PSE&G gas prices wth? Any tips on reducing gas supply costs?

Submitted by jdash t3_10kahvx in newjersey

So this winter we have lowered our thermostats and put on sweaters and extra blankets. But the gas heating bill is higher! We lower our downstairs to 62 at night and the upstairs is 66 all night while sleeping. We could go down an extra degree or two but how is it that we're using less gas but the price is going up. Seems like last year we kept at an average 68 and it was much cheaper. Our average now is about 64.

I know about delivery charges vs supply charges and I know the supply charges have gone up - but now I'm looking into if choosing a supplier other than PSE&G will make a difference? Anyone got tips finding a new supplier or if it is worth the hassle?

A very basic search produced confusing results. They show a $/therm but they don't specify if that is inclusive of delivery and supply.

PSE&G cost breakdown

Delivery $0.588 including balancing
Supply $0.651776
Total $1.239 per therm

I see other companies offering around $1/therm - but is that just supply or both supply and delivery?

I have a few electric oil filled radiators and with the price of electricity being relatively lower, could using electric heat in our more occupied rooms and keeping the gas heat in less occupied rooms much lower be cheaper?

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Danitay t1_j5pgl54 wrote

IMO you’re better off getting an energy audit and upgrading your attic insulation via air sealing top plates and blown in cellulose (high ROI) vs penny pinching gas suppliers. This was our gas energy use before and after new insulation + air sealing: https://imgur.com/gallery/Wo66HZ3

You need to keep the heat in. Also we’ve found if we lower the downstairs furnace to 68° overnight and then bump it to 70°— that burns 30 mins of gas. If we just left it to 70° all night, it would run the same runtimes as if it was 68°. We can maintain it better because of the insulation.

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jdash OP t1_j5r5nwg wrote

Thanks for this reply. We have been procrastinating doing any work because we expect to sell in the next 2-3 years but this sounds like a wise and simple decision.

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Lemongirllucy t1_j5t9obl wrote

Who did you use for your energy audit? I know PSEG has a program. Any recommendations?

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nancymeadows242 t1_j5tdeqk wrote

Done all that as I am just finishing up a down to stud reno and my gas usage is still up ~30% from last year, same period. December of this year compared to January of last year when the temps were similar.

In comparison, in 2021 and 2022 after the insulation air sealing was just done, my usage was down. This year the thermostat is lower than ever

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ChocoTacoKid t1_j5uh3ic wrote

Just curious what the cost was to air seal the attic and your time to break even on this project? Did you do the project yourself or hire it out? Any recommendations on companies?

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Danitay t1_j5uqk1y wrote

Total cost out of pocket hired out: $7k (we have 2 attics). We got $2k cash rebate from NJ Clean Energy Program, so $5k all in. We save about $815/year on energy costs so break even is around 6 years. They removed all the old fiberglass, vacuumed everything out and hauled away the debris. Air sealing took a full day, insulation about half a day. Two separate blower door tests (before and after) to show the 20% improved tightness data.

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ChocoTacoKid t1_j5uv5ui wrote

Thanks! Guessing mine might be a little cheaper with a single attic on 1500 sqft home. Might have to look into this myself. Getting a home energy audit soon to figure out where my biggest leaks are. $315 bill last month 😅

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op00to t1_j5pp43o wrote

If you can figure out how to stop Russia from pissing off the entire world setting off huge seismic shifts in the energy markets, that might get your price per therm down a bit.

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ansky201 t1_j5pi8jp wrote

I don't think it's possible to choose a different gas supplier. And even if you could it is very unlikely that they would be cheaper anyway. Natural gas prices are up nationwide and this was all over the news back in the Fall so we knew it was coming.

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jdash OP t1_j5r5gnz wrote

You can choose your gas supplier anywhere in the country I believe but definitely in NY and NJ. It says so on your bill.

The difference in the 2 prices you see on your gas bill are delivery and supply. PSE&G is my delivery company and I cannot change that. They maintain the pipes, infrastructure, etc. But the supply is the actual gas being pumped through the lines and you can choose who provides that. It's sort of like if you think about TMobile and how they have cell towers everywhere. You can use Tmobile cell service on TMobile towers or you can use any of the discount cell services that also run off the TMobile towers. It's about buying up a bulk rate or some such.

Anyway, you definitely can choose. When I lived in NYC, I changed my supplier from ConEd to a different one that was 30% cheaper for gas. I still got a bill from ConEd for delivery but my supply bill came from another company and it was cheaper.

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blumpkin_donuts t1_j5zqsxv wrote

lower the water temp on your boiler. run all your washes with cold water. air dry your clothes or run your dryer on the lowest temp setting, if it uses nat gas.

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AnNJgal t1_j5qtv2r wrote

I personally can't be in a room where the heat is too high. I like to sleep at 64 degrees and during the day, I keep it at 68. I also open the shades to get some warmth from the sun (if there is any).

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sirzoop t1_j5pz4y8 wrote

Lowering the temperature will barely decrease your gas bill. Just pay to keep everyone warm its not worth the lower quality of life of having to wear sweaters in your own home.

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jdash OP t1_j5r6nh0 wrote

When we had a full house that's how we did it. But just 2 of us now and no one is downstairs for 12+ hours per day. Seems like lowering the temp would've been more substantial than we're getting. We are using less gas according to the charts they send with the bill, but with the prices going up it obviously seems to not matter.

Thanks for your reply.

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Newlawyermoney t1_j5qghbn wrote

Agreed. I have babies at home but we keep it at 70 year round. I’ll even have it up to 72 at times. Not enough savings to be worth the discomfort. Penny wise dollar foolish.

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