Switching to more energy efficient appliances

Appliances are the largest source of electricity usage, said Simi Hoque, a professor at Drexel’s department of civil, architectural and environmental engineering. The refrigerator is the most energy-hungry of them all, but you can’t turn it off. Hoque said switching to more energy-efficient appliances will save money, but only if the current models have reached the end of their life.

“If your water heater or your washing machine or your dishwasher or refrigerator have reached their end of life, then it would be important to try to make sure that you find an appliance that is an Energy Star- certified appliance,” Hoque said. “You’re not going to be able to recoup the cost of a new appliance if you haven’t reached the end of life of your existing appliance.”

One exception may be an old window unit air conditioner, Hoque said.

“Those things live for a really long time, but they become extremely inefficient over time,” Hoque said. “And so if you have an old window air conditioning unit, even if it’s not at its end of life, it may be worthwhile to look and see if it’s possible to buy a newer window air conditioning unit to install. I would actually buy a small one because generally those are pretty good. If you put a fan to move air around, the air conditioner can work towards reducing the humidity inside the space, and then the fan can just kind of move the dried cooler air around, and that is enough for comfort on a hot day.”

Hoque also encourages signing up for time-of-use pricing, which allows customers with smart meters to pay lower rates if they use appliances like dishwashers and dryers during offpeak hours.

Home energy audit/weatherization

A home energy audit can help pinpoint areas where expensive heat and cooling are escaping from your residence. Weatherizing your home by sealing drafty windows and doors can make a difference. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that adding insulation to attics and crawl spaces can save up to 17% on heating and cooling costs.

Hoque said one of the most important parts of weatherization is making sure to insulate the top part of the house beneath the roof. And in a rowhome, it’s helpful to have a white- or silver-coated roof.

“This is more about being sure that you’re insulating the most vulnerable part of your building in the summertime to avoid overheating, and that’s the roof,” Hoque said.

Pennsylvania provides free energy audits and weatherization to those who make 200% or less of the federal poverty level. And some utilities offer services that will assess where you could save.

Shopping for alternative electricity suppliers

Pennsylvania’s deregulated electricity market means that while utilities have a monopoly on distribution in specific territories, ratepayers can still shop for alternative suppliers. Electric bills are generally split in half between the energy supply costs and the distribution costs of sending it through power lines. Utilities make their profit on distribution, and simply pass on the supply charges.

Choosing default service means going with the same provider for both supply and distribution, for example PECO or PPL Electric Utilities. This is the simplest option and one that consumer advocates recommend because the utilities are required to shop for a good price. The alternative suppliers, however, often have varying rates and cancellation fees.

Still, Lancaster County resident Bruce Blom said he’s been shopping for years through the Public Utility Commission’s PAPowerSwitch and saves about $80 to $100 a year. The process is known as “price to compare” where ratepayers can see the different rates and compare them to their default service provider.

“It’s pretty easy,” Blom said. “I always only look for a fixed rate and ones with no penalty for cancellation. And for anything for three months to a year. For the last two years, your best deals are only three months of a fixed rate.”

The key is to put reminders in your calendar when the fixed rate ends so you can make sure you’re not facing surprise rate hikes, Blom added.

“Frankly, I don’t care if they have some kind of reward,” he said. “Okay, fine, if they want to give me something, fine. But you got to keep checking because rates go up fairly rapidly.”

Blom had high praise for the PAPowerSwitch website, saying it was very user friendly.

“It’s the best thing I can do,” Blom said. “That’s the only control I have other than, of course, my own personal control of usage in my house.”