John wrote:
>(electric) bill averages 90 a month
The price of wholesale electricity is still high so expect
this to increase. Have you tried conservation measures? I
found we can get by on about $10 a month with a small amount
of solar (thermal) to assist with some things.
>What we get for the dollar per
>person a day is 1. water pumped on demand from shallow well.
How much do you spend pumping water? I believe we spend
less than $1 a month on this.
> 2. hot water. We are all addicted to a daily
>shower plus dishes and washing.
This can be a big energy expense. We have our bill down to
less than $4 per month by the following:
1. solar hot water assist. This is one of the best
uses for solar and is very cost effective.
2. Insulate and put timer on hot water heater. This
knocked about $5 off our bill. We run the heater
a few hours in the morning and it manages to stay
hot all day.
3. Preheat the water by installing a second tank in front
of the main tank. Put both the tank and water heater
inside the house.
4. Install efficient (low flow) shower heads and faucets.
> 3. cooking I would prefer gas cooking but when building my cottage
>had a year old electric stove available so strapped for cash accepted it.
We cook with electricity and get by on about $1-$2 per month. I did
some measurements and found that small appliances with embedded coils
save a lot of energy. For example, electric fry pans cost much
less to use that a stove top. Another trick is to stop using the
oven and try to substitute the microwave (small items mostly). At
first some of this was inconvenient but eventually it became habit and
now we do it without thinking.
I have to admit that most of the year we don't conserve and have
too much energy. When the sun is out our solar panels produce
more than we can use and when the creek is full our hydro kicks
in.
jeff
