I was in one of my rental units that I am managing, and had sort of an epiphany. This unit had gas heat prior to our acquisition of it, and we converted it to electricity, for a couple of different reasons. For one, electricity tends to be safer than gas in a house, and the other reason is that there was only one gas meter servicing to rental units, i.e. gas was provided by the landlord. So we wanted to provide a safer environment, while at the same time cutting our residual costs down. So how does that relate to reducing cooling costs?

Well, this rental unit had two portable air conditioning units, and with the conversion to all electric, we decided to buy a new portable air conditioning unit that was also capable of providing heat. So that means that there is now an extra window unit that is not necessary for the apartment. So my thought was this:

Why not install the window unit in the master bedroom at my house, and not run the central heat and air conditioning at night?

It is well known that window units consume a lot less power than regular central heat and air conditioning. And I have already cleared it with the owner of the property for me to use/own the unit, so it brings no additional cost to my budget. Further, I am having an issue with my central heat and air conditioning system, so this could really help me out. Right now, my electric bill is running somewhere around $150 per month.

So I am going to try this out, and if it works, I will post the results, and let you know how much of a savings I was able to achieve. Check out my reduce cooling costs post for more information on making your home more efficient and saving more money on electricity.


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