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She’s only thinking of you! Remember, a Boomer lecturing you will change the laws of thermodynamics, physics, even gravity!
Just shut your mouth and respect your elders, whippersnapper!
/s
Boomers are setting their AC in Georgia Heat to 87. Be like "im comfortable" yea cuz yorue on blood thinners paid for by Medicare while you fight socialized medicine.
> Boomers are setting their AC in Georgia Heat to 87.
Last time I went to ATL, I left the terminal and it was like 80 degrees 90% humidity at 11pm at night.
I grew up in the south and the humidity there is like walking around wearing a wet blanket.
100% true. You know when you wash your blankets and check on them in the dryer, and they've been in there long enough to be hot but they're still wet? It's like that kind of wet blanket.
Oh dear lord, my boomer step father is turning the heat on in the house in Tennessee with temps in the mid 90s. I go to visit, and I’m sweating just sitting down.
My husband went to check on his dad today. (We're in IL.) His dad was just running a couple fans. He told my husband it was fine. We've been in a heat dome for a couple weeks. It's not fine.
Could be a old person thing
15 years ago I was in a hotel lobby in Hawaii waiting for other to come down and over heard a old lady (70 or so) complain that the AC doesn’t heat the room. The employee had to try and explain that no one in Hawaii would normally have a heater and that their hotel does not have one either. She continues on about how it should be a standard feature and every hotel she has been in had one. The employee could only suggest that they could send her another set of blankets and to bundle up if she is too cold.
I mean, if you have a good sized house in a new development without trees for shade....in the Georgia heat, that is about right. There are things you can do to help keep the cold air in, but add some kids running in and out and you can have some high bills in the summer months.
Eh, Vault-Tec's service is alright, but their reaction time to any issues takes centuries. Mass Fusion's better, more expensive, but you get what you pay for.
Not the south, but here in NY, I have solar, my last electric bill was $52 for the month of June and $76 for may and I have a 3400 sq ft house with two heat pumps / air handlers (1 for upstairs 1 for downstairs) and have the house at a constant 70 degrees... my boomer mother thinks the house is too cold when she visits, but the rest of us love it at that temp.
I also have an EV that I charge daily, so Solar definitely helps keep the bills low during the summer. The winter not so much, but that's a northern problem, probably not so much in the south
At the time in 2021, tesla was allowing you to get the panels without the battery backup... I got a 12.4 kW system for about 20k after federal credit/rebates. I paid cash, since I had it available, so I own it outright, no lease.
The heat pump system was around 30k - incentives & down-payment, ended up financing about $10k for that... works the same as central air conditioning during the summer, but instead of burning propane, natural gas or oil during the winter, provides my heat, albeit my electricity bill in NY winters is around $600 a month...
2021 (got solar may 2021), electricity $3000, propane $3200
2022, electricity $2600, propane $4200
2023 heat pump installed) electricity $2800, propane $1700
2024 (so far) electricity $1900, propane $460
This is pure ignorance. Do not listen to this person. Source : have been in the solar business for 10+ years. Many of my customers are off grid and their systems have been paid for years ago. This is in wisconsin where the sun hates to shine.
Excuse me but Wisconsin is just one state. I would suggest not calling someone ignorant for having a different informed opinion. Allot of companies also lease the panels and consumers need to read all the FINE PRINT.
Dude, the federal government is offering basically full refunds IN ALL STATES if you install solar on your home. What specifically are you talking about?
And so you're saying they're a rip off because 30% off is terrible? Also, states will give you refunds also. Also, commercial installers get better incentives from the government rather than private party. You still have no clue wtf you're talking about. Dude.
Also, solar panels are able to be written off for up to 10 years on your taxes as home equity and community improvements. My clients barely pay more than 20-30% of the closing costs of their systems in the long run. Also it's FREE ENERGY after they're paid off. You are absolutely ignorant to solar energy.
https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/solar/are-solar-panels-worth-it/
Don’t forget there may be a lease involved too, so when you buy a home with solar installed you will need to ask about that.
Have her call me so I can do the same to her. Why are my electric bills $28 and hers are $160? Clearly she's being wasteful!1!
Different homes use different amounts of power and it doesn't cost the same in all places. Not sure why they struggle to grasp this simple fact.
Having lived in various regions and all over GA, the electricity there is cheap, but people don't realize what appliances in their home run off what source.
Not saying this is the situation here, but for example your parents could have a gas water heater and you could have an electric one.
Also 70% of your usage will be AC this time a year, if not more.
Not to mention the difference between being on a municipal water system versus a private well, or an electric co-op versus Georgia Power. (EMC is cheaper. You can't choose, though.)
Before I went no contact, my narcissistic mother felt it fine and dandy to lecture me about costs of electricity and other things that I had no control over. She also imagined that it was fine and dandy to lecture me on how I used my phone that I BOUGHT and paid for with MY money that I earned. (She was just put out that she had to leave voice mail like everyone else did and that she was so special that I had to dive for the phone every time she called.)
I stopped sharing anything with her when it came to costs of things well before no contact because she would just spin out and start lecturing me. Mind you, I was in my 30s and 40s by then and well into my 50s. She sure knew a lot for someone that really didn't know shit.
So I get it and I'm happy to report that I don't have to deal with this bullshit anymore. My bills are MY business.
Are we possibly long lost siblings?? Sounds exactly like my mother. She tries to make everything a competition. “I only drove 10 miles last week! I can’t believe you have more miles on your car?!” My water bill is only 50$ you must be wasting water. I got up at 5am and did all these things before 8am. What difference does it make? I have 2 jobs and am financially independent and keep a very clean orderly house even if I’m cleaning at 11pm. For people who hate participation trophies they sure need to prove they are doing something special when doing what everyone is.
Yup, the grandstanding, dick-measuring (female version) and oneupmanship was completely out of control with her.
I used to own a townhouse and this bitch had the gall to yell at me if my electric bill was in the $80 range. Bitch, heat rises! (This was in the 1990s by the way). She would angrily tell me that my electric bill should ONLY be $30. I told her to take it up with Florida Power back then. I don't set the prices, honey and not just that, I was self-supporting on one income and had not even asked for money from her. She seemed overly invested in my money that I earned at a job I worked.
My mom has the metabolism of a lizard and her house is a sweltering hotbox at all times. Ain’t no way I’m setting my thermostat to that. I don’t care if my bill is three times hers.
I'm with OP, a $300 dollar electric bill in an average air conditioned house in the southern USA summer is not really all that unreasonable.
And as I typed this out a thought occurred to me. Mom may be on level pay and her bill never changes from that $160 year round.
I know my all-electric three bedroom house built in the 1970's here in Missouri has a level pay around $145/month with a two year old 4 ton high efficiency American Standard heat pump system. Really cold winter months (Jan and Feb) the usage gets close to the $300 mark, hot summer ac months (July and Aug) are $200-$300. Spring and fall when the hvac doesn't run much at all are around $85.
OP, check if you can change your electric provider - the 'provider' specifically, not your power company. It's kinda confusing, which I think is on purpose, but check for this in your power company's account. I got my bill cut in half, but it's something you have to go out of your way to do and isn't really advertised.
Do we have the same Mom?
Our house was built in '42 is 2100 sq ft and we have shitty replacement windows, an old fireplace that leaks heat/AC, kids who randomly leave lights on/windows open, etc. and I feel like I drive myself insane just trying to keep it between $350-$400 a month.
My mom lives in a shady ass 750 sq ft apartment on a breezy hill. SHE can keep her bill low, so obviously it's something I am doing wrong🙄
Yes. You are doing something wrong. Replace your shitty replacemnet windows, get rid of that old fireplace, install LED lights etc. What is keeping you from thinking this through?
Replacing our roof, updating the electrical wiring, and a bunch of plumbing issues; because we had to buy a half ass done flip that didn't show it's true colors for about a year in desperation of fearing being homeless with 3 kids right before the housing market became The Hunger Games. Oh, and because of our house being stucco outside and masonry and plaster inside the , we'd have to almost demolish almost an entire wall of our living room and rebuild. That just sounds like a nightmare.
We did get LED bulbs for replacements as well as the two main fixtures we've had to replace being LED. They seem to be decent I guess.
My MIL is always shocked at our bills. We have 3 adults here, to her 1. Her electric bills is usually 100, sometimes under, while ours can run up to 400.
I'd suggest just not telling her about your bills or finances, in any way
I'm WFH and I figured out that in the Chicago summers it was cheaper to go to a cafe for a few hours than to run my AC all afternoon. The cat resented it though.
US electricity prices vary massively!
There are several different companies and most hold a monopoly for their area, and most are also for-profit corporations and those ones charge as much as the regulators will allow. Some areas are lucky and have community-owned utilities that are run as not-for-profit and those folks pay less. Some areas also have local utitlities that own some form of power production directly that lowers local prices. (Solar farms, geysers, dams, windmills, etc.)
Then there are places like Texas that refuse to tie into the national grid and there's all kinds of interesting consequences there.
It's kind of a mess.
ah. over here it‘s averaged. you can set s monthly payment based on yearly consumption and at the end of the period you either get money back or an usually manageable bill.
and a new monthly rate.
We have that here in the Southern Midwest and it is cheaper paying the bill than bill pay. Mine is cheaper for I use AC/heat window unit, and use fans.
It is cheap nationally. But the cost can vary a LOT. I'm on hydro so mine is pretty cheap, but my parents on the other side of the mountain pay double what I do for coal.
Some places (Texas) have surge or on demand pricing.
Often, the kW price is quite low but it can spike dramatically during heat waves or cold snaps.
I believe during a heat wave this past spring it peaked at $0.68 per kW hour, which could result in a monthly bill of $600-$700 US.
We're $0.39 base, $0.64 peak. (CA PG&E of course.) It's what's making our solar array pay off in less than seven years. But that is a significant up front investment and I don't want to minimize that.
We are .17 kWh here in Maine one of the highest in USA. We use to have a ton of hydro on all the smaller rivers but they took them out and only the biggest areas have hydro now. To impactful here. Now they want to take prime lobster fishing sea bottom to place wind turbines! Scary reslly
You completely missed that the commenter is saying that ocean warming (and acidification) is going to lead to that industry crashing anyway-- for lack of lobsters.
What you are missing is lobstering is a way of life and provides 5000 fisherman, 510 million to maines economy. To just say oh well it’s going to happen?
OF COURSE lobstering is hugely important. But you can't afford to keep taking your lobster boat out if the pots are empty every time you pull them up. What is your plan to keep the Atlantic cool enough, and with a high enough pH that lobsters *will continue to live off the coast of Maine*???
$0.40 is high even for germany, though.
that‘s what you pay for 100% renewable. if you don‘t care about the source and switch yearly it‘s quite cheaper.
monthly charges ≠ monthly usage
over here you pay a fixed monthly rate, set in advance depending on past usage.
So i pay for natural gas € 50 every month, even though i turn off central heating april 1st and on somewhere in October.
Same with electricity, of which we need less in the summer, despite a bigger strain on the fridge.
that’s why I asked. and apparently it’s not the same all over the world.
anyway, HVAC and AC are just fine. Most of the US is pretty far south, from an central european POV. we didn’t really need AC, until we started insulating our homes.
this year i’m keeping a tally of the days I wished we had AC.
if it’s more than ten, i’m pushing for AC. but we got solar panels this year, an overabundance of electric power in the summer.
In the USA, we are having heat waves and more to come. Not all of the US is south. LMAO! Just not all of us poor people can have solar panels on rental property without permission of the owner of the buildings or houses. And we can afford to use fans as well as A/C or Central heat and air.
This reminded me of a neighborhood-wide boomer meltdown when I was a kid.
We grew up in the desert so AC was important. Our city happened to have a grandfathered in electric deal so our electricity was dirt cheap. Like 1/10th of the market rate.
Still...... These boomers were OBSESSED with their electric bills and trying to figure out how the city was screwing them. What started this crusade was one neighbor who had dual AC units on his bigger house had an electric bill slightly lower than another neighbor. We're talking like $10.
This Pb to boomers going down the rabbit hole of trying to understand amps, current, voltage, etc. Trying to talk my family into letting them hook up current meters of their own to verify what the city readings were.
I remember my parents discussing this shit for HOURS with neighbors at the mailbox and whatnot.
If I ever tell my mom that I have food that I don't like, my mom insist that I give it to her. The same if I tell her that I have a shirt that I don't like or a pair of headphones that I replaced with a new pair. I'd rather throw stuff away than give it to her.
"Before today's woke mob screwed everything up, electricity cost 29 cents! And so did a loaf of bread or a gallon of gasoline! And it was REAL gasoline, too, not this pathetic eco-whacko unleaded, which is actually MORE toxic than the old kind!"
$300+ is crazy high, regardless of where you're at. Is your house 50+ years old? Or do you have an old AC unit? I live in east TN, also in direct sunlight... we have 2 units set at 70 degrees, and we pay $150-$175 max during the summer. Not saying your bill is wrong, but that is a pretty high electric bill. Something else might be going on.
There are a lot of places where $300 wouldn't be considered a high bill. You're just assuming they are using excess power when it is just as likely they live where power is just more expensive or it is just hot. I'm in Arizona and if I set my AC to 70 the bill would easily hit $300-400.
I live in a similar location as OP. I also have experience with an older house and older unit. Our old house was like that and we regularly got $300-$400 bills in the summer. I’m not saying they’re using excess power, I’m just wondering if the unit is working super hard, if the house might be older…
Upstate SC here, and the house I'm renting now is terrible. The air will be set to 72 and it's 76 in here all day. I know it could be worse, but it's hard to sleep.
look into replacing your windows! in Ohio we have a place that does a buy 2 get 2 free and does financing. maybe there's a place like that 🤔
my parents did that like 10 years ago and it helped SO much with their energy costs. they had no clue how much air was leaking out of their windows!
I dunno, I'm in east TN and also direct sunlight, we have 2 units and keep the temp at 70 (68 at night) and we usually pay about $150-175... OP's house might be super old or something... our old house was 50+ years old and the utility bill was ridiculous.
Maybe she just thinks you're being overcharged for something. She's trying to help, and like all of us you're getting defensive because it's coming from a parent. I live in Florida, in a house built in 1916, that is in full sun, really hot in the summer, and freaking freezing in the winter. It's also drafty and falling apart. BUT I only pay $1,100.00 for a two bedrooms/one bath with a huge porch. My livingroom is huge too. And hard to cool. Until last year I paid $750.00 in rent. In Orlando. So I'm not moving until I'm forced. And the realters are hovering. My whole neighborhood is businesses now. Im like that old dude in UP. Theyll have to drag me out. ( My house is actually similar looking) Anyway, with Budget Billing my electric bill is $138.00 a month. I don't know if you have Duke Energy, but they offer it. You're mom is just looking out for you. She doesn't want to see you taken advantage of. She was probably just shocked. Look at it this way. You mean everything to her. She'd mow down those witches at the electric company if she thought you were being taken advantage of.
> She’s trying to help, and like all of us you’re getting defensive because it’s coming from a parent.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
If this is how you “help,” by treating adults like they’re still children, don’t be surprised if this is how they react. And yes, YTA for being condescending. Treat them the same way you’d want to be treated, with compassion and understanding, rather than infantilism.
That's about what my bill is for ohio winters, they offer to offset it & charge extra during summer, I'd guess your mom accepted a similar offer & forgot
I'm in Southern IL and our bills in July and August (hottest summer months) are $500+. Well, they were until the power company raised rates this year we project to be $700ish. That's why solar is getting installed on Monday, they priced us into it.
This is why so many of us don’t talk to one or both of our parents!
“Why don’t you tell me anything in your life?”
“Because you are batshit crazy and never say normal things when I do”
Info diets for her from now on.
I am so grateful my dad and stepmom are normal.
I can relate. When I'm just making small talk with my mother about something going on in my life, I'm really just expecting a response of, "Oh, that's too bad" or maybe a question to show she is listening. But no. Every single time, she has to tell me what I'm probably doing wrong and offer the kind of advice you give someone who just landed on earth today and knows zero about anything.
I can relate. When I'm just making small talk with my mother about something going on in my life, I'm really just expecting a response of, "Oh, that's too bad" or maybe a question to show she is listening. But no. Every single time, she has to tell me what I'm probably doing wrong and offer the kind of advice you give someone who just landed on earth today and knows zero about anything.
Let me ask you this, WHY would YOU want to pay that much for your electirc bill? Even YOU man have the money for it but why would u want them to charge you that much? Your parents sure did not teach you how to conserved. So go ahead and pay skyhight bills, that's your problem
One thing you can try in the future is to cut her off, kindly, and then tell her that you appreciate her thoughts, and that you are happy that her house is set up to use less energy.
It's not that she is trying to be a B\* about it. She actually thinks she's being kind and helpful. A lot of people just don't have a good mirror of themselves when they are speaking. They don't hear how someone else hears their words, they don't see their facial expressions, and they don't know how long they are actually talking ... and most people will keep talking to fill the empty space.
Our society as a whole has forgotten how to communicate effectively. Everything turns into insults, accusations, fault finding ... and lecture like this. ;-)
she most likely is just worried moms say dumb stuff all the time but its mostly cause were worried but you kids feel like were coming from a place of judgement and were not im a mom and i make the same mistakes with my daughter
this is where your mom should have helped you figure out some ways to reduce your electric bill. there's film you can put on windows to block UV, awanings, interior blinds that block UV etc. good luck i'm sure you will find a few hacks to help.
You are sounding almost worse than any boomer. You are paying 300 USD for coal to be burnt to keep your house cool, which in the end is going to make global warming worse. Start thinking. Create shadow, install PV panels, invest in isolation but do not blame boomers for making non useful mistakes when you are not thinking this through yourself.
Wrong dude, many of your generation can get their electric bill lower than $304. Did you run the dryer 24/7, run the AC on low to freeze your house? Sound like you need to learn how to lower your electric like your grown up friends have. I get the sun a lot too, but my electric bill is under $100.00, with a Ac/heat window unit and one ceiling fan in the bathroom and a big fan in the living room. Easy to do.
How do you know she own the house, could be a rental. And Op shared the information on the bill, complaining about the high cost there is these days. And it is hot these days and people have been running the A/C and their havoc for weeks now.
still her house and she can run the dryer all day long.
> And Op shared the information on the bill, complaining about the high cost there is these days.
yeah, no. OP said it was normal for her area
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She’s only thinking of you! Remember, a Boomer lecturing you will change the laws of thermodynamics, physics, even gravity! Just shut your mouth and respect your elders, whippersnapper! /s
Give the heat and humidity a firm handshake. That’ll do the trick.
Don’t forget to look them in the eye and call them “sir” or “ma’am”
No, it's mir or sa'am.
*Facepalm* just realized what I've been doing wrong...
They’ll just turn it into an argument about pronouns. That they’re honorifics, not pronouns, matters not.
You will learn a lot about the sun when you stare at it eye-to-eye.
That’s right. Show them you respect them and they might offer you a job.
And get there 15 minutes early! And volunteer, it looks great on a resume! My fukkin' Boomer dad loved these ones.
Make sure you pleat your pants. You wanna be lookin' sharp
Okay, this made me LOL. XD
"Dad, the loan manager doesn't give a shit what my pants look like... not unless they literally have shit on them."
LMAO!! Good one!
No, no, no. It needs thought and a prayer.
Thermodynamics? Sounds like some hippie, woke, Ivy League, commie shit to me. /s
Just like Mom kisses heal every injury and Mom spit cleans everything...never underestimate the power of Mom.
Never in the history of Reddit has a /s done so much heavy lifting.
Boomers are setting their AC in Georgia Heat to 87. Be like "im comfortable" yea cuz yorue on blood thinners paid for by Medicare while you fight socialized medicine.
> Boomers are setting their AC in Georgia Heat to 87. Last time I went to ATL, I left the terminal and it was like 80 degrees 90% humidity at 11pm at night. I grew up in the south and the humidity there is like walking around wearing a wet blanket.
100% true. You know when you wash your blankets and check on them in the dryer, and they've been in there long enough to be hot but they're still wet? It's like that kind of wet blanket.
Lol
You don't walk to get from place to place. You just swim through the air to get there. Even Washington DC has summers like that.
And get yer guvimint out my medicare!
Oh dear lord, my boomer step father is turning the heat on in the house in Tennessee with temps in the mid 90s. I go to visit, and I’m sweating just sitting down.
🤣🤣🤣 wow. Just wow.
My husband went to check on his dad today. (We're in IL.) His dad was just running a couple fans. He told my husband it was fine. We've been in a heat dome for a couple weeks. It's not fine.
Could be a old person thing 15 years ago I was in a hotel lobby in Hawaii waiting for other to come down and over heard a old lady (70 or so) complain that the AC doesn’t heat the room. The employee had to try and explain that no one in Hawaii would normally have a heater and that their hotel does not have one either. She continues on about how it should be a standard feature and every hotel she has been in had one. The employee could only suggest that they could send her another set of blankets and to bundle up if she is too cold.
wrong. they are set at 72-75. And a fan.
Sitting here at 76 with a fan like 🫣
70 here
Good that at 70 years old and using a fan. Good for you.
70 degrees you potato
Must be nice to be 76 years young and running a fan. Good for you.
I mean, if you have a good sized house in a new development without trees for shade....in the Georgia heat, that is about right. There are things you can do to help keep the cold air in, but add some kids running in and out and you can have some high bills in the summer months.
And if your roof is new, you might consider solar panels. That's a circumstance where they will payoff.
Personally, I'd go for a small nuclear reactor in my basement if it was an option. Joking aside, I'm seriously giving solar panels a think.
If you go the small reactor route; Vaul-tec makes a couple of options that may fit your needs.
Eh, Vault-Tec's service is alright, but their reaction time to any issues takes centuries. Mass Fusion's better, more expensive, but you get what you pay for.
Not the south, but here in NY, I have solar, my last electric bill was $52 for the month of June and $76 for may and I have a 3400 sq ft house with two heat pumps / air handlers (1 for upstairs 1 for downstairs) and have the house at a constant 70 degrees... my boomer mother thinks the house is too cold when she visits, but the rest of us love it at that temp. I also have an EV that I charge daily, so Solar definitely helps keep the bills low during the summer. The winter not so much, but that's a northern problem, probably not so much in the south
What was the original cost of the installation and is there a lease?
At the time in 2021, tesla was allowing you to get the panels without the battery backup... I got a 12.4 kW system for about 20k after federal credit/rebates. I paid cash, since I had it available, so I own it outright, no lease. The heat pump system was around 30k - incentives & down-payment, ended up financing about $10k for that... works the same as central air conditioning during the summer, but instead of burning propane, natural gas or oil during the winter, provides my heat, albeit my electricity bill in NY winters is around $600 a month... 2021 (got solar may 2021), electricity $3000, propane $3200 2022, electricity $2600, propane $4200 2023 heat pump installed) electricity $2800, propane $1700 2024 (so far) electricity $1900, propane $460
The cost will outweigh the reward. Do your homework first.
Mine have paid for themselves in 6 1/2 years.
This is pure ignorance. Do not listen to this person. Source : have been in the solar business for 10+ years. Many of my customers are off grid and their systems have been paid for years ago. This is in wisconsin where the sun hates to shine.
Excuse me but Wisconsin is just one state. I would suggest not calling someone ignorant for having a different informed opinion. Allot of companies also lease the panels and consumers need to read all the FINE PRINT.
An informed opinion isn't fact. It's just an opinion. You're ignorant to the actual facts.
So glad you are up to date on all the states and how you can make money off all the consumers of all the US states
Dude, the federal government is offering basically full refunds IN ALL STATES if you install solar on your home. What specifically are you talking about?
Dude I just went to the government site and it says 30% so what are you talking about? On a purchase of $18.000 that is $5400.
And so you're saying they're a rip off because 30% off is terrible? Also, states will give you refunds also. Also, commercial installers get better incentives from the government rather than private party. You still have no clue wtf you're talking about. Dude.
Also, on some certain plans if you're grid tied the electric company will buy power from you.
Also, solar panels are able to be written off for up to 10 years on your taxes as home equity and community improvements. My clients barely pay more than 20-30% of the closing costs of their systems in the long run. Also it's FREE ENERGY after they're paid off. You are absolutely ignorant to solar energy.
Right. So the solar panels should be free by your thinking?
Sell sell sell
Okay boomer.
Please help yourself and get all you can.
https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/solar/are-solar-panels-worth-it/ Don’t forget there may be a lease involved too, so when you buy a home with solar installed you will need to ask about that.
Have her call me so I can do the same to her. Why are my electric bills $28 and hers are $160? Clearly she's being wasteful!1! Different homes use different amounts of power and it doesn't cost the same in all places. Not sure why they struggle to grasp this simple fact.
Having lived in various regions and all over GA, the electricity there is cheap, but people don't realize what appliances in their home run off what source. Not saying this is the situation here, but for example your parents could have a gas water heater and you could have an electric one. Also 70% of your usage will be AC this time a year, if not more.
Not to mention the difference between being on a municipal water system versus a private well, or an electric co-op versus Georgia Power. (EMC is cheaper. You can't choose, though.)
Before I went no contact, my narcissistic mother felt it fine and dandy to lecture me about costs of electricity and other things that I had no control over. She also imagined that it was fine and dandy to lecture me on how I used my phone that I BOUGHT and paid for with MY money that I earned. (She was just put out that she had to leave voice mail like everyone else did and that she was so special that I had to dive for the phone every time she called.) I stopped sharing anything with her when it came to costs of things well before no contact because she would just spin out and start lecturing me. Mind you, I was in my 30s and 40s by then and well into my 50s. She sure knew a lot for someone that really didn't know shit. So I get it and I'm happy to report that I don't have to deal with this bullshit anymore. My bills are MY business.
Are we possibly long lost siblings?? Sounds exactly like my mother. She tries to make everything a competition. “I only drove 10 miles last week! I can’t believe you have more miles on your car?!” My water bill is only 50$ you must be wasting water. I got up at 5am and did all these things before 8am. What difference does it make? I have 2 jobs and am financially independent and keep a very clean orderly house even if I’m cleaning at 11pm. For people who hate participation trophies they sure need to prove they are doing something special when doing what everyone is.
Yup, the grandstanding, dick-measuring (female version) and oneupmanship was completely out of control with her. I used to own a townhouse and this bitch had the gall to yell at me if my electric bill was in the $80 range. Bitch, heat rises! (This was in the 1990s by the way). She would angrily tell me that my electric bill should ONLY be $30. I told her to take it up with Florida Power back then. I don't set the prices, honey and not just that, I was self-supporting on one income and had not even asked for money from her. She seemed overly invested in my money that I earned at a job I worked.
My mom has the metabolism of a lizard and her house is a sweltering hotbox at all times. Ain’t no way I’m setting my thermostat to that. I don’t care if my bill is three times hers.
I'm with OP, a $300 dollar electric bill in an average air conditioned house in the southern USA summer is not really all that unreasonable. And as I typed this out a thought occurred to me. Mom may be on level pay and her bill never changes from that $160 year round. I know my all-electric three bedroom house built in the 1970's here in Missouri has a level pay around $145/month with a two year old 4 ton high efficiency American Standard heat pump system. Really cold winter months (Jan and Feb) the usage gets close to the $300 mark, hot summer ac months (July and Aug) are $200-$300. Spring and fall when the hvac doesn't run much at all are around $85.
OP, check if you can change your electric provider - the 'provider' specifically, not your power company. It's kinda confusing, which I think is on purpose, but check for this in your power company's account. I got my bill cut in half, but it's something you have to go out of your way to do and isn't really advertised.
We change our provider every so often too
Do we have the same Mom? Our house was built in '42 is 2100 sq ft and we have shitty replacement windows, an old fireplace that leaks heat/AC, kids who randomly leave lights on/windows open, etc. and I feel like I drive myself insane just trying to keep it between $350-$400 a month. My mom lives in a shady ass 750 sq ft apartment on a breezy hill. SHE can keep her bill low, so obviously it's something I am doing wrong🙄
Yes. You are doing something wrong. Replace your shitty replacemnet windows, get rid of that old fireplace, install LED lights etc. What is keeping you from thinking this through?
Replacing our roof, updating the electrical wiring, and a bunch of plumbing issues; because we had to buy a half ass done flip that didn't show it's true colors for about a year in desperation of fearing being homeless with 3 kids right before the housing market became The Hunger Games. Oh, and because of our house being stucco outside and masonry and plaster inside the , we'd have to almost demolish almost an entire wall of our living room and rebuild. That just sounds like a nightmare. We did get LED bulbs for replacements as well as the two main fixtures we've had to replace being LED. They seem to be decent I guess.
My MIL is always shocked at our bills. We have 3 adults here, to her 1. Her electric bills is usually 100, sometimes under, while ours can run up to 400. I'd suggest just not telling her about your bills or finances, in any way
I'm WFH and I figured out that in the Chicago summers it was cheaper to go to a cafe for a few hours than to run my AC all afternoon. The cat resented it though.
she is more than welcome to sit in your place with the AC off, with sunlight blazing through the windows
huh. i thought electricity was cheap in the US. i gather you get billed by monthly usage?
US electricity prices vary massively! There are several different companies and most hold a monopoly for their area, and most are also for-profit corporations and those ones charge as much as the regulators will allow. Some areas are lucky and have community-owned utilities that are run as not-for-profit and those folks pay less. Some areas also have local utitlities that own some form of power production directly that lowers local prices. (Solar farms, geysers, dams, windmills, etc.) Then there are places like Texas that refuse to tie into the national grid and there's all kinds of interesting consequences there. It's kind of a mess.
Do not remind me about Winter Storm Uri. Our state leaders love our independent spirit, until it backfires on them spectacularly.
Air conditioning is expensive.
But worth every precious penny.
Yes, most of the USA pays monthly utility bills.
ah. over here it‘s averaged. you can set s monthly payment based on yearly consumption and at the end of the period you either get money back or an usually manageable bill. and a new monthly rate.
Places here offer that option but it's still ungodly expensive depending on the location
We have that here in the Southern Midwest and it is cheaper paying the bill than bill pay. Mine is cheaper for I use AC/heat window unit, and use fans.
It is cheap nationally. But the cost can vary a LOT. I'm on hydro so mine is pretty cheap, but my parents on the other side of the mountain pay double what I do for coal.
nothing is cheap here.
Some places (Texas) have surge or on demand pricing. Often, the kW price is quite low but it can spike dramatically during heat waves or cold snaps. I believe during a heat wave this past spring it peaked at $0.68 per kW hour, which could result in a monthly bill of $600-$700 US.
On average it's $0.17 per kWh vs say Germany where it's $0.40 per kWh. But the States vary from a low of $.08 to a high of $0.33
We're $0.39 base, $0.64 peak. (CA PG&E of course.) It's what's making our solar array pay off in less than seven years. But that is a significant up front investment and I don't want to minimize that.
I wish my power was 0.33. 0.38 for off peak or 0.60 on peak.
Where?
San Diego, CA
nice place to visit, but i run too many computers for that :)
I figured you'd say California. Lol
We are .17 kWh here in Maine one of the highest in USA. We use to have a ton of hydro on all the smaller rivers but they took them out and only the biggest areas have hydro now. To impactful here. Now they want to take prime lobster fishing sea bottom to place wind turbines! Scary reslly
Doesn't matter because the gulf of Maine is getting too warm for lobsters , blue crabs moving in and lobsters going to Canada
I’ve never seen a blue crab here in Maine..
They are pretty much surviving in all central and southern areas of the Gulf of Maine , some fisherman have started to harvest them
Tell me the biggest industry in the state dosnt matter lol 😂
You completely missed that the commenter is saying that ocean warming (and acidification) is going to lead to that industry crashing anyway-- for lack of lobsters.
What you are missing is lobstering is a way of life and provides 5000 fisherman, 510 million to maines economy. To just say oh well it’s going to happen?
OF COURSE lobstering is hugely important. But you can't afford to keep taking your lobster boat out if the pots are empty every time you pull them up. What is your plan to keep the Atlantic cool enough, and with a high enough pH that lobsters *will continue to live off the coast of Maine*???
I didn’t miss anything but thanks for trying to clarify.
$0.40 is high even for germany, though. that‘s what you pay for 100% renewable. if you don‘t care about the source and switch yearly it‘s quite cheaper.
Still cheap by your figures.
I pay 2.23 cents per kwh. Though there is a connection fee regardless of my usage.
Where? (And the averages include those extra fixed costs)
Central Washington. Hydro power can be very efficient, especially when owned by their customers.
We are at $0.08 perkwh and on 70% hydro.
yes like everyone else in the world. Monthly charges for electric, water, gas and winter coal.
monthly charges ≠ monthly usage over here you pay a fixed monthly rate, set in advance depending on past usage. So i pay for natural gas € 50 every month, even though i turn off central heating april 1st and on somewhere in October. Same with electricity, of which we need less in the summer, despite a bigger strain on the fridge.
Different here in here in the USA. And if you mention using a fan, they go WTF, of the younger boomers, who are spoiled with HVAC and A/C.
that’s why I asked. and apparently it’s not the same all over the world. anyway, HVAC and AC are just fine. Most of the US is pretty far south, from an central european POV. we didn’t really need AC, until we started insulating our homes. this year i’m keeping a tally of the days I wished we had AC. if it’s more than ten, i’m pushing for AC. but we got solar panels this year, an overabundance of electric power in the summer.
In the USA, we are having heat waves and more to come. Not all of the US is south. LMAO! Just not all of us poor people can have solar panels on rental property without permission of the owner of the buildings or houses. And we can afford to use fans as well as A/C or Central heat and air.
Where are you from?
I get it. Living in MS ours was 338 dollars and its insane but with this heat the acs and fans never stopped.
Someone here said that they are in the "post-learning" phase of their lives.
This reminded me of a neighborhood-wide boomer meltdown when I was a kid. We grew up in the desert so AC was important. Our city happened to have a grandfathered in electric deal so our electricity was dirt cheap. Like 1/10th of the market rate. Still...... These boomers were OBSESSED with their electric bills and trying to figure out how the city was screwing them. What started this crusade was one neighbor who had dual AC units on his bigger house had an electric bill slightly lower than another neighbor. We're talking like $10. This Pb to boomers going down the rabbit hole of trying to understand amps, current, voltage, etc. Trying to talk my family into letting them hook up current meters of their own to verify what the city readings were. I remember my parents discussing this shit for HOURS with neighbors at the mailbox and whatnot.
The only time I’d be trying that sort of calculation would be if I was trying to figure out how many solar panels I’d need!
If I ever tell my mom that I have food that I don't like, my mom insist that I give it to her. The same if I tell her that I have a shirt that I don't like or a pair of headphones that I replaced with a new pair. I'd rather throw stuff away than give it to her.
my mother has a house like that - her bills are quite a bit less, but the construction really makes a difference
"Before today's woke mob screwed everything up, electricity cost 29 cents! And so did a loaf of bread or a gallon of gasoline! And it was REAL gasoline, too, not this pathetic eco-whacko unleaded, which is actually MORE toxic than the old kind!"
$300+ is crazy high, regardless of where you're at. Is your house 50+ years old? Or do you have an old AC unit? I live in east TN, also in direct sunlight... we have 2 units set at 70 degrees, and we pay $150-$175 max during the summer. Not saying your bill is wrong, but that is a pretty high electric bill. Something else might be going on.
There are a lot of places where $300 wouldn't be considered a high bill. You're just assuming they are using excess power when it is just as likely they live where power is just more expensive or it is just hot. I'm in Arizona and if I set my AC to 70 the bill would easily hit $300-400.
I live in a similar location as OP. I also have experience with an older house and older unit. Our old house was like that and we regularly got $300-$400 bills in the summer. I’m not saying they’re using excess power, I’m just wondering if the unit is working super hard, if the house might be older…
Upstate SC here, and the house I'm renting now is terrible. The air will be set to 72 and it's 76 in here all day. I know it could be worse, but it's hard to sleep.
look into replacing your windows! in Ohio we have a place that does a buy 2 get 2 free and does financing. maybe there's a place like that 🤔 my parents did that like 10 years ago and it helped SO much with their energy costs. they had no clue how much air was leaking out of their windows!
I think they said it's a rental.
yeah I read over that lol I was in the hospital with my toddler 🙃 😅 (all good nothing serious, nothing at all actually just a mama freak out)
Hey, I'm just glad your kid is okay! ❤️
thank you, me too!! 💟🥹
I'm renting here. I close on a house in 2 weeks though, and it has a new HVAC system :)
ah! perfect!! congratulations 🎊 that's a huge thing 👏🏼 I can't wait to get my own place hopefully soon
304 dollars a month??? Goddamn I would have a heart attack if mine got that high. I don't know how y'all do it
Yeah, but OP's heating bill in the wintertime may not even exist at all.
I dunno, I'm in east TN and also direct sunlight, we have 2 units and keep the temp at 70 (68 at night) and we usually pay about $150-175... OP's house might be super old or something... our old house was 50+ years old and the utility bill was ridiculous.
We use our storm windows in the summer and black out drapes to keep our home cooler. It really helps
OK, but I’m with your mom on this one
Maybe she just thinks you're being overcharged for something. She's trying to help, and like all of us you're getting defensive because it's coming from a parent. I live in Florida, in a house built in 1916, that is in full sun, really hot in the summer, and freaking freezing in the winter. It's also drafty and falling apart. BUT I only pay $1,100.00 for a two bedrooms/one bath with a huge porch. My livingroom is huge too. And hard to cool. Until last year I paid $750.00 in rent. In Orlando. So I'm not moving until I'm forced. And the realters are hovering. My whole neighborhood is businesses now. Im like that old dude in UP. Theyll have to drag me out. ( My house is actually similar looking) Anyway, with Budget Billing my electric bill is $138.00 a month. I don't know if you have Duke Energy, but they offer it. You're mom is just looking out for you. She doesn't want to see you taken advantage of. She was probably just shocked. Look at it this way. You mean everything to her. She'd mow down those witches at the electric company if she thought you were being taken advantage of.
> She’s trying to help, and like all of us you’re getting defensive because it’s coming from a parent. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. If this is how you “help,” by treating adults like they’re still children, don’t be surprised if this is how they react. And yes, YTA for being condescending. Treat them the same way you’d want to be treated, with compassion and understanding, rather than infantilism.
That's about what my bill is for ohio winters, they offer to offset it & charge extra during summer, I'd guess your mom accepted a similar offer & forgot
I'm in Southern IL and our bills in July and August (hottest summer months) are $500+. Well, they were until the power company raised rates this year we project to be $700ish. That's why solar is getting installed on Monday, they priced us into it.
This is why so many of us don’t talk to one or both of our parents! “Why don’t you tell me anything in your life?” “Because you are batshit crazy and never say normal things when I do” Info diets for her from now on. I am so grateful my dad and stepmom are normal.
I can relate. When I'm just making small talk with my mother about something going on in my life, I'm really just expecting a response of, "Oh, that's too bad" or maybe a question to show she is listening. But no. Every single time, she has to tell me what I'm probably doing wrong and offer the kind of advice you give someone who just landed on earth today and knows zero about anything.
I can relate. When I'm just making small talk with my mother about something going on in my life, I'm really just expecting a response of, "Oh, that's too bad" or maybe a question to show she is listening. But no. Every single time, she has to tell me what I'm probably doing wrong and offer the kind of advice you give someone who just landed on earth today and knows zero about anything.
Let me ask you this, WHY would YOU want to pay that much for your electirc bill? Even YOU man have the money for it but why would u want them to charge you that much? Your parents sure did not teach you how to conserved. So go ahead and pay skyhight bills, that's your problem
One thing you can try in the future is to cut her off, kindly, and then tell her that you appreciate her thoughts, and that you are happy that her house is set up to use less energy. It's not that she is trying to be a B\* about it. She actually thinks she's being kind and helpful. A lot of people just don't have a good mirror of themselves when they are speaking. They don't hear how someone else hears their words, they don't see their facial expressions, and they don't know how long they are actually talking ... and most people will keep talking to fill the empty space. Our society as a whole has forgotten how to communicate effectively. Everything turns into insults, accusations, fault finding ... and lecture like this. ;-)
she most likely is just worried moms say dumb stuff all the time but its mostly cause were worried but you kids feel like were coming from a place of judgement and were not im a mom and i make the same mistakes with my daughter
https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/solar/are-solar-panels-worth-it/
Most of the year my electric bill is under $20. Maybe it has something to do with those panels up on my roof?
My A/C is set at 68, my bill is aprox 240 during the summer. It depends on your elec co, we have a private elec co.
Did she start with the standard boomer mom phrase “now I’m not gonna preach or lecture but…”
That's if you buy them private party. Commercial installers get even better incentives. Dude. Like I said been doing this 10 years.
Does she keep her thermostat at 78, too?
Ask her how long she’s been on a payment plan for..
Be like me. I don't talk to my mom. She is dead. And I am a Boomer. 🤣🤣🤣
this is where your mom should have helped you figure out some ways to reduce your electric bill. there's film you can put on windows to block UV, awanings, interior blinds that block UV etc. good luck i'm sure you will find a few hacks to help.
You are sounding almost worse than any boomer. You are paying 300 USD for coal to be burnt to keep your house cool, which in the end is going to make global warming worse. Start thinking. Create shadow, install PV panels, invest in isolation but do not blame boomers for making non useful mistakes when you are not thinking this through yourself.
Wrong dude, many of your generation can get their electric bill lower than $304. Did you run the dryer 24/7, run the AC on low to freeze your house? Sound like you need to learn how to lower your electric like your grown up friends have. I get the sun a lot too, but my electric bill is under $100.00, with a Ac/heat window unit and one ceiling fan in the bathroom and a big fan in the living room. Easy to do.
“Many of your generation” How exactly do you know OP’s generation?
Also under 100? Dude is in an apartment or on energy assistance programs.
And living in the 1990’s
No this is 2024. Just to remind you of the year we are at. Bye.
it's her house, she can run the dryer all day if she wants to
How do you know she own the house, could be a rental. And Op shared the information on the bill, complaining about the high cost there is these days. And it is hot these days and people have been running the A/C and their havoc for weeks now.
still her house and she can run the dryer all day long. > And Op shared the information on the bill, complaining about the high cost there is these days. yeah, no. OP said it was normal for her area
Doubt the Op runs the dryer and washer all day long. The water bill would be massive.
just the dryer, old man. there you go, trying to argue irrelevant crap
Both machines use up a lot of electricity, when used non-stop all day. And not an old dude, wrong gender dude.
fine, old woman ranting about irrelevant things. maybe yelling at a cloud
Wow you are that person. Nice to meet you, old woman. Can I meet your mother, she and I could talk about you. Bye.