Conservation Bonanza!

Jane and I are happy campers. Our gas bill this month is $93. This is down from our regular monthly payment of $147, a 37% drop!

This winter we save because we:

• Keep the temperature between 15 to 19 degree Celsius (and stay cozy in sweaters).
• Replace the furnace filter regularly.
• Caulked around windows and along baseboards to reduce drafts.
• Wrapped the windows in a plastic thermal shield and the water heater in a thermal blanket.
• Seldom wash our clothes in warm water, never using hot.

Our last bimonthly electricity bill was $38. Every time I get the bill I wonder if there’s been a mistake. We hardly pay a thing. Due to new pricing by the Ontario Energy Board, folks who keep their kilowatt hours down to a dull roar enjoy lower rates than those who don’t - 5 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for the first 1,000 kWhs of use per 30 days, jumping up to 5.9 cents after 1,000 kWhs has been reached. My household average is 350 kWhs every 60 days. We do the following:

• All light bulbs have been switched to compact florescent. The aesthetic non-compact florescent bulbs in the bathroom are energy efficient.
• We turn off all lights when leaving a room for a length of time.
• We turn off the computer when not using it.
• Electrical cords in the kitchen, living room and office are connected to power bars. We turn them off when we turn off appliances, the TV, stereo and computer, eliminating phantom power.
• We do not use the dryer. We hang our clothes outside during the summer and on clothes lines in our basement during the winter.
• Our refrigerator, stereo computer, monitor and printer are rated Energy Star.

Have you too earned bragging rights when it comes to your utility bills? Leave a comment on my blog as to what you’ve been doing to conserve and save.

In the News

The Energy Challenge
Articles in this NY Times series examine the ways in which the world is, and is not, moving toward a more energy efficient, environmentally benign future.

Scientists identify 'tipping points' of climate change

Dead Plant Walking
What’s North America’s largest coal plant up to?