irishbloo

Surely if she did that she would be coming home to warm wine and icecream soup.I feel for her.If it was in my house, oh would have us go round with head lights on our heads aand a newspaper or a deck of cards to entertain us.

hevs

We use the tumble dryer once a week for an hour
Evap cooling
4 TV's (3 old ones in kids rooms, not on for long by any stretch)
Xbox.../ TV/ Amp/ guitar teen boy use....
2 reptile tanks (heat on thermostat, light on 8 hrs a day)
2 computers .. on a lot!!
I work from home, light, UV light...wax pot...
Electric oven once a day


Gas HW/ hob/ heating

No pool, no electric HW etc. Everything turned off at wall at night etc...apart from 3 phones maybe on charge??

I cant see what we can do to cut this down?

Interested in anyones outcomes etc

odyssey

Maybe it is just cumulative. I live, mostly on my own (husband comes home from work maybe once a month for 2 days) with 3 under 7s who just destroy everything in sight.

I do 2 loads of washing a day - (1 school uniforms,work clothes, 1 towels), on the weekend I do 5 or 6 a day.

Does anyone know about which electricity company does daytime/nighttime tariffs - $1200 of this usage is said to be "daytime" on peak. Is there an electricity compare page anywhere?

i have taken today off work and am going to sit, in the hot and dark, on the phone trying to get a better deal. I am also going to order solar hot water.

I am going to try to stop using the tumble but realistically my life is beyond hectic and how I will be able to fit that in too I really dont know. I fight to get to work as it is. For $100 a week though its worth a try.

iamthecreaturefromuranus

You don't pay that lot in one go do you? I'm not that far behind you in terms of the size of the bill and I got mine switched to paying fortnightly. Not so much of a killer when the bill comes in then.

Broad Shoulders

I would say go the panels over hot water. At least with the panels options you are able to feed back into the grid when you are not using or are away. With the solar hot water if you don't use it, you lose it.

goldchoccycoin

Electricty and gas comparison site: http://www.switchwise.com.au/

jad n rich

To get the off peak rates its all about the wiring. Our house is wired for OP hot water, but the pool is not and electricians seem to think its a major job to get it on off peak. Ditto the AC.

A lot of new houses are now wired up correctly at constuction - that is easy.

Let us know how you get on, the cost of living is so ridiculous now. And another lot of increases are on the way!

Kooky.

I'm still trying to comprehend Sandra's five fridges.

spartacus

Holy crap! . . . I think that might be your problem.

Is your washing machine filling from the hot tap? It shouldn't be.

What temperature wash cycle do you typically use? No need to use any higher than 40 degrees.

I know it's from the States, but this web page might be able to help you work out what the costs of each wash are.

http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/laundry.html

Expat Kiwi

Last quarter's bill was $576 and on that we ran two split system air cons, pool pump, hot water and cooking, low water usage washing machine that fills from the cold tap, two large screen TVs, loads of recessed downlighters, large fridge freezer and a small chest freezer (both new) ceiling fans that have been on almost constantly and the usual computers and laptops.

As soon as the air temps heat up I turn down the thermostat on the hot water cyclinder to the lowest setting and vent off the air every six months. I turn off most electrical equipment at the wall every night.

The biggest difference between our summer and winter bills (which are around $300) is air conditioning.

rozellem

Scary reading folks. I do normal washes on cold with the odd 30 degrees one when I do white sheets. Never had an issue with not getting laundry clean with cold water. Over here in Sydney we have never needed a tumble dryer, actually never had one in the UK either, just had the clothes dryer in front of the radiator. My sis in law will be giving me a spare tumble dryer soon as I have baby no 2 coming in the winter, but it looks like I will be rationing my use.

Anxious to hear how you get on Odyssey, its like a murder mystery, who done it........

jad n rich

The AC is my guess

The washing machine thing.... Like the OP I do a approx 3 loads a day, went to an energy conservation seminar and people were gasping and saying oh no wonder ( all smug) we only do 2 LOADS a week, I am like WTF

2 adults 2 teens, one load is stinky work/school clothes, people sweat in this climate if you dont wash it it stinks. One load a day of towels or sheets, and then a load of whites, delciates, my good clothes etc...

Mind you I heard people saying the change their sheets monthly school clothes doing kids for the week. In this climate I am like whaart!!!

Amazulu

Things I have done in the last few years to reduce power bill:
Installed a heat-pump water system - very efficient and gets a big subsisdy to install
Increased insulation in the loft
Installed LED lighting - uses 12% of the power of incandescent
Installed ceiling fans - very low power usage compared to AC
Only use AC on really hot nights
Bought more efficient appliances when they need replacing

Electricity prices are going to keep on rising - and that's before we get the carbon tax, and are going to become an election issue. They are high in the UK too

ozzieeagle

I may go for one of those heat pump hot water systems myself. Not looked at them before... noise is an issue according to the net chat/reviews ?

My suggestion is make your own magnetite retrofit double glaze system.... steel frame magnet attached acrylic window frames. 400 bucks per square meter to install via magnetite.... has to be cheaper to do it yourself. Just need someone that can make the steel frames

http://www.magnetite.com.au/

Amazulu

Heat pump can be noisy but fortunately ours is round the side of the house so not an issue. I would reckon that what you are proposing for DG might work but would look crap - these things always do unfortunately.

Look into LED lighting. It uses minimal electricity, the technology is advancing fast and coming down in price. It's the way to go.