A few months ago, Brian and I reported our shock at receiving a hydro bill for over $160. Until that time, my typical hydro bill was always between $25 and $45 every two months. Needless to say, we were not happy. We made some attempts at cutting back energy costs and tried out some tips for cutting back our electrical bill, as suggested by others. Unfortunately, being in an apartment, our options were limited – we couldn’t simply install a programmable thermostat for example, though we did try to keep our thermostat at an inside temperature close to the outside temperature. This past week, we received our latest hydro bill.
Photograph by jonlk, used under Creative Commons (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonk/14002934/)
The result?
Meh.
We saved $20 off our bill from the previous month. Granted, that means we managed to cut back over 10% of our bill while spending very little money, but I had of course hoped for more. It’s a bit frustrating that the building does not do more to manage heat and energy issues, but hey, what can you do. *shakes fist at single pane windows* There’s still a few things we’d like to do, such as adding more power bars to manage energy use and adding weatherproofing film to the windows. Every little bit helps, so hopefully we’ll see a similar reduction in the coming months.
