While most expect EVs to come with a large electricity bill, one man shocked the internet with how little he paid for the utility.
Whileelectric vehiclesmight be better for theenvironmentcompared to traditional combustion engines, many expect them to cost you big time when your utility bills come along.
Electric vehicles are often quite expensive to purchase and physically maintain. On top of that, it’s easy to forget that, due to needing to charge them when they aren’t in use, they can also sneak up on you very easily when it comes to paying for electricity at your home.
New owners of EVs typically expect a massive uptick in their electricity prices, and while this can often be the case, one Tesla owner on X (formerly Twitter) revealed their astonishingly low electricity bill to the world.
Tesla can be charged at home or for a fee at charging stations. (pexels/Chad Russell)
X user @Tesla_GTownTX tweeted a screenshot of the bill he received directly from Tesla in regards to his electricity usage, with the total amount coming to merely $2.37. This, according to the user, is higher than usual, as he jokingly captioned the post: “First time I’ve had a bill within the last 12 months. This sucks.”
The post left many current and potential users of EVs wondering what the user’s secret was to charge his electric vehicle without amassing large electricity bills in the process.
“I call bs,” said one disbelieving commenter.
Another joined in on the original poster’s joke: “Man my sympathies to you in this horrible time.”
It turns out that the user’s secret to having such a small electricity bill involved him planning ahead of time and making a big purchase to avoid having to pay for the costly utility every month.
The secret is that the man uses solar panels to keep his electric bill from ever reaching the heights you’d expect. A Tesla Powerwall–a home battery used to charge Teslas using solar energy–can be seen in one of the photos on his profile, lifting the lid on what it takes to avoid high electricity prices.
As one would expect, while this home battery may seem as though it saves you hundreds of dollars each month, it’s hard to say whether the one-time payment for the Tesla Powerwall is worth a reduced electric bill.
Teslas are known for being expensive both to purchase and maintain. (pexels/Roberto Nickson)
According to Forbes, these Tesla Powerwalls can cost you well over $11,000 per battery, and the more you have, the more electricity you are likely to save. If you want to reduce this price, you’d have to buy five batteries for $40,500, which amounts to a still-gargantuan $8,100 per battery.
So, while it may seem like the man lucked out on having such a low bill, he certainly didn’t get off easy when it comes to making a large payment.
Featured Image Credit: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images / X/@Tesla_GTownTX
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Tesla driver shares their first electric bill in 12 months and people are left shocked by the fee - UNILAD
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There is one big thing holding the United States back from a pollution-free electricity grid running on wind, solar and battery power: not enough power lines.
As developers rush to install wind farms and solar plants to power data centers, artificial intelligence systems and electric vehicles, the nation’s sagging, out-of-date power lines are being overwhelmed — slowing the transition to clean energy and the fight against climate change.
But experts say that there is a remarkably simple fix: installing new wires on the high-voltage lines that already carry power hundreds of miles across the United States. Just upgrading those wires, new reportsshow, could double the amount of power that can flow through America’s electricity grid.
“This is something that could be a triple win,” said Brian Deese, an innovation fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who headed the White House National Economic Council under President Biden until early last year. “A win for the electricity system, a win for utilities and a win for consumers.”
Since Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022 — pouring hundreds of billions of dollars toward the build-out of clean energy — experts have warned that without a dramatic increase in the size of the electricity grid, most of those new wind and solar farms won’t be able to plug in.
Many renewables are stuck in the “interconnection queue,” a long line of projects waiting to get connected to the grid. According to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, more than 1,500 gigawatts of power, mostly renewables, are waiting for approval to connect. (That’s more than one-third of all the power produced in the United States.)
One of the main reasons for that long wait is that the nation builds transmission lines — those giant, high-voltage wires that carry power across large distances — extremely slowly. The average transmission line takes about 10 years to complete, and the country has been building even fewer lines recently than it did a decade ago.
Without enough power lines, there is nowhere for new solar, wind and battery power to go.
“We have to be able to integrate all this low-cost, renewable energy fast,” said Amol Phadke, a scientist at the University of California at Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
That’s where replacing the country’s power lines — or “reconductoring,” as engineers call it — comes in.
Most of America’s lines are wired with a technology that has been around since the early 1900s — a core steel wire surrounded by strands of aluminum. When those old wires heat up — whether from power passing through them or warm outdoor temperatures — they sag. Too much sag in a transmission line can be dangerous, causing fires or outages. As a result, grid operators have to be careful not to allow too much power through the lines.
But a couple of decades ago, engineers designed a new type of wire: a core made of carbon fiber, surrounded by trapezoidal pieces of aluminum. Those new, carbon-fiber wires don’t sag as much in the heat. That means that they can take up to double the amount of power as the old lines.
According to the recent study from researchers at UC-Berkeley and GridLab, replacing these older steel wires could provide up to 80 percent of the new transmission needed on the electricity grid — without building anything new. It could also cost half as much as building an entirely new line and avoid the headaches of trying to get every state, city and even landowner along the route to agree to a new project.
“You’re not acquiring a new right of way; you’re not building new towers,” Phadke said. “So it can be done much faster.”
If stringing new lines is so easy — and cheap — why hasn’t it been done already? Part of the problem, experts say, is that utilities profit more from big infrastructure projects. Routine maintenance or larger-scale upgrades of the electricity grid don’t help utilities make a lot of cash compared with building new transmission lines.
Deese compares it to having leaky pipes in a building — building managers don’t get rewarded for fixing all of a building’s problems, but rather for just keeping things running as long as possible on a limited budget. “You patch and plug rather than thinking systematically,” Deese said.
Duncan Callaway, a professor of energy and resources at UC-Berkeley and one of the authors of the recent study, said that many transmission engineers are not used to thinking of rewiring as one of their tools. “But it’s a much faster way,” he said.
Some changes are already underway to encourage this approach. For a long time, utilities had to undergo lengthy environmental reviews if they were rewiring a line longer than 20 miles. Earlier this month, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced that those would no longer be necessary if utilities are simply replacing wires.
And last month, the Biden administration announced a goal to upgrade 100,000 miles of transmission line over the next five years — which could include rewiring the lines.
“We actually need stuff that can cook right now, right away,” Ali Zaidi, the White House national climate adviser, said Tuesday at a White House summit on grid modernization. “And the way to do that is by deploying grid-enhancing technologies, by reconductoring the lines that we have already strung up or buried across the country.”
This doesn’t mean that new lines don’t need to be built. “In the longer run, newer lines will play an important role,” Phadke said. But as new demand surges onto the grid in the short term, upgrading the nation’s wires could help keep clean energy flowing until those new lines can be built.
“We have the potential to achieve all of these things with just taking new technology and running it through old lines,” Deese said. “It’s pretty cool.”
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How a simple fix could double the size of the U.S. electricity grid - The Washington Post
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For the past few years now, the magic number when it comes to electric cars’ range has been 300 miles, but many of the models that have been able to hit that target have been either too compromised, too niche or most importantly too expensive. With the average price of a new car having reached higher than $48,000, now more than ever people need affordable EVs if we want an electric transition to really happen in the U.S., without the penalty of bad range that typically comes with a cheaper price.
Ed Begley Jr. On The Past And Present Of Electric Vehicles
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At $43,295 including destination, not only is the new 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV one of the cheapest ways to get into an electric car with at least 300 miles of range (or the cheapest if you include the federal tax credit), it’s a genuinely fantastic car, full stop. With the right mix of performance, style, features and overall packaging, I think the Equinox EV is the perfect electric car for America right now. It has what it takes to be a smash hit — as long as GM nails the launch.
Full disclosure: Chevrolet flew me out to Detroit to drive the Silverado EV and Equinox EV on the roads around eastern Michigan. We stayed at the Shinola hotel, which was lovely, and I was fed some great vegetarian tacos.
The Equinox EV makes an immediately good first impression from a design standpoint. It’s not a shock to the system like a Hyundai Ioniq 5, but it’s a really attractive lil’ SUV that has some cool design details. At 190.6 inches long and 64.8 inches tall it’s 7.4 inches longer and 0.8 inch lower than the next-generation gas Equinox, and the EV’s 116.3-inch-long wheelbase is 8.8 inches greater than the ICE model’s. That size combined with strong haunches and a nicely shaped greenhouse mean the Equinox looks more like a tall wagon than an actual SUV, and it doesn’t suffer from the battery-pack bloat that plagues a lot of EVs. I love the design of the front light bar, with the actual headlights being tiny units in the black surround that wraps around the body color “grille” in the front bumper. The pop-out door handles aren’t too fussy to use, and they should be no problem in cold weather.
Going for RS trim adds black fender flares and a black grille insert, plus some sportier-looking exterior trim elements, and some models get really slick clear taillights. There are a few awesome colors on offer too, like the pearlescent lilac-y Galaxy Gray and the bright Radiant Red and Riptide Blue, the latter of which can be paired with a white roof on LT models that looks quite charming. (RS models can have a black roof for $495, but that’s not as interesting.) The base 19-inch wheels look fine, but I’m really into the 21s that you get with the 3LT or RS trim levels.
Again, while not being groundbreaking in any way, the Equinox’s cabin is a big step up from other offerings, and it feels more special than the price point suggests. The air vent surrounds, door panels, passenger dashboard and center console all are made from plastic with a painted finish that has either bright blue or red fading into black; it looks really chic, the blue especially, and some of the pieces are backlit with configurable ambient lighting. The Evotex leatherette doesn’t feel cheap or plasticky, and depending on trim you get woven seat inserts with contrasting stitching and accents. Some of the materials, like what’s on the armrests, have a diamond pattern that’s much more interesting to look at than the typical faux leather grain texture. The two climate control knobs are rubberized and have nice action, and there’s a handful of other physical switches for frequently used controls.
You don’t get a lot of storage space beneath the center armrest, but I like the placement of the USB-C ports next to the cupholders and there’s a useful storage pad underneath the center screen. The driving position and view out are both great, though the dashboard does reflect quite a bit onto the windshield in harsh sunlight. The back seat is wonderfully spacious and has no pesky center tunnel, and even with the optional $1,500 dual-pane panoramic sunroof there’s plenty of headroom thanks to a scooped-out section of the rear headliner. There’s a good amount of cargo space too, with 26.4 cubic feet of room behind the second row and 57.2 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down (pretty much matching the Ioniq 5), and a large cubby underneath the load floor.
The Equinox has an 85-kWh lithium-ion battery pack of which 100 percent is usable, a refreshing size compared to huge Ultium vehicles like the Silverado EV that has a 200-plus-kWh battery. Official EPA range is 319 miles, just a tick below a RWD Blazer EV and better than what you get from single-motor versions of the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Tesla Model 3 and Volkswagen ID 4, to name a few. The estimated range seems easy to match if not exceed in the real world; in one Equinox I hop into, a 70-percent charge shows a range of nearly 250 miles. Sadly the Equinox can only fast-charge at up to 150 kW, though that’s much improved from the Bolt’s 50-kW max and is enough to give the Equinox 77 miles back after just 10 minutes of being plugged in. Chevy doesn’t quote a 10-to-80-percent fast-charge time, annoyingly, but it does say using the standard 11.5-kW Level 2 AC charger the Equinox can gain 34 miles of range per hour of charging.
Unlike a lot of other entry-level EVs that use a rear-wheel-drive configuration, the single-motor Equinox EV is front-wheel drive. Under the hood (where there are lots of electronics and no frunk cargo space) is an electric motor putting out 213 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque, a modest amount that’s better than what you get in the gas Equinox (175 hp and 184 lb-ft). Chevy says the Equinox EV will hit 60 mph in 8 seconds, and it’s quick enough to keep up with Detroit’s maniacal drivers both on the highway and around town. The Equinox has two levels of regenerative braking, the higher of which provides strong and linear one-pedal driving.
For $3,300 you can get all-wheel drive on any trim, adding an electric motor at the rear axle and bringing total output to 288 hp and 333 lb-ft while lowering the EPA range figure to 285 miles, which is still respectable. The increase in power is definitely noticeable at city speeds — the 0-to-60 time drops to around 6 seconds — but unless you really need all-wheel drive, I don’t think it’s a necessary upgrade. Regardless of drivetrain, the Equinox EV can tow up to 1,500 pounds. You can toggle on synthetic driving noises, but they don’t really sound like much of anything, only getting louder in Sport instead of getting any more exciting.
In both Normal and Sport modes the steering is nicely weighted and direct, verging on being fun to whip around town or on a nice back road, and the front-wheel-drive Equinox doesn’t struggle to find traction or understeer too badly even if I floor it through a corner. Chevy says the FWD Equinox EV weighs 4,895 pounds in 2RS trim while the AWD model is 5,050 pounds, but it doesn’t feel that hefty from behind the wheel. Ride quality in the 2LT is fantastic, better than some EVs costing five figures more, and the optional 21s only make the ride slightly choppier. It’s so much nicer to drive than nearly all other internal-combustion crossovers of this class, and even those of many in classes above, not to mention some of the other EV competition.
One of the most controversial aspects of the Equinox EV is its infotainment system that’s shared with other Ultium products, consisting of a 17.7-inch central touchscreen and an 11-inch digital gauge cluster. Specifically, the controversy surrounds the fact that Apple CarPlay and Android Auto aren’t available at all, but as an iPhone user who already mainly uses Google Maps and Spotify, I don’t miss CarPlay in the Equinox. Google Maps is the built-in navigation system, with excellent visual integration across both screens, especially for showing directions in the gauge cluster, and routing for electric range and charging. You can download different media services and other apps through the Google Play store, including Waze for navigation, and a 5G wi-fi hotspot is standard. There are enough shortcuts and configurable buttons to make the system easy to navigate, and it has smooth operation and some cool animations and graphics.
There are some annoyances with the system. A grouping of buttons in the area just below the physical volume knob changes depending on whether the car is parked or driving and they’re mostly blocked from my view by the steering wheel. In order to change the additional info page that displays in the gauge cluster, like if you want to show energy usage instead of tire pressure, you have to make multiple taps through menus in the center screen instead of just being able to scroll through the options like on most other cars. And I wish there was a way to have the nav map take up only part of the center screen so other things can be displayed.
Surely, you’re thinking, in order to meet that pricepoint Chevy nickel-and-dimed the Equinox so the (for now) entry-level 2LT trim doesn’t come with any good features. That’s thankfully not the case. The 2LT gets you features like heated front seats, an 8-way power-adjustable driver seat with lumbar, a heated steering wheel that tilts and telescopes, a hands-free power liftgate and auto-down windows. Adaptive cruise control, automated emergency braking with forward collision warning, automatic high beams, blind-spot monitoring with steering assist, lane-keeping assist, lane-departure warning, rear cross-traffic braking and a 360-degree camera system are all included as well. For $2,000 more you can jump up to the 3LT, which adds a power-adjustable front passenger seat, driver’s seat memory, dual-zone climate control, ventilated front seats, heated outboard rear seats, heated windshield wipers and the 21-inch wheels. The 2RS and 3RS trim levels mainly add cosmetic items, each costing $1,500 more than their LT counterparts.
What could be the Equinox EV’s killer feature is the availability of Super Cruise on every trim level, bundled together with automatic parking assist for $2,700. Super Cruise is the best hands-free Level 2 system currently on sale, and it works on more than 400,000 miles of road throughout the U.S. and Canada. There’s no subscription fee that you have to pay and no trial period that will run out; just opt for that package, and your Equinox can go hands-free.
Oh, and the best part of the Equinox EV’s class-leading price? That $43,295 pricetag is before any government incentives, and every version of the Equinox EV is eligible for the full $7,500 tax credit. With that factored in, the Equinox EV 2LT costs just $35,795, less than almost every other EV on sale. And coming later this year will be the 1LT base model, which will have the same infotainment setup and 319-mile powertrain but fewer features for an even cheaper starting point of $34,995.
Perhaps the most confusing thing about the Equinox EV is why Chevy is also coming out with a next-generation version of the gas-powered Equinox that’s still using the same name. (The internal combustion Equinox will be a 2025 model-year car, while the EV is a 2024 model year.) The two new Equinoxes are on unrelated platforms, have different design languages, and are seemingly aimed at different buyers. I’m sure the Equinox name has good recognition with consumers, and I understand why GM isn’t ready to go EV-only yet and needs to keep offering the gas model, but selling two different SUVs with the same name that are not just gas and EV versions of the same car doesn’t make sense to me.
The Equinox EV does make sense, though. One in every four cars sold in the U.S. is a compact SUV, and the electric Equinox is really good at being an appealing compact SUV. Chevy says it’s targeting a breadth of different types of buyers with the Equinox EV, ranging from brand conquests to existing GM customers and long-time EV owners to people who are going electric for the first time. I think the Chevy Equinox EV will be the right SUV for a lot of people, and it could be just what the U.S. needs to find the path to mass EV adoption.
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The 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV Is The Perfect Electric Car For America - Jalopnik
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Jeep on Thursday finally took the wraps off its first electric vehicle for North America, the Wagoneer S. A radical departure from the normally upright, boxy design Jeeps are known for, it gets 600 horsepower and a decidedly sleek, on-road-focused appearance. Don't worry, Jeep enthusiasts, the company hasn't forgotten about you hardcore off-roaders. Because it's also unveiled a new concept called the Wagoneer S Trailhawk.
The Jeep Wagoneer S Trailhawk concept shares its underpinnings with the normal Wagoneer S. It rides on the same STLA Large platform, and while Jeep doesn't say what sort of motors lie underneath, the SUV is said to have "all the capability of the new production vehicle." If we had to guess, that means the same 100.5-kilowatt-hour battery pack and dual-motor, 600-hp drivetrain.
You'll find the extra capability in the details. The Trailhawk concept gets a two-inch suspension lift and 31.5-inch all-terrain tires for better approach, breakover, and departure angles, as well as more grip. Brightly colored tow hooks adorn the front and rear bumpers, while functional air extractors relieve high-pressure zones in the wheel wells during high-speed travel. The redesigned fascias also get an anti-scratch cladding to deter damage while adventuring off pavement.
In addition to the Auto, Sand, Snow, Eco, and Sport drive modes, the Trailhawk concept gets a Rock mode specifically for low-speed crawling. There's a driver-selectable electronic locking rear axle, too, for especially challenging trails.
At the center of the Trailhawk concept's redesigned interior is a new octagon-shaped steering wheel. In the center console behind the gear selector you'll find a red-colored switch panel for the drive mode and diff lock rockers. There's even a passenger grab handle for when the going gets tough.
While Jeep says the Wagoneer S Trailhawk is a concept, it looks remarkably production-ready. Remove a few of the fancy interior bits, and this SUV could be introduced as a trim for the Wagoneer S tomorrow. We suspect that's exactly what Jeep plans to do in the near future. The extra equipment means it'll probably be more expensive and less range-efficient, but for the off-road crowd, it's a whole lot more appealing.
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The Wagoneer S Trailhawk Concept Gives Us Hope for Jeep's Electric Future - Motor1
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In major cities in Quebec and British Columbia, savings from charging an EV instead of fuelling a gas-powered car could be above $2,500 per year. (Don & Melinda Crawford/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) (UCG via Getty Images)
Among the major reasons some Canadians buy an electric vehicle are the savings on fuel costs, but those savings vary significantly across the country due to differences in gas prices and electricity rates.
In Quebec, where electricity rates are lowest, the annual cost of charging an average EV on a home charger, assuming 20,000 kilometres driven, could be a little more than $300. In Alberta, where electricity rates are considerably higher, the cost could be around $1,000.
But in spite of that large difference, the cost of recharging an EV for a year remains far cheaper than paying for gas to drive the same distance no matter where you live. In an interview with Yahoo Finance Canada, Meena Bibra, a senior policy advisor for Clean Energy Canada, said this means the total ownership cost equation will very quickly favour EVs.
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“A lot of the electric models that we have looked at, we're actually breaking even” versus the total cost of purchasing and operating a gas-powered car “in a year or less,” Bibra said. “And a lot of that contribution is really from the very low fuelling costs for electricity and pretty much almost non-existent maintenance cost.”
For the purposes of comparison, Yahoo Finance Canada used public data to model recharging costs in each province and territory.
The numbers are a way to compare rough relative costs. For these calculations, assumed EV battery efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 kilometres, a widely-used average. The calculation also assumes an annual total distance driven of 20,000 kilometres and 100 per cent home charging — but public charging, when necessary, can cost more. The average electricity rates, furthermore, do not reflect the range of rate plans offered in many places.
When compared to gas-powered vehicle fuel costs, the annual savings for charging are significant across the country, but with a wide variance. In major cities in Quebec and British Columbia, the savings could be above $2,500 per year. In Calgary and Edmonton, the savings could be less than $1,400 annually.
The model for annual savings versus a gas-powered vehicle assumes an average fuel efficiency of 8.9 litres per 100 kilometres, based on an International Energy Agency ranking, and using average gas prices for Canada’s major cities in 2023.
EV charging savings accrue over time, which Bibra noted requires “a different way of looking at car purchasing than the way that we've done beforehand.”
Clean Energy Canada research shows that EVs end up cheaper over 10 years versus comparable gas-powered vehicles, even in provinces that don't offer subsidies.
“One of the key things that people tend to do primarily is look at the upfront sticker price and that is being used to make purchasing decisions,” she said. “And so it doesn't take into consideration the lower fuelling costs and the lower maintenance costs, which help Canadians break even.”
John MacFarlane is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter@jmacf. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available forAppleandAndroid.
Syracuse, N.Y. – The last time National Grid asked state officials to raise its Upstate rates was just as the Covid pandemic was gaining steam in July 2020. The company and its regulators put a top priority on holding down the increase.
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Syracuse, N.Y. – The last time National Grid asked state officials to raise its Upstate rates was just as the Covid pandemic was gaining steam in July 2020. The company and its regulators put a top priority on holding down the increase.
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Californians pay some of the highest electricity rates in the country. In 2022, only residents of Hawaii and Massachusetts paid more, on average, for a kilowatt-hour of electricity.
The only thing keeping California's power bills close to the national average was the fact that Golden State residents used a lot less electricity than the average American.
If you're a Californian looking to lower your energy budget, you have several ways to do it. Here's more info on energy costs in California, plus ways to cut your electric bills and save energy around the home.
What's the average electricity bill in California?
Average electricity price (in cents per kilowatt-hour)
Average monthly usage (kWh)
Average electric bill
California
25.84
535
$138.29
United States
15.04
899
$135.25
There are a variety of reasons why Californians pay more for electricity than many other states, including wildfire damage, inflation and rising labor costs. Utilities are investing in renewable energy infrastructure and scaling up to prepare the grid for increased usage as the state moves towards electrification and away from gas.
Another reason you might pay higher electricity bills in California is because of time-of-use rates, which charge more for the electricity your home uses during the time each day when demand is highest. That's typically in the evening when people are coming home from work and turning on lights and electronic devices. Solar production also drops when the sun goes down.
"California has moved predominantly to time of use pricing for consumers, which makes it more expensive to use energy between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.," said Ben Brown, CEO of virtual power plant Renew Home. "It's a great way to take advantage of lower costs during the rest of the day, but if folks aren't really thoughtful about how to shift their usage, they're going to get hit with higher average energy bills."
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Residents of California can lower those high electric bills through a variety of methods, ranging from small daily changes to larger investments in energy efficiency.
Getting solar panels in California
One of the most significant ways to cut your electricity bills -- and have a more energy-efficient home -- is to install solar panels. With sunny, mild weather in much of the state and solar-friendly policies, California has more solar panels than any other state and nearly 2,000 installers in operation.
Purchasing solar panels outright can be a big upfront investment, but the long-term energy savings can be worth it. Plus, tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act and other solar incentives can seriously reduce the cost. You can also finance solar panels, effectively swapping out your monthly electric bill for your solar loan during the roughly 10-year average payback period.
Electric bill assistance in California
Californians can take advantage of several assistance programs that can lower electricity bills, including:
Residents of California can also take advantage of rebates and other programs to lower electricity costs:
Energy-saving tips for Californians
In addition to bigger energy efficiency investments like installing solar and upgrading appliances, you can save on your electric bill by shifting when and how you're using energy in your home. These simple, everyday adjustments can cut your energy usage and, sometimes, the rate you're paying for electricity.
Behavioral changes
Small changes in how you do things like washing clothes, lighting your home and even cooking dinner can cut down on energy use. Habits like changing out incandescent bulbs for LEDs, putting electronics on standby, keeping the oven door closed when baking and cleaning your dryer can add up to a big difference in your electricity bill.
If you're charged time-of-use rates, observing your habits and shifting electricity use away from periods when rates are high can also put a dent in your monthly energy costs.
"I would start with the small stuff -- just thinking about your own personal patterns, like when you usually do the laundry or the dishes," Brown said. "Are these things easy for you to change that pattern slightly?"
A home energy audit
Changing how you use electricity is only half the battle when it comes to saving energy. An energy-efficient home will minimize the heating and cooling lost through openings like doors and windows, meaning your HVAC system uses less energy keeping the interior comfortable.
"There's a lot of things that folks can do around energy-efficient appliances while taking advantage of rebates in the Inflation Reduction Act, plus tax credits for more efficient water heaters, HVAC systems, heat pumps and other appliances that can reduce energy usage," Brown said.
A home energy audit conducted by your utility or a third-party professional can assess the structure's energy efficiency and point out areas like appliances, doors and windows, insulation and HVAC systems where upgrades and repairs could make a big difference in energy usage. Plus, the IRA provides a tax credit of up to $150 to help cover the costs of an audit.
Smart technology
If your electronics are plugged in, they're drawing tiny amounts of electricity, even when they're not turned on or in standby mode. This "phantom power" or "vampire energy" can add up over time. Smart plugs, power strips and surge protectors can cut way down on that extra energy use.
"Smart plugs and smart power strips are pretty inexpensive, and they're really helpful in terms of reducing the vampire energy stuff that adds up over the year," Brown said, noting that using smart plugs for small appliances like DVRs and coffee makers can save an average of $432 per household over a year.
Smart thermostats can meaningfully lower the portion of your electricity bills that comes from heating and cooling your home. Features like occupancy sensors, energy reports and mobile apps that allow you to control the thermostat remotely can help keep your space comfortable while reducing energy usage.
Smart thermostats can even help you avoid rate hikes during peak times.
"We spend nearly half of our energy use on heating and cooling our homes. It's a no-brainer to automatically shift that out of really expensive periods," Brown said.
Virtual power plants
Cutting your home's energy use automatically translates to savings on your monthly bills. Virtual power plants, which pool different energy sources together to supply utilities with electricity or to slash demand, can actually pay you to reduce your usage during peak times.
"A virtual power plant is a way for homes across the United States to shift their energy usage against times when the grid is strained, or energy prices are really high on the grid, and earn rewards and earn money by saving energy when it's really expensive to produce it," Brown said.
Brown said the rewards for joining a virtual power plant are particularly beneficial for households with solar panels or electric vehicles, but those aren't required to participate in a virtual power plant.
"You can save a lot of money, but also help contribute to the broader shift of usage, which is a very valuable resource to stabilizing the grid, reducing blackouts and reducing the costs of maintaining the grid," he said.
