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Old 01-03-2013, 11:54 AM
 
2,672 posts, read 2,719,685 times
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Got my first winter gas bill. It seemed pretty high at $96 and this was from Mid-Nov to Mid-Dec before it really got cold. I called SW Gas and found the bill was levalized to supposedly cover higher months. Still I supspect the coming months bill will be pretty high. The house I bought was built for hot weather with 8 inch cement block walls and no insulation. Kind of like living in a cave in the winter. High gas bills in the winter lower electric bills in the summer. Interesting after living in the Northwest for so long seeing how poorly insulated some of the homes are.
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Old 01-03-2013, 12:28 PM
 
Location: Detroit, MI/St. David, AZ
205 posts, read 572,908 times
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That is not too bad of a bill. You should see some of the gas and electric bills in Phoenix. Be glad you are in Tucson. My month to month gas bills in the winter here in Michigan are about $250, with thermo set at 67*. I'd take a $100 gas bill any month.

Yes the homes in Arizona are completely opposite from the North in either direction. The cold isn't the big season, these homes are built to tolerate summer.

Hope you enjoy the move to the mighty Southwest. Welcome to Arizona!
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Old 01-03-2013, 12:34 PM
 
1,312 posts, read 6,471,499 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by borregokid View Post
The house I bought was built for hot weather with 8 inch cement block walls and no insulation.
That's not a house built for hot weather. It's built for temperate weather. If a house were built for hot weather, it would have a minimum of R-19 insulation in the walls.
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Old 01-03-2013, 02:20 PM
 
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It was built in 1970 and the windows are placed in such a way that the sun barely hits them anytime of year. I agree that the walls at r-2 are below standard. I saw where a home in the Sam Hughes district that was similar construction was upgraded to modern standards at a cost of more than $100,000 for a new roof and other improvements to bring it to TEP standards. I wasnt here in mid-summer so I cant say how the power bill were. I stayed through May and barely used the AC.
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Old 01-03-2013, 03:40 PM
 
Location: Southern Arizona
9,601 posts, read 31,713,495 times
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Originally Posted by Steve97415 View Post
That's not a house built for hot weather. It's built for temperate weather. If a house were built for hot weather, it would have a minimum of R-19 insulation in the walls.
No surprises here, Steve.

Many homes built pre 80's here actually have no framing or insulation at all. The interior walls are just the blocks or bricks of the exterior walls painted or finished somehow.

This "unique" building practice was probably due to so many homes sitting vacant during the Summer months while the Snowbirds were "Up There" so insulation wasn't an issue.
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Old 01-04-2013, 09:35 AM
 
39 posts, read 73,345 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SmurfOnABoat View Post
That is not too bad of a bill. You should see some of the gas and electric bills in Phoenix. Be glad you are in Tucson. My month to month gas bills in the winter here in Michigan are about $250, with thermo set at 67*. I'd take a $100 gas bill any month.

Yes the homes in Arizona are completely opposite from the North in either direction. The cold isn't the big season, these homes are built to tolerate summer.

Hope you enjoy the move to the mighty Southwest. Welcome to Arizona!
Wow, SmurfOnABoat...I pay around $215 monthly in the winter for gas up here near Syracuse, and my thermostat is set at 64! Overall energy bills are between $300-375 month in the winter. Too much, too much...
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Old 01-04-2013, 04:51 PM
 
1,433 posts, read 2,983,743 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SmurfOnABoat View Post
My month to month gas bills in the winter here in Michigan are about $250, with thermo set at 67*. I'd take a $100 gas bill any month.
Really? I'm in Michigan and rarely see a bill over $120 ... at 68F. Your place must be leaky.
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Old 01-05-2013, 10:02 AM
 
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Everything depends on what you are using to heat plus the type and size of construction. In some places in the country people are paying as low as 85 cents per therm. Here in Tucson its $1.09 A therm by the way is equal to about a gallon of propane which is usually around $2 or maybe a little less. If you use oil for your primary heat source it can get expensive. In Washington the two bad months are December and January where it could get to $250-$300 if its really cold. By contrast November and Feb could be a third of those two months.
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Old 01-05-2013, 10:27 AM
 
Location: Detroit, MI/St. David, AZ
205 posts, read 572,908 times
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Originally Posted by actinic View Post
Really? I'm in Michigan and rarely see a bill over $120 ... at 68F. Your place must be leaky.
Pretty well insulated, just the location. Where are you located and who is your gas company? I have family that is less than a mile away. Set at 72* in a less insulated house and their bill is cheaper. Different city.
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Old 01-05-2013, 10:39 AM
 
Location: Always dancing to a far off tune --- Fiddlefeet
123 posts, read 391,625 times
Reputation: 89
My Tucson gas bill was a dollar higher than my electric bill and I don't heat the TH, I just wear lots of layers. The gas is ONLY for the hot water heater. I think that "leveling" ploy may explain it. Just chiming in because the exploration of energy expenses in Michigan seems irrelevant, albeit interesting.
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