I have been trying to make my home more energy efficient for more than a year now. Let’s face it, when my house was built in 1910, no one would have had any idea how we use energy today: televisions, computers, electronics chargers, and heating costs. In fact, I suspect that my home had some sort of wood stove to heat the place when it was first built.
But now that I am thinking about energy efficiency, how can I tell if it is paying off? I found a great tool on Avista’s website: Compare Your Bills. I can see how much energy I use compared to last month or compared to this month last year.
September is an unusually light energy usage month in my house: we have turned off the air conditioners and have not turned on the heat just yet. I was curious if my energy use this month was any different than last year. One helpful feature of the compare-your-bills tool: it compares the average temperature of the weather, too, so I can see that last year, the temperature was similar to what it is this year. It also just tells me that I used less energy.
The page also gives me tips, such as the most recent day of energy usage this week was 85% less than the average of what I used last week, probably because the weather has changed.
Lisa, an Avista customer, bought her 1910 house because she loved the old-world character, some of which doesn’t make her house very energy efficient. Lisa is sharing her experience on taking some simple do-it-yourself improvements to inspire others to do the same. You’ll find her stories right here every Tuesday morning.
If you are curious about how your energy bills compare to previous months, check it out on Avista's website.
Compare your bills