Reeling over latest PEPCO bill, several questions

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Our thermostat has been at 72 consistently. Since its a townhouse, we've had issues with it getting super hot or super cold on the top floor, depending on the season. We have a nanny and toddler that are home during the day. Just put it down to 67. Thanks all for the useful suggestions.

Go to HomeDepot today, and get a programmable thermostat and install it. If you can't install it, call some HVAC place and they'll install it on Monday. Total cost for part + labor will be < $200 and you'll make it up in energy savings. Buy the thermostat from HD as if you buy it from teh HVAC place, they'll overcharge yhou.

We have nanny and toddler at home all day, so we have it at 72 during the day, then down to 68 at night. Remember it gets coldest at night, so that's when if you had it at 72, you're going to have your heat pump working the most.

Last night was chilly, and even at 68 our heat pump was running for a fair amoutn of the night.

Other benefit to programmable with a heat pump is it will "prime" it in prepartion for going from 68 to 72 every morning -- also an energy saver.

Next thing is to replace your windows. Expect $500-1,000 per window depending on if they are standard or custom-sized. They'll last 20+ years so it's worth the money.

[Anonymous]

Our friend's nanny used to jack up their heat during the day. Might want to ask the nanny nicely if she ever puts the heat up.

[Anonymous]

I don't understand why heat pumps are used in this area at all. I don't think it is warm enough. Your bill is higher because it has been colder.

[Anonymous]

My wonderful nanny used to put the heat up insanely high. I came home once to find it set to 80. I actually rolled with it, because she really suffered when it was cold, but it was definitely crazy.

Now that we no longer have a nanny and all four of us are at work/school all day, the bills are waaay down.

[Anonymous]

I'm amazed at all of you who keep the house so warm at night.

We have ours set to 67/68 when we're home and awake and 62 at night. And that's in a SFH; if we lived in a townhouse, I could knock it down a little lower.

We also have old, single-pane windows, but have storm windows to provide extra insulation. Getting new storm windows is much cheaper than total window replacement.

[Anonymous]

72º is tropical. Turn it down to 66º and get some flannel and fleece clothing to wear in the house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why heat pumps are used in this area at all. I don't think it is warm enough. Your bill is higher because it has been colder.

This. I have heat pump that does not start to run frequently until the temperature is below 30, however, I keep my heat set at 64 or 65. If I set it at 72, it would run all the time. Plus your emergency heat may have kicked on when it was cold. In that case, your heat pump acts like a big space heater, which costs a lot.

[Anonymous]

You can do that plastic over your windows (buy it at the hardware store) and weatherstripping around doors, just to get through the winter and give yourself time to put in replacement windows. It makes a difference.

[Anonymous]

Does the air become too dry in that kind of heat? It's probably bad for the baby's skin.

Having lived in Northern Europe, where people wear thick woolen sweaters over their shirts/normal clothes, we keep the thermostat at 64 max during the day, and 60 at night. Our HVAC is currently broken upstairs in the bedrooms (we have a dual zone system) and it goes down to 56 during the night, which is not that bad - we have warm duvets and hop into our clothes in the morning.

And yes, the single pane is killing you! The cheapest fix is a plastic film you can blow-dry on your windows. Effective if you do it right.

[Anonymous]

townhouses with thread walls shouldn't have such issues, but windows are a big part of it.
also, check how much of bill is usage versus various taxes. the latter are always going up as well around here.

[Anonymous]

Are you all fat? I keep my heat at 73. I also like to see my hot blonde wife prance around in a tshirt.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, replacement windows are not going to significantly cut your energy costs. Windows replacement companies prey on the fact that you can feel the cold on the panes, but you won't save much with the replacement windows. The difference between heating your home with single pain windows and double/triple pain windows will a few dollars per month. Much of your heat is lost through the roof, so think about blowing some insulation into your attic. Also, I second the recommendation to get isolative curtains/blinds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why heat pumps are used in this area at all. I don't think it is warm enough. Your bill is higher because it has been colder.

This. I have heat pump that does not start to run frequently until the temperature is below 30, however, I keep my heat set at 64 or 65. If I set it at 72, it would run all the time. Plus your emergency heat may have kicked on when it was cold. In that case, your heat pump acts like a big space heater, which costs a lot.

Heat pumps work much better in new construction with good insulation and double paned windows . My heat pump is much cheaper to operate than gas and more expensive between Late December through February so overall the costs are about the same.

[Anonymous]

Here you go:

http://www.mdhomeperformance.org/
https://www.dcseu.com/for-my-home/audits-air-sealing-insulation/audits
http://leap-va.org/hpwes/

Pepco and other utilities subsidize these programs to reduce the cost of energy audits, provide rebates for energy saving measures and pre-qualify contractors to do the work.

[Anonymous]

Unicorp for new windows. http://www.unicorphomeenergyservices.com/