Electric/AC costs in AZ (Phoenix, Tucson: appliances, house, heat pump)

[targetmedia1]

Does anyone have an idea what it costs for electric in the summer on a standard 1500 square foot single family home (one story) in the Phoenix or Tucson area?

[wit-nit]

Too many factors to determine that. Just the AC costs would depend on house insulation, size and efficiency of AC, temperature setting. Then what type of lighting you have, TV use, other appliances. People/kids coming and going.
Could be from $150.00 monthly to $500.00 monthly.
If you have a house in mind call the utility company for the cost of past usage for that home.

Our 2000 sq ft house costs $142.00 monthly on APS econo plan. We have heavy insulation, a 19 seer AC unit set at 74F and we don't go out often. We run our washer/dryer in off peak times and TV is our on frequently.

[AksarbeN]

Originally Posted by wit-nit

Too many factors to determine that. Just the AC costs would depend on house insulation, size and efficiency of AC, temperature setting. Then what type of lighting you have, TV use, other appliances. People/kids coming and going.
Could be from $150.00 monthly to $500.00 monthly.
If you have a house in mind call the utility company for the cost of past usage for that home.

Our 2000 sq ft house costs $142.00 monthly on APS econo plan. We have heavy insulation, a 19 seer AC unit set at 74F and we don't go out often. We run our washer/dryer in off peak times and TV is our on frequently.

We have the same home size and monthly rates as wit-nit has; although we set the ac to 78F in the summer and the electric heat is at 76 in the winter.

Our home is cinder-block construction facing and facing south, pool and type of heating system and air conditioner also are big factors for energy. The age of the home should also be considered as a factor for energy use if it has not be upgraded over the years, my home was built in 1982 and well insulated, energy efficient appliances and upgrades have helped to keep electric bills lower.

[Bummer]

I'll throw my home in to add more confusion . . .

A 1500 Sq Ft, 35 Year Old, Three Bedroom / Two Bath, All Electric Home with Slump Block Construction. The 4 Ton Heat Pump is only two years old and I have updated all interior and exterior lights to LEDs.

My TEP (Tucson Electric) Budget Billing runs $70 per month.

Good Luck.

[Potential_Landlord]

Age of AC is a big big factor. We installed a new unit last winter and it uses way way less. Also a big factor is electric vehicle or not.

[wase4711]

Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord

Age of AC is a big big factor. We installed a new unit last winter and it uses way way less. Also a big factor is electric vehicle or not.

great point; we installed a variable speed fan/compressor, with SEER of 19, and our electric bill dropped almost 40% this summer; set at 75 most of the time

[sgarcata]

Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord

Age of AC is a big big factor. We installed a new unit last winter and it uses way way less. Also a big factor is electric vehicle or not.

Please explain the impact of having an electric vehicle.

[wase4711]

electric cars require alot of "juice" to charge their batteries up, and, if you plug your car into your house power regularly, to charge your battery, it will add costs to your electric bill..

[509]

Electricity is pretty expensive in Arizona.

We pay 13.2 cents a kilo-watt hour in Benson.

This compares with 2.7 cents a kilo-watt hour for our house in eastern Washington. The summer weather between Benson and our home in eastern Washington is almost identical.

Your better off comparing your current electric bill given your lifestyle and just multiplying by the cost of electricity in the Arizona and they make adjustments based on weather.

[DesertCatDude]

Don't have your A/C unit set in the 70's. I have mine set in the mid 80's NO Lie. But I'm a native and grew up with just an evaporative cooler ("swamp") cooler.