so i saw this in another forum, and i love the conversations that spring out of it.

how much do you spend per month on energy (gas, electricity, oil) for your home. take a look at your bill and give us a number. of course it might help to know how big the home is, how many people live there and how often people are home.

if you are in the process of or have already completed the process of greening the home, it might be nice to know the differences or reductions in energy use over time.

it's good to benchmark what you are doing against others who are in similar situations.

i just moved in with my fiancee and we live in a house far too large for us (renting) until we can find the right home. We have an all electric home.

November bill = $326
December bill = $495
January bill = $??? I am scared.

Sounds a little high but that might entirely be because of the cold winter some places are having. Do you use every room or can you "close" some of them off.

I am not in the same situation as you are pd, and I don't want to make you feel bad. I live in a 1000 sq. ft. custom built passive solar house by myself. It is a sort of showcase home for my clients to understand how to live more sustainably. I am working on plans to add PV cells to reduce my draw even more. I do live in a somewhat colder climate than lets say Arizona. My last two months power bills have hovered around $55. My furnace is really small and rarely has to kick on during the day.

But this is getting a little off topic. My average energy expenditure through the entire year is about $60. I live alone, so that helps.

I use as much power as it takes to live my life. I make good money and can afford it. I am not sold that if we keep doing what we are doing that the world will come to an end. I have a large home and my power bill (well gas and electric together so there is some cooking in there too) comes to about an average of $700 a month.

Would I like to save money in these economic times? Sure, but its a monetary decision for me and not an environmental one. My surrounds are pretty comfortable and anything that diminishes that isn't for me.

skeptic... i think this is typical of some people. you are not alone in your ideas that the heating and cooling of the earth is cyclic, but so too are extinction and climactic disasters. There is an arrogance to humans (especially some of those in developed countries) which says we can overcome and conquer anything. We can overcome nature and the patterns of history.

personally, I really don't care if you are green for money or for philanthropic motivations, so long as things are changing and we give ourselves a chance to survive.

i live with my parents, so i really don't know how much the electricity bill is. we aren't the greenest family. i have convinced them to start recycling and turn down the heat in the winter. 75 degrees may sound nice but its down right wasteful.

I spend on average $275 a month throughout the year to heat and cool my 2300 square foot modified ranch. We use some passive strategies and have a great long southern exposure.

Last month our heating bill was only $330 and compared to my neighbors that's bargain basement.

Its out of control. I live in the northern reaches of the south. Kentucky to be exact. I just made it back home after a power outage and checked the mail. Ironically I also received my power bill. $628. WUH?!?! All electric house indeed, but I must be doing something wrong. What can I do to end this.

So I understand pd's pain and I need some help. For those of you succeeding. How do you do it?

I just thought this thread needed some attention. As we near the winter months again, power bills are on the rise and its when everyone starts paying attention to how much they spend on those bills.