On July 3rd 2001, my local tv station had a thing on the "gray box" that you could buy, which was basically a timer that went on your electric hot water heater, which you set the time to turn off your hot water heater when you go to bed, and turn on when you get up. I was busy trying to get the number, since it was supposed to save you up to 10% on your power bill, when they added that just turning off the breaker on your heater has the same effect. They also really recommended getting two if you worked outside the home, to set it to go off when you were leaving, and come on half an hour before you got home. Well, I am usually the last to bed, and the first one up, and our breaker box is conveniently located in a hidden panel in the family room, I decided to give it a try. I waited until July 8th, because they read our meter on the 8th, every other month. Now, I have to explain our situation to make this clear to you--we have 4 freezers, 4 refrigerators--1 in the kitchen, 1 in the utility room, and 2 in the garage, I can, cook, pasturize milk, and irrigate off a well with a pump, electric, of course. In 2000, we had a "power usage profile" done through Puget Power, and they said our biggest drain was our 3 computers. Between July 3rd, and July 8th, my darling sons signed up for DSL, and "networked" the computers together, and we now run 6 computers...but that was cool, because one son is a computer programmer, he operates a MUD, and has to download (upload?) his programs to the people who buy them, and the boys both pay "room and board" and raised their own rates by $25.00 a month to cover energy costs for their new computers. (I don't begin to pretend I understand any of this, I just know they do making money doing whatever it is they do.)ANYWAY, back to the subject at hand--we are on "budget payments", where they average out your estimated payment for a year, so I couldn't tell right way what, if anything, I was saving. But after six months, it's pretty obvious. I turn off the hot-water heater about 10:00 pm, turn it on at 6:30 AM, when I go milking, so it is plenty hot when I come back and have to wash up all the milk stuff, then I do laundry, run the dishwaher, etc. Then I turn it back off until about 10:00 Am, for DH's shower at 11:00 and leave it on for the rest of the day. My bi-monthly payments have stayed at $185.00 a month, but the fine print have said I have been saving 8 KWH a day since the reading on September 8th. Now, I had no idea what 8KWH really amounted to until I just got my last bill. My budget payment went from $185. a month to $145. a month....PLUS, Puget Power last year began a program that if you saved 10% over your same billing period from the year before, you got a 25% discount on your entire bill! So they have that in a reserve fund making 3% interest, or you can withdraw it in cash. (I left it in the reserve, since my saving account is currently paying 1.01--it used to pay 4.75%) So, the idea of the "gray box" is great, but it's even better if you can do it without one!! I'm sorry this is so long, but I really wanted to try to explain the whole concept. I hope this helps at least one person!

Kathie

P.S. Melissa, as a personal note, if you've "forgotten" a load of laundry, if it's only been a day or two, just use your "rinse" cycle, and it will be just as fresh, especially if you dry it outside.

-- Kathie in Western Washington (twinrosefarm@centurytel.net), February 22, 2002

Answers

P.S. I should have mentioned that the amount I have in the account for future payments is $321.34, in only 7 months, and I should have noted that we have wood heat, but in the fall and spring we use our electric furnace, because you reach the point when no matter how cold it is at night, the woodstove will cook you out during the day, so we use the furnace in the mornings, let the sun warm the house during the day, and we prefer the cold at night. Sorry I didn't think to make that clear.

-- Kathie in Western Washington (twinrosefarm@centurytel.net), February 22, 2002.

My one person household shutters when the eletric bill crosses the $28.00 per month line, the elictric water heater is turned on only when I need it; 1/2 an hour before a shower or dishes, turned off before either begins, why heat replacement water(?) until its needed. Heat is kero, averageing $ .90 per day; cooking is propane averaging $.30 per day. One puter, one refrigerator, tv. or radio allways because I am nerve deaf and use each to gague other sounds; there is usualy two light bulbs, some times three, rarely four or more. Lifestyle can be whatever you choose it to be.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), February 22, 2002.

Hi Katie, I will have to try the rinse cysle and see if it works. When the weather gets nicer I use my wringer washer. We ahve those timers on our 2 ho water heaters and they have lowered our bill by $20 a month. They cost $20 each so they paid for themselves in 2 months. We used to always turn the breakers off too, but this is more convenient. We have ours set to come on in the morning for 2 hours, then the main one comes on at 4 in the afternoon until 9 at night. The secondary one comes on for only 2 hours in the evening. We rarely notice and if for some reason we are using lots of hot water there is a button you can push which kicks it on and you have hot water in about 10 minutes.

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), February 22, 2002.

I highly recommend an on-demand water heater. We have a gas one, but they come in electric models also. It heats the water as it runs through a coil ONLY WHEN YOU HAVE A HOT WATER FAUCET ON. It's fantastic. You have all the hot water you need, and NEVER are heating water when you don't need it. They are now available from the major lumber yards / hardware stores like Lowe's and Home Depot.

I guess I will start turning the computer off at night.

-- Rose (open_rose@hotmail.com), February 22, 2002.

The timer on the water heater will work but may or may not save you as much as the messages talks about. If your water heater is in the living area of the home, Many modulars, mobile homes or homes without basements then the water only has to heat from room tempature. If your water heater is outside or in a semi heated area then you have to heat from that tempature. A good heater blanket will help a bit. Insulated pipes will help, Also turning down your tempature on the heater will work.

The issue about the computer being power pigs is right. You will however find that much of the power is from the monitor. This is why screen savers are not good. Use the "blank" screen saver to actually turn off the monitor instead of wasting power showing little flapping windows.

-- Gary in Ohio (gws@columbus.rr.com), February 22, 2002.

I flip my breaker after a shower at night,, and turn it back on around 3 pm,, so its only on for about 3 hours a day,, unless its wash day,, but It does make a HUGE differance in the bill. Ill be going to on demand heater,, when this one dies

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), February 22, 2002.

I just wanted to warn people about our experience with a hot water heater timer. We installed one about 3 months ago. Didn't see much of a drop, if at all, in our usage. One night, two months ago, I went to take my shower and found I had NO hot water at all. Hubby checked it out downstairs and came up very upset. Turns out that the timer fried out/blew up/whatever you want to call it. It had started on fire and left burn marks on the timer itself and the area where it was mounted. We are lucky we didn't burn down our house.

I'm not sure what kind this one was....it was about $28 and purchased at our local Fleet Farm. If you do get one of these, just be very careful with it.

-- Lisa in WI (llehman16nospam@hotmail.com), February 22, 2002.

Wow Lisa, that is scary. OUrs is mounted to a block wall, so hopefully that never happens. We have had ours for over 3 years. It has the regualr heavy wire going into and out of it and is encased in a metal box. I did immediately notice a difference in the bill, even though we had done the shut off the breaker thing before. In the summer, sometimes we would go for 2-3 days without turning on the hot water heater.

I would like to set up some system where the water is pre-heated before it goes into the hot water heater. Some ideas we have kicked around are running lines through out attic, a circualting coil around the wood burner or outside the chimney, or we might install an outside wood furnace. We are just contemplating these things right now, but in the next year we are going to change something!! We even have friends who ran their's through a solar heating system of black water-line and old windows they built into a panel. Cale is pretty handy, so I am sure he will come up with something!!!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), February 22, 2002.

Very interesting to hear the various experiences. Last year, the government enforced a 20% decrease in power usage. We have no hot water heater, no clothes dryer, no air conditioning, no indoor heating, no freezer, no dishwasher, etc. We switched out the light bulbs to flourescent, unplugged the microwave that I never wanted in the first place, limited showers. (The only hot water in the house, from little zappers on the shower heads; if they're not well grounded, watch out!) We had already replaced the shower head to a more efficient type; more options to regulate. Every day Vicki went out to check our power usage; the neighbors across the street kidded her about it. But we made it under the requirement.

Seems there had not been enough rain last year and all the resevoirs were almost empty. Brazil depends mostly on hydroelectric power, so usage was critical. With the heavy rains the last couple of month, rationing will be phased out the month and we can go back to using power as if we had enough for eternity.

-- Randal at home in Brazil (randal@onebox.com), February 22, 2002.

Wow Randal! Your wife could give us some hints I imagine!!!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), February 22, 2002.

I've emailed her (!) the address of several posts and she's read some from CF over my shoulder, but she's recently worked up to email (computer at home is new) and is not much on surfing and getting online. Claims she's too busy. Don't know why: homeschools three, choffers them to basketball and swimming, was teaching English until recently, gives Bible studies on Wednesday afternoons, helps out with other church activities, and oversees household activities, meals, and chores. Besides catering to hubby. And whatever else I missed.

Well, I know many of you have busy days, too. I will send her the address of this post; let's see if we can coax her on.

-- Randal in Brazil (randal@onebox.com), February 22, 2002.

My husband put a switch (like a light switch) under the kitchen sink that comes up from the water heater and every morning I can switch it on and in the evenings switch it off. Its very handy and I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly we have got water. On Sundays when we are in town most of the day, it stays off all day. Big difference in power bill. It did take a special breaker or something in order to do that. We heat with wood, have no dishwasher, use the clothes dryer very little and our budget payment is still $67.00/mo

-- Marie in Central WA (Mamafila@aol.com), February 22, 2002.