If you haven’t been following along, my last update talked about me trying to cut down on the electric bill at my girlfriend’s my place. Here are the steps I have taken to reduce the monthly bill:
- Made it a point to turn out lights when not in use
- Examined the lights that are used the most and determined if they need to be replaced with more efficient bulbs
- Had a sit down with my girlfriend explaining how devices plugged in, even if “off” still draw power, such as cell phone chargers and electronics. I’m hoping she will make it a point to unplug the chargers when not in use.
- Reviewed the settings for the programmable thermostat and did some tweaking with the temperature and time settings.
Also, the water bill has been skyrocketing since I moved in. I’d like to blame it on her, but I think it is on me. When we look at the previous year’s chart, the bill for this month is almost double the same month last year. In fact, many months are close to doubled. So, I am making it a goal to try and get this under control as well. I think we found a big culprit already. I have an older dishwasher at my house and I know how to use it. Hers is a new energy efficient model that allows you to select the fullness of the dishwasher and how long to wash. I just hit regular, which is close to twice as long as the other cycles. I am going to see if this is the cause of the high water bill.
I know it is only February, but I am already thinking about monthly goals for March. I don’t have many annual goals. I simply make monthly goals because I feel as though I can accomplish more and won’t forget about them/get lazy. You can read my entire reasoning in January’s goals post. There is a link in that post for February’s goals.
I had my MRI on my knee, but have not heard back as of yet. I’ll keep everyone posted on report and on the cost of the procedure.
My girlfriend and I are putting the final plans together on what I am bringing to her house and what we don’t need. I am also in the final stages of preparing to rent out my house. I’ll be excited when I get renters for it and can officially say that I am a landlord!
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Ouch. Hope the knee turns out OK.
We're really bad with unplugging things. We put it in the "bigger fish" category, but it's so easy to just unplug stuff, right?
Nick recently posted..Oh, man, I can’t even die right!
Nick recently posted..Oh, man, I can’t even die right!
Great idea to work at cutting down on the electricity bill. It does sound like it is the dishwasher that is causing some of the increased cost. Long showers are often a big culprit too. Good luck on renting your house.
Jeremy @ Modest Mone recently posted..The Financial Burden of Moving (and Breaking Up)
Jeremy @ Modest Mone recently posted..The Financial Burden of Moving (and Breaking Up)
Thanks! I'll keep everyone posted on the rent situation. I thought about the showers this morning. I'll have to see if the shower heads are low-flow ones or not.