Heat it up this Summer to Stay Cool

I’ll admit. I like it cool in my house when it’s hot outside. Two summers ago after having my 3rd little one, my hormones made me run hot and I had the AC set at 69 degrees! Yep. 69. I didn’t even realize how low that was until last summer when I was able to have it at 71 without a problem.

Turn It Up

It’s been found you can save 7-10% on your electric bill for every degree above 78 you keep your thermostat on. While we haven’t quite reached high savings like that (our thermostat is set at 72 degrees) there are a few things we are doing in the meantime.

• During the night I turn the thermostat downstairs up to 78.

• If we are going to be gone from the house for a few hours I turn up both thermostats a few degrees.

If you want to increase your thermostat this summer to lower your electric bill, but fear the heat, remember one tip. Make changes SLOWLY. If you are used to having a thermostat at 71 everyday don’t turn it up to 80 tonight and expect to be comfortable. Turn it up to 72. Wait a few days or a week and turn it up to 73. Give you and your family time to adjust to the temperature. Stop turning up the thermostat when you are getting sweaty watching TV or the kids ask to go outside to cool off.

Off-Peak Hours Can Save You

Not one of those who can set the A/C to 80 and sleep well? Find other ways to save on your electric bill by learning about off-peak hours. Most electric companies charge a lower rate for electricity used during off-peak hours. My electric company (Progress Energy) defines their off-peak hours as such:

From April 1st-September 30th 9 pm - 1o am

October 1st- March 31st 1 - 4 pm and 9 pm -6 am

Weekends and holidays are included as off-peak days

Take advantage of lower off-peak rates by running your dishwasher and washer and dryer during those hours. I can program my dishwasher to run during the middle of the night. I also program my washing machine to run while I’m sleeping. When I wake up the wash cycle is done and the clothes are ready for me to throw in the dryer. Check out your local electric company’s website for more information about off-peak hours and rates.

Other tips to keep cool without it paying a bundle:

• Replace air filters monthly. Most air filters advertise that they last 3 months. Recently we had some work done on an A/C unit and the technician recommended that filters should be changed more often that every 3 months. Dirty air filters can increase your electric bill by 20%

• Keep plants, shrubs and bushes trimmed so they are at least 18 inches away from your outside A/C unit to allow air to flow freely.

• Use your ceiling fans. Ceiling fans can make it feel 3-4 degrees cooler, but only cost approximately .05 an hour to operate.

More tips for increasing A/C efficiency and lowering your electric bill during the summertime can be found at Progress Energy’s website.

Posted in Save Money | 5 Comments »

It Pays To Talk

I’m a library browser. Yes, I still use our library’s website to reserve books online and get on waiting lists; because for some books that’s the only way I’ll get a chance to check them out anytime in the near future. But often (ok, maybe I shouldn’t say often since I’m usually with kids) but when I get a chance I like to go to the library and browse the stacks of books. I swing by the cooking section, look at the homemaking and cleaning books and usually finish up in the financial section. It was there one day that I found this book:

It Pays to Talk: How to Have the Essential Conversations With Your Family About Money and Investing by Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz and Charles Schwab. The title caught my eye. With parents, in-laws, a husband and children I’m surrounded by family and the issue of money sometimes comes up.

I’m going to review this book, one chapter a week.

A Brief Overview

At 363 pages the book isn’t one that you can quickly read during the commercials of one episode of The Office. There is a lot of information packed inside. Thankfully it’s written in an easy to read format that is easily understood by any beginning investor or those new to learning about personal finance.

The book is broken up into 9 chapters. At the end of chapter is a section called “Something To Talk About”. Each section includes a series of questions that can be used to start a conversation with family members about finances. Using the book as a guide my husband and I worked through many of the questions in Chapter 1. No two people think exactly alike (well, at least we don’t anyway) and I enjoyed hearing his thoughts.

Chapter One - Starting the Conversation

This chapter is not what it appears to be at first glance. Instead of a chapter full of tips on how to bring up finances in conversations with your loved ones; it reveals that any conversation about money needs to begin with YOU.

The chapter helps you analyze:

• What’s Important to You?
• Identifying and Securing Your Dreams and Goals
• Your Money Style and Money Strengths
• Your Financial Game Plan
• What Constitutes Your Family? (hint: it doesn’t have to be just a spouse and kids)

Chapter One ends with 10 guidelines to help keep your financial discussions positive, productive and on-track. The authors call them “the ten principles of respectful communication.”

Do you ever talk about money with your spouse, kids, parents or siblings? What about your friends? Does the topic come up spontaneously or have you ever planned in advance to bring up a certain financial issue with them?

Posted in Family & Money | No Comments »

A Memorial Day Salute

This Memorial Day weekend we honor and remember those who have made the greatest sacrifice for their country.

While my heart aches for all of those who have lost loved ones; know that there are Americans out there who will never forget the sacrifice that they so bravely made.

Don’t miss Dave Ramsey’s Memorial Day Weekend Salute. A special one hour edition of The Dave Ramsey Show entitled “Military Families” will air Monday, May 26th at 11 am EST and 8 pm EST. The show features Dave’s recent trip to Fort Carson, Colorado where he addressed over 1,700 service members. I look forward to seeing this.

Semper Fi!

Photo by BlueDaisy

Posted in Military Finance | No Comments »

Senate Passes the New Gi Bill

As part of the Iraq War Funding Bill the New GI Bill was just passed this afternoon in the Senate. Soon it will be on the President’s desk for veto or approval.

What kind of benefits would the New GI Bill provide?

Check out the New GI Bill’s website here for the complete list of benefits. GIBill2008.org also includes a state by state breakdown of benefits. They include:

* a monthly living allowance
* $1,000 a year for books and supplies
* full tuition paid directly to the school (capped at the highest in-state tuition rate).

Passage of this bill would have a positive impact on thousands including my family. My husband (pictured with his unit above in a picture from Iraq in 2003) would be eligible for the New GI Bill. Along with my brother who is currently attending college and working two jobs. The current GI Bill doesn’t even cover all of his tuition even though he is attending a state school and paying in-state tuition. He doesn’t qualify for Pell Grants to cover the remaining cost of tuition because he receives the GI Bill. I too am a veteran and am eligible for the GI Bill. I don’t qualify for the New GI Bill because my enlistment ended before 9/11.

For more on the New GI Bill and the Post 9/11 Veteran’s Educational Assistance Act:

Post 9/11 Veteran’s Education Assistance Act Fact Sheet

Posted in College | 1 Comment »

How To Blow Your Budget - 5 Simple Ways

Awhile back Paid Twice shared how she budgets; some great advice for anyone learning how to budget or wanting to change their budgeting strategy.

I thought I’d add onto what she has shared with my thoughts on how to blow a budget (or 5 things you shouldn’t do).
Estimate - You *think* you have $100 left for groceries so you go and spend $98. Only to find out later you really only had $50. Oops.

• Don’t Write It Down - Take money out of the ATM and don’t record it for a week. Lose receipts and forget about that automatic payment you scheduled for your cell phone bill.

• Forget to Cancel - Don’t use your gym membership anymore? Well, every month you forget to cancel your membership is another $30, $40, $50 or whatever you pay lost that could go towards other more important budget items (like paying off debt, savings, retirement, emergency fund).

• Get Lazy - Get Chinese take-out for dinner after a long day and put off paying bills only to incur late fees. It can be hard to be frugal or 100% gazelle intense all the time when it comes to being on track with your budget. But when you start getting lazy, your unplanned spending will go up and that is when you will go over budget.

• Don’t Budget - And the best way to blow your budget is NOT to budget. We did this and this is one of the contributing factors to our credit card debt. For example, I had it in my head that we could spend $300 a month on groceries. I never took the time though to see what we were ACTUALLY spending and make a written budget. If I had I would have seen that we were actually spending more like $600+ a month on food (this is before I started shopping sales and using coupons).

How have you blown your budget? 

For more reading on budgets (with tips that actually work) check out the following:

What is a Budget?

How To Make A Budget that Works

Key Strategies to a Successful Budget

Photo by Woodsy

Posted in Budgeting | 5 Comments »