Layout:
Home > Heating Bill obsession

Heating Bill obsession

February 17th, 2007 at 01:38 am

Not since Nov 2000 - Jan 2001 have I been this obsessed about heating bills. Our next heating bill is at $179. Sunday is the heaviest use of gas in our house.

Yesterday I fiddled with the thermostat settings and thought if I turned the heat off at night we might save some dough. My spouse shouted/argued with me for five minutes instead.

"I don't want high heat bills," I said.

"If the rates go up we're going to pay more."

"Which is why we should use less," I counter.

"I've not been taking the car out so much," he said.

"It doesn't feel that way to me. I seem to be refueling every eight-nine days," I said.

"Cars lose fuel efficiency in the winter," he said, "and the car was being refueled every 4-5 days."

Yikes. $165/month. I thought it was $120. Now we're spending $100/month on gas, altogether for three vehicles: $75 car; $18 big scooter; $7 scooter.

I wonder how much pressure I can apply on him to have our windows replaced. I read here about people with $120/month heat rates and I seethe with envy, but not enough to make my husband warm.

Then again, my electricity bill comes to $25/month every month, and I bet in the south and east the summer bills for electricity are much higher.

But you know, even the President, the guy who said "I encourage you all to go shopping more," wants a 20% reduction in energy usage. I don't want to waste energy. I want to be a good citizen.

6 Responses to “Heating Bill obsession”

  1. Broken Arrow Says:
    1171677150

    Ah yes, I too battle the heating bill.

    Of course, I suppose one of the few advantages of being single is that I set my own thermostat.

    Seething with envy eh? What eloquence. Smile I suppose then you'll hate me because I'm currently average $80/month. *HIDE* But, I'm mostly only one person, I live in a closet. So, no need to envy my eccentricity.

    But I do recommend switching to oil-filled heaters if you haven't already. They've been working great for me.

  2. paulettegoddard Says:
    1171678348

    yeah I have a 1120 sq ft and someone's home during the day. In the summer my gas bill doesn't even make $20.

  3. baselle Says:
    1171685212

    I have a similar battle with my DH. I can hardly wait until June!

  4. asua Says:
    1171686062

    Do you guys have a separate bill for heating? Where I live I just get a gas utility bill which includes both home heating and water heating. My heating bill last month was ridiculously high (about 250 or so CDN) and considering I live by myself in a big house now, it was really expensive! If you are adjusting the heat in your house, you might want to try adjusting your water temperature as well. I'm sure keeping water heated at 50 or 60 degrees constantly is pretty expensive too.

  5. paulettegoddard Says:
    1171686488

    **asua:

    We have a separate bill for heating. I have spent most of my life in Canada so I know about hydroelectricity bills, but here we have bimonthly bills for water/sewer/waste management/recycling, and electricity, and monthly bills for heat -- I switched from oil to natural gas. Our hot water probably is at 60 degrees C. 250CDN is hugely high: are you in Winterpeg or Ottawa or Iqaluit or something?

  6. monkeymama Says:
    1171724298

    The windows are a great idea. Windows and insulation. Our gas bills top about $100 in the winter and $20 the rest of the year. We got a $120 bill or so last month but the temps has been below freezing for a week which was unheard of. We are whimps. I noticed it felt really cold by the windows so we lowered the blinds and closed the curtains to keep the chill out. Even just covering the windows with heavy material might help a bit. I found the house was feeling much colder than usual at the same temp in the freeze.

    I have no idea why you would need the heat on at night. Get some blankets - tell your hubby to suck it up. LOL. We have been a little more conservative with small kids. But most of the time we turn it off these days. My only problem is the little one won't keep on his blanket and can't really put it on himself so we are a little more careful with him. But as soon as he can keep a blanket on I can't imagine ever turning on the heat at night again.

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]