If you check out focus on energy they are giving away the smart plugs so you can shut off the parasitic drain. I think they also have LED lights and low Flo showers...if you are a customer great way to save some money. We got a rebate on our NEST, which along with the Kohl's cash made it nearly free. Great thread btw!
On a similar note, I switched to 4' LED shop lights from the big metal halides in my building, & put LED's in the other fixtures. Cut my bill by $150.00 month on average. Keep in mind that this is an auto shop & needs bright lighting. I have LP for hot water, clothes dryer, stove, & back up heat. Tank got filled in November I think, 250 gallons. Truck came again Wednesday & he got 97 gallons in it. Wood heat is where it's at!!!! Saves me about $ 600.00 month in the Winter. That's 8 months of heating season +/-. That's a bunch of money to buy saws, tractors, splitters, trucks etc.
Yes! I replaced 14! That’s 28 bulbs! I went from 80 Watts per shop light to 14!! Times that by 14! That’s 924 Watts I was paying the man for! Screw that jazz. 80 Watts x 14 shop lights = 1120 Watts 14 Watts x 14 shop lights = 196 Watts 924 Watts. It’s not just one thing. It’s the combination of all these. My goal is 700 kWh per month. Except in the summer. I ain’t gonna be hot in my house lol. Remember, it’s the south. It get HAWT here. Thick humidity. You can see it in the air. Dang almost buyou humidity.
Propane works really well, but a person has to really work it right. A person needs to buy their own tank so that they are not locked into a lease and can shop for a supplier. They do need to be tested on occasion, but for the most part those delivering propane do not check and just fill the tank up. Even then the testing fee is cheap compared to how much can be saved buy shopping around for the lowest price on propane. The next thing to do is be on an on-call basis, and not automatic fill up. In that way YOU control when the fuel bill comes. There are times when propane goes up, and when it comes down. Having a big tank helps. They are not cheap, but neither is paying for an emergency fill up. It is not like oil where you can just dump in 10 gallons of diesel fuel in an emergency. (There are ways around this, but it is still a pain). Mine is 500 gallons and works well. And propane is not like oil that spoils, it remains usable forever. The final thing to know is when propane works well, and when it does not. Propane clothes dryers are to die for. I went from paying $30 a month for an electric one to non-existent propane consumption. I bet I do not burn 100 pounds a year of propane operating it. It comes on, and goes off just as quickly. Modern propane stainless steel condensing boilers are the same way. I have worked hard to slowly replace all my heavy electrical appliances to propane and it has really worked well for me. sadly I recently went backwards when I bought a new wall oven. For whatever reason, propane wall ovens only come in small versions and Katie would not go for it because we have a big household. She wanted a big wall oven and they only come in electric. :-( Fortunately we do not use it much, and instead use propane burners on our 1917 Crawford Gas Cookstove.
I've been using the Efergy Monitor for about three years now and I was able to drastically lower my consumption. Just watching as it goes up and down in real time makes you aware of what is running and why and how much it actually costs every day. Your setup looks much better than mine though. I don't get a breakdown of what's using the power like you do but I've been able to figure it out pretty quickly just by looking at my current consumption.
Just bought a locally available brand on-line (that particular one isn't for sale here) Although I don't have dependencies on my TV, my computer does have: printer, external disk enclosure, external dock. All of which require reaching round the back (or behind a cover) to switch off, so I never bother and they are always on standby.
Nice! I just finished the first week with my new heat pump water heater and I’m 100 wood heat. This week I used 200 kWh. This keeps up March will be a new record from last month (992 kWh) and will result in an even lower bill! This is just great. I can’t wait to give you guys a report.
UPDATE: I have just had the 2 lowest months in a row of power consumption. Feb was $98 and March was $85. Before this we have never been under 1000 kWh’s usage and never been below $100. Feb was 992 kWh and March was 770. It’s a great addition for those who are mindful of electric usage and more importantly (to me) money. This is a 2100 sq foot house, 40 years old with 3 teenagers and mom and dad. Just an update. Thought I would share. It’s a pretty solid little device.
