MMers from the north...

hoffse

It's interesting to hear about heating/cooling costs.  A lot of it will depend on the state too.  We pay a small fortune in utility taxes in Alabama.  For a state that supposedly hates taxes, we sure do pay pretty high rates for some things.

We keep our temp around 75 year-round.  It's expensive in the summer but really cheap in the fall, winter, and spring.  I budget for the whole year as though we are paying summer prices, and that gives our budget some padding the rest of the year.

Our water rates are crazy thanks to the bankruptcy my city declared a few years ago.  Their solution was to pay for it by jacking up everybody's water and sewer rates.

als1982

hoffse said:

als1982 said:

hoffse said:

Yeah I think utility bills probably cancel each other out.

Our August electric bill just came in and it was under $300.  July was too.  Our A/C runs from about the end of May until the end of August, with a few hot days during the shoulder season.

Winter costs are very low, except for maybe 6 or so weeks.  We have shoulder seasons from the end of March until the end of May and then again from the end of August until late November/early December.

Holy cow!! Our electric is $54 and gas is $68, both set on an equal payment plan. Granted our house is small and we have a new HVAC system but our house is still old and drafty. We run AC at 68 from early April through the end of September. And then heat November through February. Typically March and October we need neither.

Is your heat gas or oil?

Our gas bill has been around $16 the last 6 months.  No oil, but we have gas heat.

I haven't done the payment plan thing.  I think our electric would average around $100-$120 if we did that, but I kind of like having some months feel like "freebies." 

We heat/cool around 2300 sq ft.  The house was built in the 1950's and all of the windows are original.

Heat is gas. I'd never heard of oil heat until this forum! Our house is around 1,000 square feet of finished space but windows circa 1951. It does help that the house is shaded by four 60 year old trees! And yes, I like it on the cold side in the summer. In winter we keep it at around 72.

hoffse

Yeah, we unfortunately get direct afternoon soon on the back side of our house all summer.  That's a losing battle.

I had never heard of oil gas before this forum either...

If we stay in this house long enough we may put a big screened in porch off the back of our house.  It would be well-used in the shoulder season, and it would probably serve to shield the house from direct sun in the summer.  I have no idea what they cost though...

JoanE2012

vlagrl29 said: give me a gas bill any day over the AC bill.  AC seems to get more expensive every year.

We have oil.  I'll take the AC bill.    Fortunately oil prices this year are the lowest I've seen since we bought our house.  Last year wasn't terribly bad.  But the first year was awful.  I know we paid over $4/gallon at one point.   We typically use 800 gallons during the late fall/winter/early spring - so it really adds up!  We'll eventually look to convert to gas.

vlagrl29

we have level payment on both.  Right now our gas bill is $69/month and our electric  is $150/month. The front of our house gets direct sun and we have a 2nd story that is always warmer.  I've closed air vents we don't need, made a habit to turn off TV when not being watched.  Just a few weeks ago I bumped up the AC from 72 to 74.

formerlyGDaisy09

hoffse said:

Yeah, we unfortunately get direct afternoon soon on the back side of our house all summer.  That's a losing battle.

I had never heard of oil gas before this forum either...

If we stay in this house long enough we may put a big screened in porch off the back of our house.  It would be well-used in the shoulder season, and it would probably serve to shield the house from direct sun in the summer.  I have no idea what they cost though...

my parents have actually found that their awning they installed on their back deck (direct afternoon sun) does amazing things for their cooling bills in the summer.