energy usage calculation for home cooling

[alarmguy]

@tbm5690
Our past home Zoysia lawn. By planting plugs it took over the builder Bermuda grass n a couple years. This is the lawn all Zoysia before we sold it.

Below is our current Centipede lawn, even though it looks great, Centipede not as durable, not as shade tolerant. I want the Zoysia again and why I planted plugs.
I tried to correct color centipede is more like the color of zoysia above.

AS a kid, decades ago, my parents lawn was Zoysia too. That was Long Island NY. In cold weather southern grasses like this go dormant and turn brown until spring again and soil temps get up around 50 degrees.

 

[alarmguy]

We were primarily coal and NG.... until they decided to go full send on renewables. Now we have the highest rates for both electricity and gas delivery charges (double my actual gas cost) in the whole state and we get at least 1 24 hour minimum power outage a year. Last month it was ~30 hours.

You know, I forgot to tell you. We sold our house in SC 2023 (the rates I show in this thread is our new home and correct) but electricity was almost the same exact price there. Both are Electric CO-OPs so the rate payers technically own the companies. You actually vote for the board members etc, etc... To this day, every year I get a check from the old electric company that we had in SC (we now live in NC)

Anyway, the unused funds that weren't needed by the co-op get refunded to me over time. Our account started with around $1000 in funds collected over 16 years. Every spring they send a check to our new home. Typically $50 as an average, some years more, some a little less. We still have about $750 that will be refunded to us over a ten year period. *LOL* Its amazing! We love it here and never looked back after "escaping" from Long Island, NY

 

[tbm5690]

Well, I think you are going to be good with your electric costs. Though we are all different and you will have different plans to chose from. If you choose the peak use plan I see the cost is 7.9 cents kWh for 20 hours during summer and 21 hours during winter. $8 kWh during peak times of 4 hours summer and 3 hours winter. Or you can go standard roughly 14 cents kWh 24 hours a day.
Sprayed foam insulation, that is like WOW. I think you will be amazed. I was in real estate at one point in my life. You could walk in the attic of huge homes mid sumner and be amazed how cool they can be compared to a typical attic. The homes are more quiet too. Such as airplanes etc.

No matter what grass is at the home, you want only one kind. Zoysia grass. Best part is that is doesn't matter what grass the home currently has. in 2006 (we sold it in 2022) we bought new near Lake Murray SC. Builder landscaped with Bermuda grass. Looked good but PITA with bugs, fungus, and thatch. So I bought 3 x 3 inch Zoysia plugs and with sticking a shovel into the existing grass, no digging I just spread the existing grass apart and stuck the plugs into the ground packing them down with my feet. Zoysia over time will crowd out and take over most any grass all the time while still having a normal lawn as it takes over. Anyway, within a couple years, the Zoysia took over all the Bermuda grass at our house, completely, none left. People (not kidding) would knock on our door at time to ask what we do to our lawn. When selling the house it seemed like part of the conversation all the time.

So here is something timely, 100% TRUE, our new home 2023 we have one of the nicest builder landscaped Centipede lawns in the community, NC coastal area. Some thing, compliments all the time and questions on what I do. However just YESTERDAY I received my first order of 64 - 3 x 3 inch zoysia plugs (8- trays, containing 8- 3x3 inch plugs). and put them in the lawn, over a couple years, it will be he same thing, a superior zoysia lawn even though our lawn looks beautiful, to me, nothing comes close to Zoysia. Best part is you do not have to disturb your existing lawn if you do not want to. Just plant 3 inch Zoysia plugs into your existing lawn. If that existing lawn is on good shape plant them maybe 5 feet apart and in a few years you will be good. If in a rush, plant according to instructions, more like 1 foot. Or if you really want to spend and there is no grass now, have Zoysia sod installed (expensive)
After that, give any brand lawn food every 6 weeks or so during the warm season and you will never have to do anything else to the lawn. I actually fertilize my lawn every 4 to 5 weeks, warm season. Heat of summer 6 weeks.

Just do a search for Zoysia 3 x 3 inch plugs. You will see TONS of sites and resellers for the smaller 1 or 2 inch plugs. I choose only 3 x 3 , selection is more limited but I like a nice robust larger plug since I want to to start spreading as fast as possible.
I always ordered from "SeedRanch" in Florida for my last home and I also ordered them for my son's home. They were always reliable stand up company. Which I did again for this house. However this time even though I ordered from them the plugs actually came from a company called SodPods (maybe that is a subsidiary of theirs I dont know) When ordering I did not really care too much which variety I was going to get. Always very happy. Years back it may have been Meyers or Empire Zoysia. This time I was surprised to see they shipped one I never heard of. ICON Zoysia. I looked into it, not as popular because it is newer hybrid from an Australia. Anyway, I think I am going to be happy with it from what I read. Pretty much they are all good, the only ones I wouldn't want are the ones advertised as thin blade. But Meyers and Empire are solid. I am hoping (and suspect I will be right) The ICON will be too. If you do a search, chances are if you want what I did (and my son) you want 3 x 3 inch plugs, your choice will be limited with 3x3 and just go with it.

Anyway, took only less then 2 hours to put in 64 plugs and I have 64 more ordered. This time I ordered direct from the company that sent them instead of ordering from SeedRanch.com Still Seed Ranch is an upstanding company. By mistake somehow my order a couple weeks ago never arrived at our new home, I called, a real person picked up. Seems they were delivered to my old address. They sent a new shipment to my new address no charge.

This time I ordered another 64 plugs direct from the company that sent them https://trysodpods.com/ (company is bethelfarms.com)
Once I get them, I I'll be done and slowly will take over my existing lawn.
Photos below are what received yesterday and just planted the same day.

This is 8 trays 2 rows of 4 = 64 plugs

View attachment 340050

View attachment 340051 View attachment 340052

That's good to know, I'll have to consider plugs. Not certain but the existing grass I believe is Bermuda. Our realtor mentioned Zoysia being a potential issue with ticks, but I assume that may be specific to highly wooded lots. The yard is nearly 1/2 an acre so that would be quite a few plugs that Id have to buy.

 

[alarmguy]

That's good to know, I'll have to consider plugs. Not certain but the existing grass I believe is Bermuda. Our realtor mentioned Zoysia being a potential issue with ticks, but I assume that may be specific to highly wooded lots. The yard is nearly 1/2 an acre so that would be quite a few plugs that Id have to buy.

Tell your realtor to stick to selling homes, also in the south there is the potential risk you get hit by lighting (sarcasm*LOL*)

If you wanted Zoysia you could get away with a few boxes of plugs, it's just over time, Zoysia would slowly take over, you would end up with all Zoysia while maintaining the lawn that you have. Only if you wanted. The reason builders do not use it, is Zoysia sod can cost a builder 200% more than the other grasses.