What cost savings changes have you made to your home?

[War Machine]

Less hookers

[91cavgt]

We got a new roof put on, and chose white shingles to help reflect the heat instead of absorb it. At the same time, we got a ridgeline vent installed so the attic has PLENTY of ventilation along with the soffet vents the house already had.

Then last fall we got an extra 6" of insulation installed. That was the best improvement that we have done. Our electric bills have since dropped an average of $100 a month, and it only cost us about $700 to have it done.


Our highest electric bill this summer with the electric rate of 10.5 cents per killowatt hour was $280, and that's with an all electric house.


I hate CFL bulbs. They are supposed to last longer than traditional bulbs but I have seen an average lifespan on them of about 3 years.

[GeorgeG.]

I looked into the tankless water heater and read that the electric version of this will not save you any money. Apparently it doesn't heat up the water nearly as fast as the gas units. So basically you'll be using a ton of electricity to try to heat up the water fast enough.

[LS1Goat]

The biggest change in terms of cost savings was having acoolerhouse.com retrofit my house. It was the best home investment I've made. The bulk of the work they did included adding a 850cfm solar attic fan, more soffit vents to allow the attic to breathe, adding more insulation fill, insulating the garage and adding soffits, sealing off all the attic ducting/air exchanger/inside vents with mastic (sp?), and replacing our 10 seer a/c unit with a 14 seer a/c. I have swapped almost all of the house bulbs with CFLs. According to my Kill-A-Watt meter it does make quite a difference in current draw over incandescent bulbs. My 60watt output CFLs are drawing 19 watts. My 40watt CFLs are drawing 12 watts according to my Kill-A-Watt.

However, before acoolerhouse worked over our house I was averaging $250 - $275 electric bills in summer and $80 - $100 in winter. Afterward, $150-$175 in summer and $40 - $60 in winter. We have a gas water heater and range, so that also helps.

CFL bulbs do save you money, especially if you buy the cheaper generic one's, which work just fine.

60 watt output CFL bulb vs. 60 watt incandescent over the course of a year.

60 watt CFL bulb = 20 watt draw
20 watts x 10 hours/day = 200 watts
200 watts / 1000 = .2 Kwh
.2 Kwh x $.09/Kwh = $.018/day
$.018/day x 30 = $.54/monthly
$.54/monthly x 12 = $6.54/annual

VS.

60 watt incandescent = 60 watt draw
60 watts x 10 hours/day = 600 watts
600 watts / 1000 = .6 Kwh
.6 Kwh x $.09/Kwh = $.054/day
$.054/day x 30 = $.1.62/monthly
$1.62/monthly x 12 = $19.44/annual

Then take that and include all the other bulbs in your house. It adds up.

[jefehbk]

i look for the things they call "vampire electricity" and make sure they are unplugged: tv's, cell phone chargers, etc.

I have my tv, ps3, comp all on a surge protector and unplug that protector when leaving the house or go to sleep. I also flip the breakers off for the microwave and oven except when I need to use them. I try to bbq when I can and just have to walk in the garage to flip the breakers when i want to use the oven or microwave.

i hardly ever turn on lights...if i take a shower while it is light out, that is plenty of light in the bathroom, no need for lights to be on. at night, the tv (52" lcd) usually gives off enough light for me to see just fine.

[2K2 LS1]

Looks like I will be installing some smart outlets that eliminate the vampire usage/power draw when the item is not in use. I am also going to over the winter do the spray in insulation on top of existing insulation to get it up to an R-49 rating as well as a couple solar powered attic vents and more sofet vents.

[Vertnut]

The biggest change in terms of cost savings was having acoolerhouse.com retrofit my house. It was the best home investment I've made. The bulk of the work they did included adding a 850cfm solar attic fan, more soffit vents to allow the attic to breathe, adding more insulation fill, insulating the garage and adding soffits, sealing off all the attic ducting/air exchanger/inside vents with mastic (sp?), and replacing our 10 seer a/c unit with a 14 seer a/c. I have swapped almost all of the house bulbs with CFLs. According to my Kill-A-Watt meter it does make quite a difference in current draw over incandescent bulbs. My 60watt output CFLs are drawing 19 watts. My 40watt CFLs are drawing 12 watts according to my Kill-A-Watt.

However, before acoolerhouse worked over our house I was averaging $250 - $275 electric bills in summer and $80 - $100 in winter. Afterward, $150-$175 in summer and $40 - $60 in winter. We have a gas water heater and range, so that also helps.

CFL bulbs do save you money, especially if you buy the cheaper generic one's, which work just fine.

60 watt output CFL bulb vs. 60 watt incandescent over the course of a year.

60 watt CFL bulb = 20 watt draw
20 watts x 10 hours/day = 200 watts
200 watts / 1000 = .2 Kwh
.2 Kwh x $.09/Kwh = $.018/day
$.018/day x 30 = $.54/monthly
$.54/monthly x 12 = $6.54/annual

VS.

60 watt incandescent = 60 watt draw
60 watts x 10 hours/day = 600 watts
600 watts / 1000 = .6 Kwh
.6 Kwh x $.09/Kwh = $.054/day
$.054/day x 30 = $.1.62/monthly
$1.62/monthly x 12 = $19.44/annual

Then take that and include all the other bulbs in your house. It adds up.

And what was the total cost of all the improvements?

[LS1Goat]

And what was the total cost of all the improvements?

i think it was $1,100 for acoolerhouse.com

and i don't remember the exact cost on the new a/c unit, but it was a discounted price because we bowled with a couple of their guys bowled in our money league.

if you factor in the savings i mentioned above, you can you see how it easily pays for itself in relatively short order.

[Vertnut]

i think it was $1,100 for acoolerhouse.com

and i don't remember the exact cost on the new a/c unit, but it was a discounted price because we bowled with a couple of their guys bowled in our money league.

if you factor in the savings i mentioned above, you can you see how it easily pays for itself in relatively short order.

Not to mention the comfort factor. It is possible to reach the point of diminishing returns when it comes to energy efficiency, especially for the folks that make all the improvements, then move in 5 years. They rarely get their money back, but the new owners love it!

[mikec]

I've replaced both ac units with 16 seer systems, blown in insulation, and am just now wrapping up the biggest project to date, which was:

replacing the two layers of old siding with new hardy backer siding, adding insulative barrier under the new siding, replacing one window with low e, pulling out an old sliding glass door and replacing with a double hung low e french style, and rebuilding an entire wall in the dining room, replacing that door and window with another double hung low e french style.

After getting everything in place we had a night a couple weeks ago in which temps were at 72 in the house at bed time and with no heat or anything else on it only dropped two degrees inside all night long. Thought that was really good in that outside temps were 48 when we rolled out!

[Duncan]

solar screens alone helped a ton on my electric bill.

[Kurtie]

The nerd in me is interested in this programmable thermostat.

http://www.nest.com/?gclid=CNCw3O3CyKwCFQd_5Qod8HDbrg

[CJ-95GT]

removed toilet and just shit in hole in back yard

LMAO!

You could replace your a/c unit if you're mainly interested in saving the enviroment. Do everything noted above if you want to save pennies. You could lower your hot water heater if it's electric. It's not worth the savings if you use gas.

[ceyko]

We got a new roof put on, and chose white shingles to help reflect the heat instead of absorb it. At the same time, we got a ridgeline vent installed so the attic has PLENTY of ventilation along with the soffet vents the house already had.

Two questions, do you by any chance have pics of what the white shingles look like? Just curious.

Was it really easy for them to retro-fit the ridge vent on the roof?

Not to mention the comfort factor. It is possible to reach the point of diminishing returns when it comes to energy efficiency, especially for the folks that make all the improvements, then move in 5 years. They rarely get their money back, but the new owners love it!

Yeah, wife and I were pissed that we basically got 0 back on all our improvements in the house we've sold (just gotta close). However, we're under contract on a home that the owner is getting 0 back on his investments too. SIPs construction, geothermal heating/cool, high-e windows throughout....and a ton more. I think it's safe to say he's out way more than we are on this one.

[forbes]

get a divorce.. it lowered my utility bills alot