A No Spend Challenge update! How to have a lower electric bill in summer.
I just checked our electric bill and
… it’s $150 LESS than this month it was last summer!
Is this the best way to lower your electric bill? It sure is simple.
How did I do it?
I kept the thermostat at 81.
The only one to complain was my 15 year old son, but two days ago he said, “Mom, I’ve gotten used to it. I don’t even notice it anymore.”
Hmm… adaptation. What a concept!
I wasn’t sure how much money we were going to save by keeping the thermostat at 81 (instead of the usual summer temp, 78). I estimated around $20 or so.
But $150!?
That means that by the end of summer, we will be pocketing an extra $500 due to this ONE change.
Worth it?
Absolutely.
We now have $7,000 saved for a down payment, and we haven’t done budget meeting yet (where we will find more money to transfer to savings).
I ordered this device in order to lower my utility bill further.
Obtaining Great-Looking Clothing on the Cheap
Yesterday I took two of the big kids to a consignment shop. Eldest found a like-new white dress shirt that he needed for $9.
My 13-year-old found some more necessary summer clothing. (She seems to grow an inch taller every month!)
Even though stores are stocking back-to-school stuff, it stays hot here well into October, so summer clothing purchases still make sense.
And I came home very pleased because I found a cute skirt (J. Crew, it will last forever) and a few really nice tops. Most of which were 50-80% off already low, consignment shop prices.
Pro tip: if your favorite thrift or consignment shops have discounted color tickets, limit your browsing to ONLY those items first. You can quickly scan the racks because you’re focused on finding those discounted tags. If you don’t find what you need, go back and look at everything.
My wardrobe this summer is seriously small because last year I was still a little “fluffy” from having had a baby, and none of those clothes fit now so I had to get rid of them all.
I’m actually happy with a minimalist wardrobe, but I only had one pair of shorts and one casual skirt that fit, and only a couple of casual tops (I tend to go through these at an accelerated rate, having little kids is hard on your clothing).
Needed clothing is a-ok during my No Spend Challenge.
Here’s to consignment shops and low electricity bills!
Found this great post on why sell-by dates on food are basically meaningless. Don’t throw out that cottage cheese before reading this!
More No Spend Summer Challenge posts here.
Lowering our electric bill this summer is just one way we reduced our spending during a “no spend challenge”. Click here to read all the posts!
What do you do to have a lower electric bill in summer?
We did 80 degrees a few years back when things were tighter, but we’ve been doing 78 for the last several years. Those two degrees make me feel a lot better, and it hasn’t seem to set our bill super high.
Yay for the J. Crew find!
Yay for consignment shops! Love them!