My gas bill is too high...

[Aimster]

I do not live there! I am there during the weekends doing work to the house to get it move-in-ready.

Total SQ FT 2500

I have the heat turned to 50-62. It is on all the time.
Water heater is on maybe 1-2 weeks out of the month and is set to medium
pilot light for my fireplace is on

My gas bill is between $120-140/month

Does this sound right? My co-workers are saying I am paying too much. As far as my bill shows it is not an estimate.
Will the gas company come to my house and inspect for a gas leak?

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Depending on the outside temp that doesnt sound too crazy, the pilot is still on, its still heating your water (it doesnt stay hot) and still keeping the heat somewhat on.

Turn the main gas off to each appliance and go outside and see if the meter is running, if so you have a leak and you should turn off the main, if not you have to relight all your pilots

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Where do you live?

120-140 a month for 2500 sq/feet is not a lot where I am at (New England). MY home is ~2200 sq. feet, reasonably well insulated, and it costs ~$180/mo to heat in the winter with natural gas. Max indoor temp is 65. Average outdoor temp in the winter is ~20F.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Ouch yeah that sounds quite high to consider the furnace should not be running that much. Check the HW heater as well, I would actually just turn it off if nobody is living there, then be sure to turn it on low before someone moves in.

Also check any dampers to make sure they're on/off as needed. For example if it's a two story house I'd shut most of the upstairs dampers and leave a few, for the basement turn maybe just one on then on main floor turn most of them on.

 

[olds]

WAY to much.

 

[DrPizza]

I don't know where you live, but that really doesn't sound like a lot. I know people in my area who have 400-600 monthly gas bills in the winter.

Factors: age of furnace (is it a newer one? I think 85% is the sweet spot for efficiency - more & I believe you pay more for the premium on the furnace than you save in efficiency)

Type of construction of home, age of home, thickness of insulation, type of windows, etc. R-values mean nothing if the area where the insulation is isn't air tight. If you're in Florida or Southern Cali, it's way too high. Northeast? Sounds reasonable.

 

[DrPizza]

Oh, and you're not going to discover a gas leak by turning everything off and watching the meter. If you had a gas leak that would show up that way, you'd have smelled it by now. I really doubt a gas leak is going to add up to more than $1 or 2 per month. More than that and KABOOOM!

 

[Ausm]

Stop eating beans.

 

[Vette73]

Hard to say with the information you gave.

What is the outside temp? (where do you live? update your profile)
Low-e windows or old single pane?
Insulation in the attic and/or walls?
Gas leak?
Old furance? (I just put in a 92% effeciant one)
Leaks in duct work?

and on and on...

But does not sound that far off.

 

[Aimster]

I live in the Washington dc area. Temps have been in the low 20s at night. My house was built in 2005 and it has a lot of windows. Home is a Ryan home don't know if anyone knows what company builds them but judging by all the other cheap stuff they used around the house my windows are probably not the greatest.

Ok so it looks like my bill is about right. I estimated it to be 200 once I actually move in. Thanks for all the replies!

 

[Vette73]

^

Its going to be a lot higher then $200 when you move in. Unless 60 is the temp you will keep and not use much hot water. I live in N.VA and my bill is higher in less then 2000sq/ft.


If the house is a 2005 then it should have at least I think around R30 or more in the attic and r13 in the wall.

Check for leaks around the electric outlets on walls to the outside. Quick/cheap builders don't use a good insulation around them and they leak a bit.
Also check/replace your furnace filter. Use the cheapest pleated ones from Lowes/Hd.

 

[spidey07]

Sounds right. It is winterafter all.

 

[BoberFett]

Might be a little high based on your keeping the temp so low, but maybe your gas is more expensive? What is your price per therm?

We pay about $60/mo on the gas co's averaging plan (to keep bills consistent rather than spiking in the winter) so it's about $600-700/yr. Assuming you'll only have a few months of bills that high, with the majority of the warmer months being around $20-30, it might not be too out of line.

 

[Jeff7]

Wow, I've got ~700sq ft in my apartment, though maybe 50% of that is heated at any one time. I can push $200+/month.

1) Old building
2) Mostly single-pane windows
3) Air leaks in almost everywhere
4) Insulation seems to consist of solid aluminum, as the walls get quite cold
5) Erie, PA. Canada often decides that they need to reduce their air pressure, so they vent several trillion cubic parsecs of frigid air into the US, most of which seems to get ducted through Erie.

I bet the place would light up an infrared camera reeeal nice.

 

[KaChow]

I live in the Washington dc area. Temps have been in the low 20s at night. My house was built in 2005 and it has a lot of windows. Home is a Ryan home don't know if anyone knows what company builds them but judging by all the other cheap stuff they used around the house my windows are probably not the greatest.

Ok so it looks like my bill is about right. I estimated it to be 200 once I actually move in. Thanks for all the replies!

For your reference I live in a 1998 townhouse in northern VA, 3 levels (above ground basement with 1-car garage), 2100sf total living area and I keep the heat at 68. This months bill from the beginning of the month was $60. Last Feb (my highest usage month this year) was $155. This is with gas heating, gas water heater, gas stove. I have mediocre windows and air leaks around the wall outlets (soon to be taken care of).

 

[olds]

I live in the Washington dc area....

Meh, I had you confused with someone else.

 

[mrblotto]

Wow, I've got ~700sq ft in my apartment, though maybe 50% of that is heated at any one time. I can push $200+/month.

1) Old building
2) Mostly single-pane windows
3) Air leaks in almost everywhere
4) Insulation seems to consist of solid aluminum, as the walls get quite cold
5) Erie, PA. Canada often decides that they need to reduce their air pressure, so they vent several trillion cubic parsecs of frigid air into the US, most of which seems to get ducted through Erie.

I bet the place would light up an infrared camera reeeal nice.

LOL! I lived there myself (well, Edinboro) in a 'Summer Cottage'..........all year. Single pane windows, poorly insulated.....about 650 sq ft. Lake effect snow FTW (or FTL). The heat bill was out of control. We got a kerosene heater which helped a lot.

Glad I moved to NC. I have a '97 home about 1200 sq ft. Heat bill is 57/mo, equal payment plan. Dont get me started on the light/AC bill tho....lol

 

[Squisher]

How old is the house?

Tubes of caulk and insulation are your friends.

I've cut my gas bill on an investment property by 1/2 just through sealing all the leaks and insulating the walls in a couple of rooms. I haven't even gotten around to insulating the attic yet. I shake my head at the amount the previous owners were spending on gas ($2400/year on a 980 sq ft house). The December bill was $100 . When I get done I bet I get the yearly gas costs under $600.

No wonder they lost the house through foreclosure.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Another thing are your rim joists properly insulated? You need to add foam insulation and make sure you put caulk in the cracks to seal it real tight.

http://www.rd.com/57548/article57548.html

You may be tempted to just shove fiberglass insulation instead, don't, it will eventually condensate and mold, you want a good seal. It's ok to add fiberglass over the foam for extra R value though.

Been wanting to do my own house, it is a major heat loss area. Check the attic too, should be at least R60 I believe.

 

[Vette73]

Another thing are your rim joists properly insulated? You need to add foam insulation and make sure you put caulk in the cracks to seal it real tight.

http://www.rd.com/57548/article57548.html

You may be tempted to just shove fiberglass insulation instead, don't, it will eventually condensate and mold, you want a good seal. It's ok to add fiberglass over the foam for extra R value though.

Been wanting to do my own house, it is a major heat loss area. Check the attic too, should be at least R60 I believe.

As far as I know R38 is what code calls for in the attic. The ROI is not that great when you get much hgiher in most parts of the US. I think the EPAs website had a calculator to tell you the best amount to have.

But I am doing a addition right now and R38 is what they are looking for. Its up from the low R30s a year ago due to the new standards going into affect.

And good tip on the RJ's. Also putting some insulation between the floor of the basement and 1st floor helps a good deal. I put some r13 in a couple spots and it really helps if you have solid wood floors. Need to do all when i get time.

 

[Engineer]

Sad part is that Natural Gas was at a 50 year low in price because of new technology to extract the stuff. The supply was so great that it dropped to the $2.xx range (I've seen it as high as $14.xx) per MCF (whatever that is). My gas company was still charging me $8.95 per MCF even with the price being $4.50 recently.

A complete ripoff! :|