Calling on all senior trightwads!

puppypal · #1 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 06:55 AM

OK It seems lately my heating bill has went up. I heat with gas.
How do you save money on the bill. No one is at home til 5pm and everyone is off by 8am
So I cut it down to 50 degrees while we all aren't home. It is a near new home 3 years and I just need to save more on heating costs...Any suggestions old or new..HELP?!?

Ima saver · #2 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 08:17 AM

Well, I am home all day and I keep my heat set at 60. What temp. do you put it on when you are all home?

boefixepa · #3 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 09:07 AM

Cover widows with heavy plankets or quilts to help keep heat in and cold out. Just take them up with staples or nails. Not the best looking, but it really helps keep the cold out. I also to 50 during the day when no one is home, 55 at night, and 62 when I am home. Check all your doors and windows and make sure you can't feel 'breezes' at the seems. If you can you need to get some weather stripping so that they seal well. You may also call a few heating contractors and see if they do free home evaluations. I know around here that they want to make sure your heaters are tweaked for the new gas mix they are switching to. So make sure there is no service needing to be done to your heater. Talk to neighbors and see if they are in the same price range as you. You may be doing better than you thought. See if your provider does a 'balanced' bill to stop the spikes...you'll probably have to wait for next winter though....but it's planning ahead. Good Luck!

puppypal · #4 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 12:12 PM

I keep the temp set on 50 when I am away from the house and nobody is home. When I get it around 5:30 I cook with gas so it helps warm things up a bit but I tend to be cold so I turn the temp up to around (BLUSHING) 62
When hit the hay for the night it goes down to 60
Hubby leaves for work at 5 and I get up around 5:30am and after I get out of the shower I cut it down to 50 around 6am
It just seems like my bill was very high this time around and I could be doing more! KWIM?
But I do get cold easy......Like the blanket idea and well it is only for a couple months and I will not doubt be screaming about the cooling costs! LOL

living_in_oz · #5 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 02:03 PM

You guys are making my cold!LOL

Sorry can't help you out any. Being comfortable is one of the few things I won't give up to save a few a bucks. That's just me though....

Ima saver · #6 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 02:30 PM

If you dress warm enough, you will be comfortable. I wear a shirt and two sweaters.

PrincessPerky · #7 (**permalink**) 01-26-2007, 07:06 PM

I still say when cold you should put a sweater on...and the same goes for a house..if it costs to much to heat it..put a coat on it...in the for, of storm doors, storm windows, plastic on windows, jackets on hot water tanks....stuff like that.

also when a body is too cold it stops heating the 'outer edges' fingers and toes..for a house you could close off a room ......

nanamom · #8 (**permalink**) 01-27-2007, 07:53 PM

Do you have a fireplace? We used ours last winter and the beginning of this one to heat. WE curled up in front of it and could even cook over it. How about your dryer, gas or electric? Could you use it less if it is gas?

mom-from-missouri · #9 (**permalink**) 01-27-2007, 09:18 PM

Insulate your outlets and switches that are on outside walls. If you have a fireplace, make sure the damper is closed. Keep garage and basement doors, windows and garage doors closed. Close of heat registers to unused rooms. Keep closet & cabinet doors closed-why heat inside them? Use the sun when you can.

LuxLiving · #10 (**permalink**) 01-28-2007, 05:08 AM

We use corn/rice bags here for aching backs - you know, flannel bag w/feed corn or rice sewn inside it. When the tootsies and hands get cold I heat one in the microwave and place it over my socks or on my hands. At night when it's cold in my bedroom I also just heat and take one to bed w/me. It's the old warming w/a brick thing they used to do or w/a bedwarmer w/live coals inside that they used to use to warm their beds before hopping in only quicker and no flames!!

Might be a tiny bit pricey to start with but there are many kinds of nice space heaters around nowdays (get one without the open flame -danger) that can be used to just heat one small area. Those oil filled ones are very nice - they're full of an oil that is heated but it's sealed and doesn't burn away so there is no refilling, just nice warm heat. I believe those are the ones that look like traditional radiators.

Every now and again if it gets really cold rather than try to heat up the entire house I'll use mine for 20 to 30 minutes to drop the temp in one room.

puppypal · #11 (**permalink**) 01-29-2007, 06:32 AM

Well this weekend we put plastic up over the wondows and I will see if that helps. Even though it is a rather new home I did feel a cool air by the computer window go figure? No fireplace because my son has asthma and can not tolerate the bits of smoke that goes into the air. Also we have no carpet either which believe me, makes everyone wear house shoes this time of year. Our dryer is gas also. At the time the home was built is was very smart to do the thing in gas but of course now is a differant story. I am soooo cold natured. I am my worst ememy!LOL But I stayed in sweats this weekend and got the old quilts out and covered up in the den whiched helped or at least the furbabies thought so because they were fighting for space underneath. It is major cold here this morning bbbbrrrrrruuuuurrrrr
But I am at work now so they best cover up for a bit! LOL
Thanks everyone

Ima saver · #12 (**permalink**) 01-29-2007, 08:20 AM

I have a little furbaby too. She is on her elec. heating pad, this minute. My old dog has a electric heated blanket in the garage. I keep my hot water turned off all day long until it is needed.

PrincessPerky · #13 (**permalink**) 01-29-2007, 10:37 AM

Carpets insulate.....throw rugs would do a part job wouldn't they? might be worth a small investment.

I am in the kitchen right now, and man are my feet cold! I want to switch rooms! (DS is doing some map work, needs a table...or rather wanted a table)

Gailete · #14 (**permalink**) 02-04-2007, 05:38 PM

I'm not blushing when I say I keep our house at 68 during the day and 60 at night. I have Rheumatoid arthritis and it just isn't worth the pain to save on heat bills.

However, we do have an automatic thermostat which makes up for memory losses of forgetting to turn things done, although a 3 year old house should already have one. Always bundle up with warm winter clothes and sweaters, and shut off some rooms if needed. I like taking my rice bags to bed with me at night as they help keep the bed warm.

I do wonder though that letting your house go down to 50 is too far as then there is the cost of warming it and the furniture mass back up--it may cost more in the long run.

Gail