That's on the low end for CA. Our energy prices are stupid-tarded.
Sprinkler Systems
- Thread starter DBMaster
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In Texas, we can choose our electricity provider. I pay 8.6 cents per kWh. In the hottest summer months I can use 2,100-2,200 kWh. My electric bills are actually some of the lowest in my neighborhood. The house was built in 1996. I could give you all the insulation values for windows, attic, etc., but the HVAC system is just 10 Seer. 13 is now the minimum and my employer makes some systems that top 20. The cost involved would have an awfully long payback period.
So, for my area, my electric bills are not terribly high. I have gas heat so my low bills during what passes for winter here are about $50. My gas bill will be about $100 during that time.
The house is decently insulated and sealed up tight. In addition to the ridge vents I installed a power attic ventilator a number of years ago that drops the attic temperature by ten degrees. That translates roughly to 1-2 degrees inside the house, but every little bit helps. I keep my house FAR cooler than what most people here do. As I said, I guess we all "waste" something.
So, for my area, my electric bills are not terribly high. I have gas heat so my low bills during what passes for winter here are about $50. My gas bill will be about $100 during that time.
The house is decently insulated and sealed up tight. In addition to the ridge vents I installed a power attic ventilator a number of years ago that drops the attic temperature by ten degrees. That translates roughly to 1-2 degrees inside the house, but every little bit helps. I keep my house FAR cooler than what most people here do. As I said, I guess we all "waste" something.
I helped a friend (who knows what he's doing) put my sprinkler system in. His brother happens to be the inventor of the Irritrol Climate Logic system which we installed on mine. It comes with a SD card that contains avg. year-round temp data from zip codes around the country, so you select yours and it loads a look-up table of that data and then calculates a correction factor based on avg. temp plus real sensor inputs like: actual temp, sunlight, and rainfall. Right now mine is watering each zone at 40% of the nominal time. If it's hot it will water at 110% of the nominal time. If it rains, is cool, or cloudy it will decrease up to 100% of the nominal time.
http://www.irritrol.com/sensors/controllers_climatelogic.html
http://www.irritrol.com/sensors/controllers_climatelogic.html
And there's also an optional remote (I don't have it) that will allow you control it from your living room. Anyway I'm very happy with the system. It took a while to get the right nominal times dialed in but it keeps the yard consistently green and my water bill is much lower than before I had it.
Originally Posted By: DBMaster
In Texas, we can choose our electricity provider. I pay 8.6 cents per kWh. In the hottest summer months I can use 2,100-2,200 kWh.
Ok, I hate you. The most we've used in our new house is 1,047 kwh when it was 100+ out almost all month and we paid $250
We have no choice of any utility providers...
In our old apartment (cooler area so we didn't use much a/c, but electric stove/oven) we had bills approaching $400.
In Texas, we can choose our electricity provider. I pay 8.6 cents per kWh. In the hottest summer months I can use 2,100-2,200 kWh.
Ok, I hate you. The most we've used in our new house is 1,047 kwh when it was 100+ out almost all month and we paid $250
We have no choice of any utility providers...
In our old apartment (cooler area so we didn't use much a/c, but electric stove/oven) we had bills approaching $400.
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Anduril
The most we've used in our new house is 1,047 kwh when it was 100+ out almost all month and we paid $250
We have no choice of any utility providers...
In our old apartment (cooler area so we didn't use much a/c, but electric stove/oven) we had bills approaching $400.
I misstated slightly. My rate is 8.5 cents per kWh on this contract. i have to shop and do a new contract once a year. There are pros and cons, but the prices did come down post deregulation. My last bill which ran from August 14-September 14 was $186. I used a little over 2,100 kWh. I keep my blower fan running continuously for air circulation and dust reduction and I keep the house 71 degrees when I'm home.
The most we've used in our new house is 1,047 kwh when it was 100+ out almost all month and we paid $250
We have no choice of any utility providers...
In our old apartment (cooler area so we didn't use much a/c, but electric stove/oven) we had bills approaching $400.
I misstated slightly. My rate is 8.5 cents per kWh on this contract. i have to shop and do a new contract once a year. There are pros and cons, but the prices did come down post deregulation. My last bill which ran from August 14-September 14 was $186. I used a little over 2,100 kWh. I keep my blower fan running continuously for air circulation and dust reduction and I keep the house 71 degrees when I'm home.
We've had on and off rain here in NJ over this past couple days and I've been keeping an eye on the Climate Logic and it seems to be doing a good job. It's calculating 40% of the nominal time for all zones and responding to rain by cutting off all water then going into a 24 hour dry-out period which has been renewed for the second day in a row. I'm interested to see how it handles this weekend when daily rain amounts are supposed to be right around the .25" threshold I set for it.
Depending upon whether or not we actually get rain this weekend, my system may be shut down for the "winter." I put winter in quotes because what we have here can hardly be called winter. My neighbors, of course, are still running theirs full-blast, as though it were summer. After all, shutting off or revising the program is far too much effort to save a little water in an area that is obviously suffering through a long-term drought. It's odd that Texas water districts keep that under wraps. Why risk slowing the unsupportable ridiculous growth we have here. This is what I don't get. We already know we can't support the people we already have, but we maintain this artificial atmosphere that brings even more in.
You can't fix stupid!
You can't fix stupid!
I also live in the DFW area and like you, use my head. If it rains - I turn it off. I pay attention to the grass and soil and adjust my watering as needed. It's more for my house foundation then the grass second. My system has 10 zones and I run them between 6 and 14 mins per zone depending on the zone. This is 2 times a week. You are better doing fewer DEEP watering sessions than several short ones as that makes your lawn more robust.
Since we don't have any rainy days from April till October-November, I never have to worry about the sprinkler timer. We have the first good rainy day yesterday so the timer is off for 5-6 days, if no more rain next week then the timer will be on again on Wednesday until the next rainy day.
Usually our water usage is about 60-65% less in winter months compares with summer months. The money saving is only $4-5 a month but you feel good about not wasting natural resource.
Usually our water usage is about 60-65% less in winter months compares with summer months. The money saving is only $4-5 a month but you feel good about not wasting natural resource.
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