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salvelinustrout t1_j4b8yst wrote

This is always going to be hard without lots more detail, but in general it sounds like you probably have some opportunities to reduce your bill. I heat a well-insulted 1200 sq ft house with one heat pump, plus heat pump water heater, 24 sq ft of heated tile floor, energy star dehumidifier, energy star air purifier, energy star chest freezer, energy star washer and dryer, one electric vehicle, and a basement drain pump plus usual household appliances, and pay $300-$350, but we’re on a time of use rate because of the EV.

  • how often do you run laundry? Two loads a week is different from six loads a week, for example.
  • are you on Standard Offer supply or some scammy third party supplier?
  • do you clean the air filters in your heat pump and water heater and dehumidifier at least monthly? If not, they’re working a lot harder than they need to. Your dryer too — make sure the whole vent is clean for both efficiency and fire safety.
  • are all your appliances and fixtures energy star? Light bulbs here are huge — with LEDs your light should be a couple bucks a month, with old school incandescents it’s probably $10-20.

Call your local library and ask if they have electricity loggers to lend you. Most do, and you can use those to get a better idea of what the freezer, dehumidifier, etc are using monthly.

The odds are very good that the #1 thing you could do to save energy is insulation and air sealing. A couple tubes of caulk to seal cracks around windows and doors is an easy first step. $50 for a sheet of foam insulation and can of spray foam to insulate rim joists can be next. Then look at Efficiency Maine for rebates on attic and basement and everything else.

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