In light of this post by Newlyweds on a Budget, what are your utilities? Do articles like this cause you to look at what you spend on utilities?
What we spend:
Hulu: $8 for extra content and HD (Mr. S likes that)
Netflix: $8 (streaming only)
Cable/Internet bundle: $50 (We'll get a break on this from S's employer for his working from home and it will only be $30!)
Cell phones: $200 (We get reimbursed portions of it as we are the executors of a family plan with several people AND S's job will give us a break on it since he won't opt to get a work phone which will bring this down to $70 for us!)
Gas: $40
Electric: $50
Yikes. That looks like more than I thought when it's all lined up!
Anywho, we've been able to add in some luxuries lately (so thankful for turning the AC on in 90 degree heat!) and have skimped in the past. Here's how we cut corners.
1) No cable. Cable used to leave a big whole in a person's life if they had to give it up. But now that Hulu and Netflix are available, why bother?! The only reason we have it is because it was super cheap with the internet (they're practically giving it away now!).
2) Share internet. If you live in a multi-unit building or even in a close neighborhood, you can piggyback internet for general web-surfing with no slowing speeds. If you are working from home or running a data center out of your house (ha), then this might not be a good option, but for general email or hulu-ing, this can work. We did this for a while and it worked ok (for only paying $20 a month for our portion).
3) Cell phone family plans. You see those deals all the time to add-a-line to your current plan. If you and a few family members/friends share a plan, you can save a ton of money.
4) Hulu. It's free without HD, and free is pretty affordable! (You can also read. My book club is reading this book. Anyone else read it?)
5) Dress for the weather, not for style. I wear thick hiking socks to bed in the winter and walk around pants-less in the summer. It saves on heating and cooling and I get to use a full range of my wardrobe. Win win! If you're cold in the winter, get a fleece and a blanket. Some people complain that our house is roasting or freezing and to them I say, "I'll change the temp when you agree to pay the bill!" I love the adventure of seeing how little we can pay for energy. I think I'm a masochist!
Do you do anything to save on utilities? Do you consider more than just the bottom line when you adjust your habits? We also like feeling that we're saving the environment by sweating in the summer!
