Cut Your Electric Bill In Half

Morning folks! I just wanted to share a tip to reduce your electric bill ( insert infomercial here)

I live in a 2 bedroom apt and my electric bill, as well as neighboring tenants, was 150 to 210 dollar avg for 1000 sq ft and single tenant. That is how much I have paid in a 2500 sq foot house before! What the heck?!? My Dad told me about using a Hot Water Heater Timer to reduce usage. So I installed the timer and created 2, 3 hour windows for heater to be on, one in the morning and one in the evening around shower times. I only have a 40 gallon tank and this was enough time to reach a temperature of 140 degrees, the industry minimum for safety.

When I looked at the water heater, the temp dial was set to 185 degrees. No wonder it could scald me! 140 is still hot but not burn your skin off hot! I adjusted both the top and bottom dials to 140. Normally your heater runs 24 hours and that is where the expense comes in.
My electric bill went down to 86.00, then 64 and this month is 46 dollars,woohoo!!! Granted I am a conscientious tenant and minimize my usage by turning off lights, opening windows at night, hand washing dishes etc.

While I did hook my own timer up, my Dad, an engineer, checked it out for safety. Make sure it is done correctly and turn off power when installing. Get a professional to do it or inspect it. It is a simple procedure but don't play around if you are not sure about it. Even hiring someone is WELL worth it with the money saved. I am so happy now and felt inclined to shout about it!

ETA: For a couple of months, was just turning the breaker on and off also, and this had the same effect.

a reply to: waftist

Great job! If you own your own home, installing a tank less water heater will gain similar benefits.

originally posted by: peter_kandra
a reply to: waftist

Great job! If you own your own home, installing a tank less water heater will gain similar benefits.

That's not entirely true.
Tankless are gas heaters so it depends on gas and electric prices in your area.
My home town has the cheapest electricity in the state. I would suggest people weigh their options before switching.

On a side note.

One thing that nobody warns about tankless heaters is that they never run out of hot water.
I've heard that people, especially teenagers, will take longer showers because the water never gets cold. Just something to keep in mind.

a reply to: waftist

Well done for sharing this.

I have had the habit of doing similar for years and with a new electrical system in the works, fitting a timer was always part of the plan.

So many people live in a world of convenience they don't care, so saving that money and not wasting it is common sense.

a reply to: waftist

I like cutting Bills in half. Also people named Kevin. Especially Kevins.

Thanks for the reply's
Yes I do like the tankless systems and would consider that if building a home. Propane is fairly cheap and abundant.

@ AugustusMasonicus, I believe there is someone(s) by the name of Karen that could use a reduction as well. She is not on ATS as much as Kev, but she causes much angst in the general public, just look on YouTube and Reddit Karen! haha

a reply to: waftist

I know her and I agree she needs some dividing into equal pieces.

Heat
Pump
Hot
Water
Heater
!

I'm a bad tenant, I jacked one into my washing machine plumbing when I moved in. They're practically free after "green" rebates these days, and work great even in cold basements.

originally posted by: Bluntone22

originally posted by: peter_kandra
a reply to: waftist

Great job! If you own your own home, installing a tank less water heater will gain similar benefits.

That's not entirely true.
Tankless are gas heaters so it depends on gas and electric prices in your area.
My home town has the cheapest electricity in the state. I would suggest people weigh their options before switching.

On a side note.

One thing that nobody warns about tankless heaters is that they never run out of hot water.
I've heard that people, especially teenagers, will take longer showers because the water never gets cold. Just something to keep in mind.

True. Thanks for clarifying for me!

originally posted by: Bluntone22

originally posted by: peter_kandra
a reply to: waftist

Great job! If you own your own home, installing a tank less water heater will gain similar benefits.

That's not entirely true.
Tankless are gas heaters so it depends on gas and electric prices in your area.
My home town has the cheapest electricity in the state. I would suggest people weigh their options before switching.

On a side note.

One thing that nobody warns about tankless heaters is that they never run out of hot water.
I've heard that people, especially teenagers, will take longer showers because the water never gets cold. Just something to keep in mind.

Also, if you are on well water, not a good idea. Even with a water softener, the heating elements will corrode significantly decreasing performance over time. I was all on board for our house until I did some research. Our well water has lots of iron. Not good.

a reply to: jtrenthacker

I knew that you have to watch for things like calcium buildup but hadn't heard about iron being a problem.
My well water has lots of iron but it isn't a problem other than rusty sinks if the softener isn't working.

Interesting.

You save quite a bit turning the hot water heater down to about 140 degrees. The timer, that can save but if the water heater is well insulated, the savings are not that great. It may have been that when you did that wiring, you got better connections on the wires, that will help to keep costs down too.

Balancing the fusebox can save a lot for some people. The meters read two twenty...each leg drawing turns the meter. If both are turning at the same time, the meter registers one movement, so if all your one ten is on one side, it costs you more. Stoves often have one ten burners on the top, but two are on one side and one on the other. All restaurant equipment is two twenty burners, it saves a lot of money....but those burners and the stoves they are on are expensive. The oven burners are two twenty on most stoves. A one hundred ten volt dryer costs more to dry than a two twenty volt one. Think about this.

Balancing the box means that both sides normally have draw from appliances at a more even rate. The coffee pot is opposite the toaster oven on the legs of the box, when both run the meter turns at the same rate. otherwise if they are on the same side, the meter runs twice as fast. My cousin informed me of this years ago when I was working towards my electrical apprenticeship with him...he worked for me as a subcontractor, then I worked with him. I also got information from the inspector often and also from the people at the power company. We had to try to balance the box when doing installations, the inspector required it.

Years ago they had one ten services, this does not apply to them.

Sounds all pretty normal for us brits, most gas based heating systems sold now are combi which can heat up water on demand so no need for tanks etc and even in the good old days it would always be on the timer unless you were rich.

Most tank based systems here have an immersion rod (think kettle element but bigger) ran of the mains electricity which can keep a tank toasty either all the time or be a backup for when the gas system fails.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: waftist

I like cutting Bills in half. Also people named Kevin. Especially Kevins.

Burn them and they turn into Kelvins. Even more economy.

a reply to: waftist

I have been using a water heater timer for more than 35 years. If you buy a thermal blanket to wrap the heater in you can save even more.
I learned the hard way by replacing water heaters, several times, from premature burnout. Don't turn the temperature up from its factory setting. You may want hotter water but you will end up paying for it in more ways than electricity. The higher the temp is the sooner you will have to replace it.

a reply to: jtrenthacker

I am on well water and don't have any corrosion problems.

originally posted by: CharlesT
a reply to: jtrenthacker

I am on well water and don't have any corrosion problems.

I was referring to the tankless water heaters.

a reply to: waftist

Just curious - but I'm presuming you're US-based?

Is this not a 'thing' over there - water heater timers?

I'm UK and I'd say 99% of households here probably have timers - they're as old as the hills. So if I'm reading your post right did that mean your hot water was on *all* the time?

That's amazing. Is that common over that side of the pond too?

There used to be an old myth over here that if you left your water heater on all the time, you'd save energy as it's just topping it up as you use it. Of course, that's complete bobbins - heat naturally escapes over time anyway, even with a jacket (which again almost all homes have if they have an internal hot water tank) - so you're basically burning money.

I upgraded mine a little while ago to a 'Hive' unit (bit like a Nest) - brilliant bit of kit and modernised my old mechanical timer for the heating and hot water.

Cheers!