I live in Minnesota, I have 1200 sq ft floor plan house, with a finished basement. My heat is natural gas, and both my gas and electric are on the same bill from Xcel Energy. My air conditioning has a cutoff monitor, that cycles the air conditioner, when electric use is high in hot weather.

I have added a air duct to the furnace room, with the duct ending in a 30 gallon metal trash can next to the furnace. This allows the furnace to take cold air out of the trash can, and eliminates the drafts caused by the furnace otherwise using heated air in the house.

I added an electric exhaust fan to the the attic, replacing one of the air vents. This helps remove heat buildup in the attic on hot summer days. The result is the rooms of the house stay cooler, with the attic heat not entering the living quarters. I also installed ceiling fans in all the bedrooms, and one in the kitchen

Bottom Line, my average Heating/Electric Bill, is $177 per month. I keep the heat thermostat set at 68 degree F during the winter, and at 72 during the summer.

Total cost of the duct/container, ceiling fans, and vent fan for the attic, $620. What is saves me is about $100 per month on my energy bill.

Little things, can make a big difference.

~Parnelli

PS: The air conditioner cut-off was installed free, by Xcel Energy, and I get a 10% reduction in my electric bill, the air conditioner is never off for more than 20 minutes per hour it is turned on. I have not noticed any change in the indoor temperature.

There are many ways to cut down on your energy use, one way is to go to florescent light bulbs for your lighting, the bulbs cost more, but last 10 times as long as the incandescent bulbs, plus they use a lot less energy for the same illumination. Another is to learn to shut off lights when leaving a room (wish I could convince my daughters, that the washing machine, does not need the light on in the laundry room to operate).

I have outdoor lighting, but there again I have sensors, that are at half power until needed, and then I use the lower wattage wherever possible. I also replaced my old furnace with a pulse furnace (93% efficient, the what little exhaust is exited thru a PVC pipe out the side of my house.

During the summer I leave the windows partcially open (at the top) with a peghole with peg to prevent entry). The reason for opening them at the top, is if it rains while away from the house, less likely rain entering thru the opening because of protection from the roof's eaves.

The ceiling fans are always on low setting unless otherwise the need requires so other setting. During the Winter months, I reverse the rotation, to move the warm air away from the ceiling back to the the lower part of the room.

Water heater, can be set at a lower setting, and if you have a warming tank added to the line, the heater does not have to warm cold water out of the inlet source to the house.
Actually it is cheaper to run two water heaters at a lower temperture setting, then one water heater at a higher setting.

I also set up the hot water pipe system to return the hot water to the heater tank, this way there is less waste of water, when you turn on the tap for a shower, or for washing dishes. A small 1/2 horsepower electric pump circlates the water in the system (more than pays for itself, with the savings from the water heater having having to heat cold water, and also saves on the water bill).

I also rewired the house to bring it into the 21st Century, each room has two breaker swithcs in the main box, one is for light (wall light switch), other is for baseboard power/ceiling fan. Next to each baseboard power plate is another for Cable (computer/TV) and Telephone connection.

In rooms with heavy electric usage (Kitchen, Bathrooms, Workshop, ect.) each base plate has it's own breaker switch in the main junction box. Now we can run the microwave, toaster, coffee maker and garbage disposal without popping any switches.

Forgot to mention, that appliances such as Stove, Furnace, Garbage Disposal, Refrigorator have their own breaker switch.

All of this did not get done at the same time, but if you do a little now, and more later, soon your house will be up-to-date saving you lots of money, and you will be enjoying home a lot more.


[This message has been edited by Steven H. McGarthwaite (edited 02 February 2006).]