The most expensive option we found was adding solar to our system. This was not a good option as I wasn’t looking to lower one bill and add another. Without liquid funds to pay for the solar system, we were looking at adding $300-$500 per month as another bill. Not what we were looking for as a way to save money.

In talks with a local friend and neighbor, his suggestion was to add a demand manager to our home.

A demand manager is like a computer that regulates and talks with the electrical systems running in our house. It tells the system how much energy has been used and routes the system so there are no spikes in energy throughout the day.

When you regulate the system there are no spikes to the system from the air conditioner or pool pump and therefore there are no sudden jumps in our energy use.

We checked into adding a demand manager by Ego Electric to our home and determined that upfront cost was going to take 24 months to recover based on their figures for savings per month.

The savings would be immediate in the first month of use and would even last throughout the winter months when the electric stove and pool pump were in use.

The greatest part of adding a demand manager to my electrical panel was to make the system the most efficient I had to lower my thermostat to 72 degrees. The company suggested 68-70 degrees but I found that even cooler than I liked.

Yes, I was able to lower the temp in the house and save money on my electric bills.

I’d suggest for any homeowner looking to save money to consider the demand manager as a viable option to save money for months and years to come.

The post Demand Manager Saves Money For Arizona Homeowners appeared first on Arizona Morgages.

This is a yearly question and for so many in the Southeast Valley cities of Queen Creek, Chandler, Tempe, Mesa, San Tan Valley, and Gilbert we start to dread that SRP and APS bill every month.

We want to get more air conditioning but we are scared of the cost every month.

Solutions to lower your monthly bills include:

• Time of Use Plan – this plan tells you the on-peak and off-peak hours and when best to run your major appliances and services.
• Budget Billing – this plan offers an average for the year. It takes into account all 12 months’ billings and averages a price to pay for the month. So no matter the time of year, summer, winter, fall, or sping, you pay the same amount every month.
• Sun Shades – adding sun shades will remove direct sunlight from the window. When you touch the window in the summer you feel the heat. This will put a barrier between the inside and the outside with some reflection. In the end, the heat of the sun will be softened and it will help mediate the temp in the house.
• Temperature-controlled thermostat – control when your air condition unit turns on and off based on the internal temperature you desire. Set the temperature higher when nobody is home and lower when the family returns. ** some of the issue with this involves the need to put added pressure on your system to get the temperature down 2-4 degrees before the family gets home. This will cause more stress on the system and electricity to spike to get the temp of the house down. In addition, most of the time when a family gets home between 5 and 6 pm you are on the high peak hours and that will cause a spike in the electrical reading and ultimately cost more.
• Get used to higher temps in the house – yuck, this doesn’t sound like fun. Well if your concern is the higher monthly bill, then this is an option.

Take advantage of opportunities to decrease your monthly electric bill in Arizona by installing a demand manager. Check back for more information on this controlled system to regulate the temperatures in your Arizona Home while keeping the temp inside near a more comfortable 72 degrees.

The post Money Savings on My Electric Bills appeared first on Arizona Morgages.