Like many folks, we’re trying to reduce our energy usage. We’ve been making some of the frequently-recommended changes (changing to compact fluorescent light bulbs, turning down the thermostat, unplugging unnecessary applicances — you’ll probably see some of these things written up in more detail in the future). However, it’s nice to know if your changes are making a difference, and if so, how much. Therefore, you need to know how much energy you “normally” use.
Today I took out some recent utility bills and inspected them to see just how much gas and electricity we’ve been using. I thought I’d just be getting the baseline, but it turns out PG&E shows you the usage from the same month last year, so you can see the difference. Our gas and electricity are both down between 20 and 30% since last year, for this month and last month. If it were just one month, I might think it’s a fluke, but the improvement looks consistent. Cool!
Even if you don’t get these kinds of stats on your utility bill, you might want to take a look at it to see where you are. If nothing else, it can create a little more awareness of your consumption, and maybe you’ll remember to check again next month.
If you want to compare yourself with the national average, here’s a report on residential electricity usage and a bunch of other reports on general energy usage in American households. The average household, for example, consumes 10,656 kWh per year, or about 888 per month.
Finally, as an aside, I just wanted to extend a quick thanks to Seth Godin and his blog, where I first discovered No Impact Man. Seth writes great stuff about marketing and the consumer economy.
