Surprisingly low electricity bills

I have been reading around about how high folks electricity bills have been this summer. Between the rising oil prices, increased delivery charges, and increased consumption based on the heat waves that have rolled across the country it seems that folks are paying anywhere between $100 and $600 for electricity during the month. My last electricity bill was for $29, and the month before that did not have a significantly higher electricity bill.

The only thing that I can think of is that I do not use air conditioning. My wife’s contact lenses tend to dry out if I put too many fans on or if she is in an air conditioned room or vehicle, so we decided to not bother getting an air conditioner for the few months that it is actually hot here in Maine. I also cook outside on the grill as much as possible. Between the cooking and the brewing (which I do on the grill’s side burner) we have already gone through an entire tank since we moved into the house. Cooking outside means that we do not need to use the stove or the oven, and we keep the kitchen from getting too hot. I have, however, been baking my own bread lately, which does use the oven at a fairly high temperature.

If you want to reduce your energy expenditures, consider turning off the air conditioning. Do not leave your computer or your television on all day when you are not using it. Try to limit your indoor cooking. Switch to using low energy light bulbs, and shut them off when you are not in the room using them. It seems to be working out rather well for us.