Shockingly High Utility Bills – There is a Remedy!

Wednesday, February 7th, 2018 by Joy Padgett

If you’re from around here, you might have found opening your latest utility bill to be quite a shocking experience! 

Since we’ve had another bitter cold snap here in Central Kentucky, we’ve been getting a TON of calls from people who have been shocked by the high utility bills they are still receiving. They are calling us because they don’t know what’s causing this problem. Last week’s blog touched on the same topic of high utility bills and some of the things that can cause bills to be high. If you missed it, click here.

Nobody wants to spend more on utility bills than they have to….I mean, let’s be real…most people see utility companies as big bad wolves. BUT, how do you actually lower your utility bills?

First, check with your utility company to see if they offer an energy evaluation program and/or any rebates or incentives to making your house more energy efficient. Many public utilities are offering such services and rebates, BUT you must have them conduct the energy assessment BEFORE you have any work done.

Second, after your utility company has conducted their assessment and gives you a list of recommended actions, call us!

Weatherization Plus can send one of our wonderful technicians out to your house to review your “Honey-Do” list from your electric company and, if you’d like, conduct another inspection using their knowledge, skills, and special equipment. Now listen, I’m not saying the assessor from your utility company didn’t know what he was doing, I’m saying an extra set of eyes isn’t going to hurt. And, right now, we don’t charge for the inspection.

With us, you get a whole-house approach to energy conservation. What does this mean? It means we know about insulation, ductwork, attics and crawl spaces, how air moves throughout your home, problem building assemblies, builder short-cuts, and more! Insulation contractors, on the other hand, know only insulation…so they will ALWAYS tell you insulation alone will lower your energy usage. That simply isn’t true! Don’t believe the hype! 

And replacing your windows and doors isn’t going to help either! (Unless, of course, the glass in your windows is broken, your windows are falling out, and you don’t have any doors.)

While there are several things you can do  on your own to lower your utility bills, there are things you should leave to the professionals. The technicians I work with have been specially trained on both the science behind building performance and on the equipment they use to help them locate and identify the causes of energy leakage in your home. We want to do things in the proper order and not put the cart before the horse! I don’t think you would be very happy with the insulation company is they install new insulation and your problems weren’t fixed. You’d be even more unhappy if we told you the new insulation would have to be removed so we could actually fix your problem! And that’s exactly what we would tell you.

What’s more, it can be very difficult to compare apples and apples when you look at our proposal in comparison to the estimate you got from an insulation contractor. Why? Because the insulation contractor is going to give you an estimate on simply adding insulation. He isn’t going to talk with you about the issues you are experiencing in your home or show any interest in actually fixing your home. And that’s not just coming from me….we’ve heard that from our customers. However, we would be happy to help you compare estimates….and don’t worry, you can cover up the names of the contractors who are trying to rip you off and insult your intelligence!

Don’t get zapped by another high utility bill! The bottom line is this….your energy usage can be reduced which will result in lower utility bills AND, as an added bonus, will increase the comfort level in your home! Don’t call just anyone…call us!