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Electric Bill and Van Repair

January 16th, 2017 at 05:20 pm

Our electric bill for last month showed up in my inbox last week. I was scared to look. The temperatures were much lower than normal for this time of year and the heat was running a lot. And yes, I did have Christmas lights on a few hours each night. Total bill is $315!! Last year it was $183. The highest in the last year was March at $257, with July in a close second at $253. I know we could reduce the heat, but it is very hard to get my husband on board with that in the winter as he gets cold very easy.

Today the van was in to look at the air conditioning again. They didn't find a leak, but found the relay was sticking. This was my theory of the problem last time it was in, but they said it was fine. It has been replaced for just under $79.

I leftover tacos for lunch. Tonight I will use the bone broth and the white kidney beans and chicken to make a White Chicken Chili. It's so yummy!

6 Responses to “Electric Bill and Van Repair”

  1. ThriftoRama Says:
    1484589833

    Wow! Those bills all sound really high to me. Then again, do you have an electric furnace? Ours is gas, so that helps a little.

    Also, how is the insulation in your house? When we moved in 5 years ago, we discovered our electric and gas companies had a program where, if you paid for a $50 energy audit, you received a rebate for up to 60 percent off any efficiency upgrades you made, including insulation. It was a great program. We managed to get attic and wall insulation plus weather proofing for what we would have paid jut for attic insulation!

    Maybe there's something similar in your area?

  2. creditcardfree Says:
    1484590401

    Thanks Thrift. Good ideas. We rent, so we cannot make changes to the home. We do have an electric heat pump. We live in the Southeast, so we have pretty mild winters usually. I do know the windows are awful...and it's only a five year old home!

  3. VS_ozgirl Says:
    1484601983

    I don't know how different the seasons are in your area compared to last year, but a few months ago I received bill shock with a 45% increase in our gas bill compared to the year before. Turns out this year was colder in that month compared to the last year and there were double the amount of days we would have had to use the heater for... Worth checking out. (Also note that the next electricity bill was lower due to not using the air conditioner as much in that period of time)

  4. My English Castle Says:
    1484603669

    Last month we were at $284 gas/electric, but with that super-cold stretch I dread this month's bill. Do you turn the heat down when your DH is at work? Maybe those nasty window insulator kits? I really don't like them, but they do the job.

  5. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1484619989

    Our gas bill went up $50 - and that was with turning the temp to 62. It's now 60.

  6. livingalmostlarge Says:
    1484806769

    It's been a really cold winter

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