Carroll County Times Articles
Simple Tasks Can Help Save Money On Electric Bills (Part 1)
by Mark Kaidy - July 29 2007
It's well known that electricity can shock you, but what about electricity bills? How do I handle the shock? I try to get even by reducing my bill. I'd like to pay as close to zero as possible.
But how? In the first of this two-part series, I will cover low-cost methods of reducing your electricity consumption saving money on your electric bill.
The key to reducing the amount you pay for electricity is to reduce the kilowatt hours you use and, perhaps, produce some of your own kilowatt hours in the form of, for example, solar or wind. A kilowatt hour equals 1,000 watts per hour. So if you run 10 100-watt light bulbs for one hour, you get one Kwhr (or equally run one 100 watt light bulb for 10 hours.)
It's all about kilowatt hours, and all electric bills are priced in pennies per kilowatt hour. This may not sound like much, but those pennies really do add up. Because of deregulation, not all electricity is priced uniformly, so in one place in Carroll County, it is possible to pay a total of $0.11/Kwhr and in another $0.05/kwhr, or roughly half price. Ironically, if you pay more for your electricity per kilowatt hour, the cost-saving tips covered here, will make even more sense to apply in your house.
In my house the following consume electric energy: lighting, refrigerator, washer and dryer, range and stove, hot water heater, well pump and fans. Different electric loads consume electricity differently, so it is important to think separately about them.
To reduce your lighting consumption, turn your lights out, put them on timers and change the bulbs to a fluorescent or LED type rather than incandescent. Up to a quarter of all electricity usage is due to lighting. You could save a lot in this area with minimal investment: up to 10 percent of monthly bill for about a $200 investment.
Appliances that use motors such as the refrigerator, well pumps, fans and air-conditioning units consume electricity differently than light bulbs. Because of the nature of motor loads, energy gets wasted and you end up paying for it if you don't correct the problem. A power factor correction device may be installed on circuit breakers that have motor type loads. For an investment of a few hundred dollars, this could pay off quite well: up to 10 percent of monthly bill for about a $450 investment.
Note that by applying these simple and low-cost suggestions, the payoff could save hundreds of dollars a year in electricity costs for little upfront investment.
In part two of this series, we will see what investments of thousands will really save you on your electricity bill and what tax incentives are available. Until then, go out and buy some of the light bulbs I mentioned, and by the way, don't forget to read this article in daylight rather than spending your hard-earned money at night.
About the Author
Mark Kaidy is founder and president of US Power International and a member of the Carroll Technology Council. He is an expert in the field of alternative energy products and solutions. Questions are welcome and may be addressed in future articles. Email mail@carrolltechcouncil.org or go to www.carrolltechcouncil.org to learn more.
