kwh. My DH is like a little kid; I have to follow him around turning stuff off.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Jun 19, 2011 7:12:33 GMT -5
I'm pretty sour about my bill too. Household usage was only 354kwh for a 1400 sf home. Last year for the same usage, the bill was $20.12. This year it's $48.11! How does a bill increase almost 250% for the same usage, you ask? The rates are actually pretty reasonable, it's the fees that have tripled. The taxes & fuel surcharges add up to more than half the bill. No amount of conservation can prevent that. Dominion doesn't post the rate structure on the bill, but I don't think they are anywhere near as high as the ones you've posted. It's been a 100 degrees already this summer and I work from home, so there is no getting around running the A/C. I guess when my consumption jumps to 1200 for June, July & Aug, I'll have to be mentally prepared for the $250 bill. Too bad I can't expense that. The past few years, I claimed a portion of my gas & power bills and it has done nothing for my tax burden.
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on Jun 19, 2011 11:08:42 GMT -5
ADDED: house is 1200 square feet, 60 year old brick house with a poorly insulated attic. Got a current electric bill in front of me. There's no tiers (yet) but up until April 2011 I was in a 'test group' for a variable rate electric plan (where the Electic company determined prices by the hour - the prices spiked during Summer afternoons and would plummet between midnight and 6 am at their most extreme). That said, the normal price is generally .08 a KwH.
Jun10 354Kwh Jul10 875Kwh Aug10 788kwh Sep10 785Kwh Oct10 258Kwh Nov10 302 Kwh Dec10 382Kwh Jan11 495Kwh Feb11 445Kwh Mar11 268Kwh Apr11 284Kwh May11 227Kwh Jun11 418Kwh -- Electricity cost was 29.62 with 4.53 in charges/adjustments for a total of $34.15. My total bill was $62.10.
You can pretty much see my old A/C unit sucks up alot of Electricity. My 14 year old Fridge is also an electric hog (rated at 850 KWH a YEAR versus the same type new fridge at 450 KWH per YEAR). My winter usage dropped abit when I had a new furnace installed 4 years ago. The only changes I can make to save electricity are to replace the A/C (scheduled for this year or next spring at the latest) and to replace the fridge (it's making funny noises so I'm planning to replace it as well).
ADDED: I'm near Chicago so the weather varies from year to year - sometimes it's A/C weather as early as May sometimes the 90 degree heat hits in late July sometimes early August. Sometimes it's hot and humid in early October.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2011 11:48:37 GMT -5
I'm confused. I seem to be using a lot more electricity than people with bigger homes. I never really thought about how much I'm using compared to other people, I was just happy that my bill seemed to be lower.
I know part of it is the weather. We went to record-breaking high temps early this year. It's been in the mid to high 90's and will get worse soon. But even with that, if I'm just sitting on my butt, I'm comfortable with the a/c on 80 and the ceiling fan on. I do like it cooler when I go to bed though. All of my appliances are at least 10 years old........ maybe they're all energy hogs? The dishwasher hasn't been used in a couple of years, I only have 2 tv's and only recently got a 2nd computer. I've unplugged everything we don't use regularly, we're pretty good about not leaving lights on unnecessarily, etc.
I'm not complaining about how much I pay. I was just surprised that I use so much more electricity than people with bigger houses and probably more items that use electricity.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2011 11:57:09 GMT -5
We used to have PG&E. For a 1200 sq ft house our bill ran around $400 in the summer. Of course DH had servers and the air conditioning running constantly and we had a poorly insulated home as well.
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Post by dragonfly7 on Jun 19, 2011 12:04:35 GMT -5
PinkCashmere: I think there is a lot to be said for the efficiency of the building and the AC unit. Our last apartment was only 700 sq ft with north facing windows, but the AC (on the roof) could never get the internal temperature below 84. Our August electric bill was over $200. Next apartment, about 250 sq ft larger, no bill has ever been over $150, and the'd be much lower if we didn't keep it at 68 overnight...
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Jun 19, 2011 12:07:13 GMT -5
There are 2 of us in a 3000 sq ft home. For April & May we used 2032 KWH Puget Sound Energy Basic Charge $14.50 Tier 1: 1,200 KWHS @.085578 per KWH Tier 2: 1,360 KWHS @ .103561 per KWH Tier 3: 2,560 KWHS @ .004617 per KWH
Then there are some credits. Our bill was .19 per KWH plus the basic charge.
But 30-40 cents per KwH? YIKES. Ouch!!!!
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Mad Dawg Wiccan
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Post by Mad Dawg Wiccan on Jun 19, 2011 12:31:46 GMT -5
The climate here is very similar to Molly's except that we (usually) get cool breezes at night off the Sacramento Delta. Fortunately, our electricity is supplied by SMUD at $0.09/kwh.
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kent
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Post by kent on Jun 19, 2011 12:34:34 GMT -5
Our bill through 5/25/11 (haven't received the bill for June yet)
Tier 1 First 353 KW 12.233 cents per KWH Tier 2 Next 106 KW 13.907 cents per KWH Tier 3 Next 158 KW 29.385 cents per KWH
Two people in a 2,500 sq. ft. single story with 14-16 foot high ceilings.
A total of 617 KWH for this billing period - same period last year we used a total of 691 KWH.
Total electric bill was $110.19 which includes all the "garbage fees" buried in the various Tier rates plus additional taxes for "Energy Commission" and "Users' Utility Tax."
Interesting that our "baseline" usage (lowest rate, Tier 1) is 353 KWH and your "baseline" allowance is 543 KWH. Why is my "allowance" lower than yours?
You can never get a clear answer as to why "baseline" rates are different for different homes/locations.
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constanz22
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Post by constanz22 on Jun 19, 2011 12:36:15 GMT -5
[glow=red,2,300]I'm pretty sour about my bill too. Household usage was only 354kwh for a 1400 sf home. Last year for the same usage, the bill was $20.12. This year it's $48.11! How does a bill increase almost 250% for the same usage, you ask? The rates are actually pretty reasonable, it's the fees that have tripled. The taxes & fuel surcharges add up to more than half the bill.[/glow] No amount of conservation can prevent that. Dominion doesn't post the rate structure on the bill, but I don't think they are anywhere near as high as the ones you've posted. It's been a 100 degrees already this summer and I work from home, so there is no getting around running the A/C. I guess when my consumption jumps to 1200 for June, July & Aug, I'll have to be mentally prepared for the $250 bill. Too bad I can't expense that. The past few years, I claimed a portion of my gas & power bills and it has done nothing for my tax burden. I'm dealing with the same here. Our kwh is less than .08, my average usage is 833 kwh, last month was only 538. My usage has been pretty steady over the 3 years I've been in this house (1300 sq. ft, 1960's ranch) but the first year, my budget was $74, last year it was $85, and I was just notified in my last bill that my new budget is $119! Rediculous...That's a lot for a one person household, who's gone 1/3 of the day and sleeping another 1/3. I just heard on the news this weekend that we can all plan to pay 60% MORE in electric bills in the next few years due to added charges, costs, etc...yippee...
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RoadToRiches
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Post by RoadToRiches on Jun 19, 2011 12:42:12 GMT -5
I am not sure about how much I used (I will check my bill) but I just paid my electric and it was 53 bucks. 1800sq condo. Ran A/C few days too.
I can't imagine paying 500-700 bucks. That's my mortgage payment! lol
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cme1201
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Post by cme1201 on Jun 19, 2011 12:46:37 GMT -5
Current reading 56548 Previous reading -55575 ------ kWh used 973 Energy usage Last This year year kWh this month 1155 973 Service days 31 31 kWh/day 37 31 **The electric service amount includes the following charges: Customer charge: $5.90 per month Fuel: $36.97 (First 1000 kWh at $0.038000) (Over 1000 kWh at $0.048000) Non-fuel: $47.81 (First 1000 kWh at $0.049140) (Over 1000 kWh at $0.059140)
5 people, 2100sf house, old house very thin insulation in the walls. I am eventually going to get a hair and redo the family room walls (fur out, insulate and re-drywall), my biggest energy loser are the 3 4' x 5' windows that line north east wall, I am thinking of closing the middle one in, just so the replacement bill (bring the windows from the 1970's into the 2010's) will be less.
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kent
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Post by kent on Jun 19, 2011 13:02:58 GMT -5
my biggest energy loser are the 3 4' x 5' windows that line north east wall, I am thinking of closing the middle one in, just so the replacement bill (bring the windows from the 1970's into the 2010's) will be less. Be careful about sealing up existing windows. Most codes "require" window square footage to equal a certain percentage of the floor space. In our case, windows must equal 20% of the square footage in a given room.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2011 13:09:54 GMT -5
My usage swings based on time of year from a low of 154 KWh to a high of 647. Live in the upper midwest, 1500 sq ft house that is 102 years old so considered poorly insulated, 1 person. Natural gas is used for heating/hot water and goes from 7 to 217 Therms. That makes my bill range from $60-270 each month for both. Average is $130/mo. A/C is an 80's vintage, Furnace mid 90's. Monthly bill would be around $40 with zero usage, runs around $60 month where no A/C or heat is used.
I would like to upgrade anything to use less utilities, but can't do anything as the payback periods are to long.
Conservation of energy is a catch 22. The less people use, the more the utility has to charge just to provide service or has to raise the per unit cost. Some of those electrical rates are crazy, there is no way the electric car can survive on those rates.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jun 19, 2011 13:18:31 GMT -5
I'm confused. I seem to be using a lot more electricity than people with bigger homes. I never really thought about how much I'm using compared to other people, I was just happy that my bill seemed to be lower. I know part of it is the weather. We went to record-breaking high temps early this year. It's been in the mid to high 90's and will get worse soon. But even with that, if I'm just sitting on my butt, I'm comfortable with the a/c on 80 and the ceiling fan on. I do like it cooler when I go to bed though. All of my appliances are at least 10 years old........ maybe they're all energy hogs? The dishwasher hasn't been used in a couple of years, I only have 2 tv's and only recently got a 2nd computer. I've unplugged everything we don't use regularly, we're pretty good about not leaving lights on unnecessarily, etc. I'm not complaining about how much I pay. I was just surprised that I use so much more electricity than people with bigger houses and probably more items that use electricity. Remember, it also depends on how energy efficient your home is. We live in a newer home (built in '98). It is about the same size as Kent's home and also has the same high ceilings that his has. It is well insulated and has double paned windows. Every single appliance is Energy Star so they are all very efficient. It can get VERY HOT here during the summer (mid 90s to mid 100s and sometimes higher), but we rarely run the AC. It cools down at night so that if I get up in the wee hours of the morning and open everything up, the house will cool off and stay cool until mid-late afternoon. As soon as the sun goes down we can open up and begin the cooling process again. It takes a little bit of time and getting up early in the morning, but my neighbor up the street pays $900/mo. to run her AC 24/7. If I did that, based our square footage, my bills could easily be $500-600/mo.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Jun 19, 2011 13:42:08 GMT -5
The Energy Star appliances do make a huge difference. It cost almost 2x more to run our old 40-gallon water heater than it takes to run our new 80-gallon one. Window size/direction makes a difference, too... my mom's house has no trees (and a lot of windows) on the western side, and it is unbearably hot in the afternoon and evening, despite having the A/C at full blast.
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sapphire12
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Post by sapphire12 on Jun 19, 2011 13:48:44 GMT -5
My May bill, the first tier is .09 a kwh. I used 203. 12 year old, 3000 sq ft house in the DC metro area, so we get all kinds of weather. My bill was $36 and change for 1 person. My heat is gas so that is separate bill. My bill has never been over $100 in the summer for the past 8 years.
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cme1201
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Post by cme1201 on Jun 19, 2011 13:54:03 GMT -5
my biggest energy loser are the 3 4' x 5' windows that line north east wall, I am thinking of closing the middle one in, just so the replacement bill (bring the windows from the 1970's into the 2010's) will be less. Be careful about sealing up existing windows. Most codes "require" window square footage to equal a certain percentage of the floor space. In our case, windows must equal 20% of the square footage in a given room. I will look into it, though I dont think I have to worry about that, The window wall is roughly 250sf with the windows taking up just shy of 1/2 of that.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jun 19, 2011 14:16:00 GMT -5
The Energy Star appliances do make a huge difference. It cost almost 2x more to run our old 40-gallon water heater than it takes to run our new 80-gallon one. Window size/direction makes a difference, too... my mom's house has no trees (and a lot of windows) on the western side, and it is unbearably hot in the afternoon and evening, despite having the A/C at full blast. I know. There are a ton of other things that I'd rather spend that extra money on. I have to admit that on the hot days, it gets a little bit uncomfortable in the house late in the afternoon until the sun goes down, but a couple of hours of blissful comfort a day is not worth the extra cost.
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kadee79
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Post by kadee79 on Jun 19, 2011 14:16:43 GMT -5
All electric here w/heat pump. We keep our thermostat at 77º year round. We built the house 3 1/2 yrs. ago & insulated it well, 1800 sq. ft. Use last month 4/13 to 5/12, we used 1038 kw, bill was $97.54 before all the taxes or about 0.09 per kw. We don't have any trees large enough yet to shade the house and our temps have been in the high 90's to over 100º every day! Our humidity is generally so high (not at present) that if you turn off the a/c everything gets soggy...crackers, cookies, etc. We have an attic fan that runs 24/7 during this heat. We also have a timer on our water heater! That saves a bunch since we don't need it cycling during the night or during working hours (even though we are retired). My getting the front loading washing machine last year made a big difference too and I hang laundry on a clothes line to dry outside...big savings.
We are rural and have higher rates for that reason than some areas.
I've also been watering my flower beds & veggies since we haven't had rain.
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jenpen
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Post by jenpen on Jun 19, 2011 14:21:13 GMT -5
For 1 person in an 1100 sq ft end-unit townhouse (built in '65) in the Southeast, 12-month average is ~530 kwh for $52/mo. My downstairs tends to stay pretty cool in the summer, so cooling isn't bad, but I usually have a couple of painful heating bills every winter. In fact, if I exclude the two highest winter months where my usage nearly doubles (there's a reason I moved south!), my avg for the rest of the year is 430 kwh for $44/mo.
May-11 374 $40.25 Apr-11 358 $39.05 Mar-11 507 $50.28 Feb-11 606 $57.75 Jan-11 1036 $90.15 Dec-10 1018 $85.27 Nov-10 540 $50.89 Oct-10 341 $36.51 Sep-10 329 $35.69 Aug-10 501 $52.56 Jul-10 515 $53.75 Jun-10 261 $31.52
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Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jun 19, 2011 14:33:40 GMT -5
I just paid our electric bill. We used 196 kW and our electric is $0.1001 per kWh. Our bill was $38.48, so that's a lot of fees, buddy.
We live in a one-bedroom apartment, aren't home much on the weekends, and I see no need to run the dishwasher.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2011 14:52:05 GMT -5
I just looked ours up. I had to average May and June, because they estimate every other month and the estimate month is always too low. Average used was 1453 kWh at .086 per kWh. The bill was about $145 average. I don't know why our usage is so high. The house was built in 1992 (2200 sq. ft.) and we have added insulation, replaced kitchen appliances in March with energy star, redid the HVAC last year with pretty much the best available, and have fluorescent bulbs. We are almost completely electric and someone is always home. The AC also runs all day (set to 76), because MD is miserably humid in the summer. Our usage is actually lower than most people we know.
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