Saturday, April 26, 2008
Calculating Electricity Costs
| By Lynn Forgy With summer just around the corner, I have been worrying more about my upcoming electric bills. Last year, I didn't turn the AC on until June which I suppose saved a little money. However, this year with trying to get out of debt in the next month or so, I want to do even more to lower my monthly expenses. Some of the ways I will be doing this: 1) Don't turn the AC on until it's so hot in the house we can't breathe :) (Just kidding). But I will keep it set to 80 degrees. 2) Use the crockpot instead of the oven. I do plan on using the oven 1 night per week, Pizza Night. Other than that, I have recipes that I can tweak just a little to accommodate the crockpot. 3) Hang all the clothes out to dry, rather than use the clothes dryer. Fortunately, I live in the cul de sac and my back deck isn't viewable by neighbors. Check out this website for some really great information, and calculate your electric usage: MichaelBlueJay.com Another website with useful information: Stretcher.com |
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Electricity costs
| By Lynn Forgy I'm back after a brief hiatus - and I have a bee in my bonnet. I have been obsessing over utility bills lately, particularly electricity. With summer just around the corner, I know my AC will be on quite a bit, although I hope to not to turn it on until June. Last year at this time, my electric bill was $130. This year - $72! I began several weeks ago to cut out the use of the oven, except 1 time per week when we have pizza for dinner. The remaining meals I cook in the crockpot. I've done a little research, and found that the cost to use an electric oven for 1 hour is $.20. Compare this to the cost of using a crockpot for 7 hours = $.07. Using a microwave is more economical, as well, when compared to the oven. I am beginning to see that just about anything I can cook in the oven, I can cook in the crockpot: macaroni and cheese, vegetables, chicken/stuffing bake, potato soup, etc. There are other ways that you can save a little on your electric bill, but I was fascinated with the amount of savings I can see just by using the crockpot rather than the oven. |
