somthing to make your electricty bill go down

that is part of it too Orry Main.

when i was small, during the summer I would be out of the house the whole day withmy friends, and my parents would not worry about anything happening to me.

my young nephews and nieces do not have the same fun. A sign of our times…

We try our best to save energy, but it’s not easy. In the summer we have to run the air conditioner (which is outrageiously expensive) and in the summer we have to run the furnace. There’s no getting around it.

Some things can’t be helped Chris.

maybe you could try running the AC in particular rooms only, if you have a living room and a study, perhaps study in the living room and leave the study switched off, or watch tv in the bedroom leaving the living room off…perhaps saving a little that way..

each situation is different i guess.

It might take a little extra investment, but using something like honeycomb or cellular shades can really keep the heat out during the summer and some of the warmth in during the colder months. There are other window treatments that can be used for good insulation, even some you can do yourself, and they’ll all help chip away at your AC and energy usage. Try to find products that are certified by Greenguard, though. You don’t want those heavily exposed materials releasing nasty chemicals in your home.

That is a good point there designWind. Having good window treatments does help to keep the home cooler or warmer.

Our electric company has raised rates by 30% and it’s horrible. Finding ways to save on electricity and keep the costs down has become more important than ever.

one of the biggest power companies over here has also just raised prices… just in time for the winter..

It seems all the utilities (and insurance also) are in the process of raising their rates. Makes tough times even more of a challenge when rates are being raised for lifes essentials.

I’ve reviewed my bills now for the last few months of having my whole house fan, and I just can’t recommend going that route if you have any breeze at all during the summer. I just wish there was something like that for winter; not sure what I’m going to do to warm up besides the usual dressing warmer.

I suppose it’s one of those “the rich get richer” things when the big power companies raise rates like that… and just when they know usage will be rising.

Orry, did you mean that you can recommend the whole house fan?

Our wood burning stove has a fan on it, we rarely use it because it just makes the house too hot. Of course a wood burning stove is only good if you live in an area where you can use it.

Yes, they raise rates and then get really cranky if you are late on a payment! It seems when the economy is better,the rates are lower and the companies offer better service.

i think its a question of the utilities putting up prices when they know people have no choice, but to use more power… hence the prices always going up in the winter not the summer…

Over here they are telling us prices have risen and that regretfully they have to pass the increases on to us… then you get the headlines about the huge profits they made for shareholders… grrrrr…

oh… and another thing while i am ranting..

you never see them put the prices back down when the wholesale prices drop… and they do… just like petrol… but they never put the petrol prices back down after raising them either….

Natureelf, yes, definitely. Whole House Fans are superb. It is the best use of money I’ve ever spent in my life. If you do it properly, summer heat will have less effect on you. My sister came over a couple of times and asked if the A/C was on because my house was so cool. Nope. I have simply mastered how to use my fan. Awesome!