I just received my latest power bill. I was looking forward to it because I took to heart a lot of the energy savings tips I've read about here. I live in a 700 sq ft 1 bedroom apartment on the fourth floor (top floor) of the building. The apartment faces east. Electric is my only utility.
I have a ceiling fan constantly running, both because the place lacks air movement, and because I'm too short to reach the pull cord to shut it off (I don't have a ladder). Apparently when it was connected, the maintenance guy only thought the light was important to connect to the wall switch.
I ran my a/c one day this billing cycle, and only for a few hours, when it got above 83 inside. According to my latest bill, I consumed 889 kWh for a total bill of $109.05. When I tallied the bill using the posted rates, I came up with $100.61, so I'll have to call the power company up and clarify the issue. They're probably right, and my errors are likely due to rounding which is hidden in the bill, but I still need to make sure.
So given my situation, what else can I do to save power? I've checked the refrigerator and adjusted the temps for the cooler and freezer portions. My freezer is pretty full. My refrigerator is pretty empty. Would I benefit from filling it with buckets of water?
Other than that, I'm not sure what else I can do. I don't have access to my water heater, so I have no idea what it's set at. I'll put a call in to maintenance to check it and reset it lower. Would 110 be too low or should I tell them 120? At work, we leave domestic hot water at 120.
Any help and suggestions would be appreciated.