Saving Money as Prices Increase

[Oaktree]

I sometimes will use a small fan to move the air around. I also have a little unit on the woodstove which somehow uses disimilar metals to generate enough electricity to turn the fan.

Do those actually move any air? My BIL has one, but it doesn't seem to do much.

 

[Alan W.]

My wife is taking the money that we were paying on the house and car and investing it.
At least thats what she tells me.

 

[Oaktree]

I have a BIL who is a truck driver, and he said he could make about $250k/year, if he was willing to do long distance transport. It's a tough life, with about one weekend per month at home, but it is a way to make good money for a while.

My BIL used to do that too, don't think he made that kind of money but he's been retired for 10+ years now. Doing that came in handy right after 9/11 when they grounded all planes. My sister had been on a business trip somewhere in the midwest and got stranded there. He was able to pick up a load to the area and go get her.

 

[oosik]

The service shop at the local Kubota dealership is heated with a waste oil furnace. The service mgr showed me the operation a few years ago. It's a bigger operation than I thought it would be.

There is a receiving tank and a storage/delivery tank. One honking big filtering system and pump between the two tanks. Then a smaller pump that pressurizes the oil into the furnace.

He said you get use to the smell of burning oil pretty quickly. I didn't notice that it smelled all that bad/strong. He said it would pay for itself in eight to ten years.

 

[Jstpssng]

Do those actually move any air? My BIL has one, but it doesn't seem to do much.

I wondered the same thing, but last year did some experimenting with a piece of thread and it did seem to make a difference to about 15 feet. Nevertheless it's probably more psychological than anything else. I just find it an interesting concept, using heat from the stove top to generate electricity. I also keep 5 gallons of water on all winter... why pay to run the hot water heater more than I have to?

 

[RickB]

I wondered the same thing, but last year did some experimenting with a piece of thread and it did seem to make a difference to about 15 feet. Nevertheless it's probably more psychological than anything else. I just find it an interesting concept, using heat from the stove top to generate electricity. I also keep 5 gallons of water on all winter... why pay to run the hot water heater more than I have to?

Adding humidity to indoor air in winter (for free) is a big plus too.

 

[Alan W.]

In the cold weather while Im doin my chores I always keep two large containers of water on the stove to use in the laundry. Makes a big difference.

 

[drssg]

My BIL used to do that too, don't think he made that kind of money but he's been retired for 10+ years now. Doing that came in handy right after 9/11 when they grounded all planes. My sister had been on a business trip somewhere in the midwest and got stranded there. He was able to pick up a load to the area and go get her.

Yes, I believe the high salary that I quoted is more of a current phenomenon, due to the current difficulties in getting truck drivers.

 

[sandman2234]

I have a BIL who is a truck driver, and he said he could make about $250k/year, if he was willing to do long distance transport. It's a tough life, with about one weekend per month at home, but it is a way to make good money for a while.

Owner operator most likely, not a company driver. He has a huge investment, has to do the work of a driver, dispatcher and load planner, plus an accountant along with being a mechanic to do all the maintenance of the truck as well as breakdowns. He buys the tires, feeds the diesel and generally has to make sure it all works together.
A company driver makes 40-100k, depending on if local, otr and if dedicated route or on a dedicate area.
There is a huge difference, which is one of the reasons drivers change jobs as often as they do.Tick off your dispatcher and your pay drops significantly. Blow a tranny, or rear end, or even an engine and an owner operator can look at bankruptcy quickly if he isn't extremely good at managing his money. Too many want to spend their engine rebuild as personal income instead of putting it away for when the big items break.
David from jax

 

[repete]

Just out of curiosity, how much does power cost in your area?

In our county we pay our PUD $0.95 per day basic charge, plus $0.06755 per kilowatt hour.

 

[ultrarunner]

24.5 last month cost per kW at the hospital all in includes taxes and fees and power is discounted.

SF Bay Area

More for residential after you blow through the first tier and higher prices in the works blamed on solar installs.

 

[ponytug]

Just out of curiosity, how much does power cost in your area?

In our county we pay our PUD $0.95 per day basic charge, plus $0.06755 per kilowatt hour.

Seven days a week, same time of use. Other rates have higher off peak, lower peak (as in $0.42kWh), but close, but then there are other charges just to be connected to the grid, etc.

All the best,

Peter

 

[bunyip]

Do those actually move any air? My BIL has one, but it doesn't seem to do much.

ours directs the air to the side where the main fan misses, it is gentle but does make a difference, peltier effect, same as the solid state coolers and heaters except it works in reverse applying a heat or cold source generates electricity.

 

[Oaktree]

View attachment 719933
Seven days a week, same time of use. Other rates have higher off peak, lower peak (as in $0.42kWh), but close, but then there are other charges just to be connected to the grid, etc.

All the best,

Peter

Kind of shoots holes in the "charge EVs at night when the rates are low" unless you can set a timer not to begin until after midnight.
Curiously, how common are variable rates out your way? Not aware of any such thing here, certainly not the rule.

 

[ponytug]

Kind of shoots holes in the "charge EVs at night when the rates are low" unless you can set a timer not to begin until after midnight.
Curiously, how common are variable rates out your way? Not aware of any such thing here, certainly not the rule.

Yes, the car has the electrical rates programmed in and only charges overnight when the rates are low, starting at midnight during the winter. During the summer, I try to charge the car during peak solar. Meanwhile, we put in batteries as a resiliency tool against fire driven power outages and winter storms, and they provide enough power reserves never to use peak rate solar summer or winter. Funnily enough, our baseline usage is so low that adding batteries doubled our baseline draw as each 5kW battery (13.4kWh) draws ~75W constantly.

In principle, I should also time shift when the well pump runs, but I haven't yet, though it is on the do list. That power is super expensive, as the cost is dominated by the fixed cost of demand charge costs, making the actual power cost around $4./kWh (not a typo!). Moral being time shifting doesn't buy me much.

The trend here is for entirely time of use (TOU) rates, as the TOU rates do better reflect the underlying cost of power. I think that there are a few older tiered rates, but those are being phased out.

There aren't any of the Texas style "free nights and weekends" here. I would be heating water and / or freezing big blocks of ice overnight if that were the case.

All the best,

Peter

 

[Torvy]

Good thread, despite the sidetracks.

Don't count on an inflation bubble, this one has legs....

If we manage to get the retirement place built, we will grow things in the garden to supplement our grocery bills. Wifey wants chickens, so we will have eggs. Not much savings there other than fewer trips to the store.

We both have skills we can use as consultants if needed. The way they are paying right now, we can probably put in some hours at a number of local joints to supplement. I have been paid to write before and could, perhaps go down that road.

I grew up poor and in a frugal home, wife grew up poorer, but without the frugality. It does not get truly cold in Texas, so jackets and such can reduce the need for heat. The rare blast like we had last year is nothing compared to winters in So. Dak. Summer is a bigger concern because heat kills and you can only shed so many clothes.

As to the CDL thing, you could drive a school bus and, at least around here, they would pay you to get it. I avoided coaching here in Texas because many school districts expect coaches to get a CDL to drive the bus. I have no interest in having a CDL.

 

[4570Man]

Good thread, despite the sidetracks.

Don't count on an inflation bubble, this one has legs....

If we manage to get the retirement place built, we will grow things in the garden to supplement our grocery bills. Wifey wants chickens, so we will have eggs. Not much savings there other than fewer trips to the store.

We both have skills we can use as consultants if needed. The way they are paying right now, we can probably put in some hours at a number of local joints to supplement. I have been paid to write before and could, perhaps go down that road.

I grew up poor and in a frugal home, wife grew up poorer, but without the frugality. It does not get truly cold in Texas, so jackets and such can reduce the need for heat. The rare blast like we had last year is nothing compared to winters in So. Dak. Summer is a bigger concern because heat kills and you can only shed so many clothes.

As to the CDL thing, you could drive a school bus and, at least around here, they would pay you to get it. I avoided coaching here in Texas because many school districts expect coaches to get a CDL to drive the bus. I have no interest in having a CDL.

The School bus driving offers insurance but aside from that the take home pay is terrible. I wouldn’t drive a school bus for a 6 figure salary though.

 

[DKCDKC]

Bear in mind that while a resistive electric heater is 100 percent efficient (actually between 95 and 99 percent in the real world), a heat pump produces up to three times the energy it consumes because it transfers rather than creates heat. You may use a small heater to warm up a specific area, or to try and slow heat pump cycling, but you are probably not saving energy. I have a geothermal heat pump and it produces 4 or 5 times the heat that could be generated with just electricity... But it cost more to buy and install. It has drastically reduced my heating and cooling bills - and gives me free hot water all summer. For me the higher installation cost was quickly paid off and we now enjoy lower bills. Oh, I do have a wood stove and an inexhaustible supply of firewood (I own some woodland and folks cut on shares), so we are good there anyway.

As for dealing with rising prices, we are simply more careful with what we buy at the grocery store, and drive an energy efficient car - which we already had. As someone retired on fixed income, I also make sure to maintain my tractors and other equipment so I don't need to replace anything. If I need something by way of machinery, I go used. You can get some good stuff cheap - and without waiting.

We don't give up special things like traveling to see the grandkids or eating out, we just plan for it and make it work. But, then again, we lived through the steep inflation of the 1970s and survived.

 

[Jstpssng]

Bear in mind that while a resistive electric heater is 100 percent efficient (actually between 95 and 99 percent in the real world), a heat pump produces up to three times the energy it consumes because it transfers rather than creates heat. You may use a small heater to warm up a specific area, or to try and slow heat pump cycling, but you are probably not saving energy. I have a geothermal heat pump and it produces 4 or 5 times the heat that could be generated with just electricity... But it cost more to buy and install. It has drastically reduced my heating and cooling bills - and gives me free hot water all summer. For me the higher installation cost was quickly paid off and we now enjoy lower bills. Oh, I do have a wood stove and an inexhaustible supply of firewood (I own some woodland and folks cut on shares), so we are good there anyway.

As for dealing with rising prices, we are simply more careful with what we buy at the grocery store, and drive an energy efficient car - which we already had. As someone retired on fixed income, I also make sure to maintain my tractors and other equipment so I don't need to replace anything. If I need something by way of machinery, I go used. You can get some good stuff cheap - and without waiting.

We don't give up special things like traveling to see the grandkids or eating out, we just plan for it and make it work. But, then again, we lived through the steep inflation of the 1970s and survived.

I realize that. However, a heat pump is thousands of dollars. My oil filled radiators cost me $10 at a yard sale, the external thermostat cost me around $50. At 7$/month to run them, I would be a long time paying for that heat pump.

 

[Torvy]

The School bus driving offers insurance but aside from that the take home pay is terrible. I wouldn’t drive a school bus for a 6 figure salary though.

Haha...I hear you. I teach and I want no part of being a driver. The idea was just for someone who was concerned about cost of obtaining a CDL and /or getting experience. Pay is always a factor, but in my case I passed up more money to make a difference. For some kids, a friendly bus driver does that, too.