Furnace abstinence trend generating some heat

Willing to freeze your buns off this winter to save money and the environment? You're not alone.

According to an article here, a crew of eco-friendly bloggers looking to save some cold, hard cash are pushing the idea of "furnace abstinence" by revisiting their pre-central heat roots by going cold turkey during the frigid months.

Yep, some frugal-minded folks are seeing how long they can go without turning on their furnaces. In fact, one competition in New Jersey offers an iceberg-shaped trophy to the one who braves the cold the longest.

Of course, old-school methods including space heaters, wood-burning stoves and fireplaces are allowed.

One blogger, known as the Crunchy Chicken, is taking a less hardcore approach to "furnace abstinence" by challenging her readers to "Freeze Yer Buns" by lowering their thermostat a few degrees this winter and ultimately using less fuel.

"Because of the economic situation, most everyone is tightening up their purse strings, plus heating costs (oil, natural gas and electricity) aren't exactly cheap, so you have even more incentive to hop on board the chapped cheeks express," Crunchy Chicken writes.

The federal Department of Energy estimates most households in the Northeast corridor that use heating oil will pay an average of $2,009 (up 3 percent over last year) in heating costs over the course of the winter, while those with electric heating should shell out $1,465 (down 1 percent).

Those with natural-gas furnaces will pay an average of $1,135, a 13 percent decrease compared with costs in 2008 thanks to a drop in natural gas prices.

Not willing to go cold turkey this winter? Save up to $175 on home heating oil here through Consumer United when signing up for MassEnergy.

Manage your energy with new resource guide

Yep, the heat is on. However, the cooler months are approaching and residents across the Commonwealth are on the hunt for ways to save money on their utility bills. By concentrating on the energy use in your household, you can save money while also improving your carbon footprint.

The Attorney General's office in Massachusetts serves up tips on ways to save on energy in their newly launched Energy Resource Guide.

Here are the highlights:

Discounted Utility Rates

Low-income customers could be eligible for discounted rates on their gas, electricity and telephone services. According to the MA Energy Resource Guide, the income of customers must meet eligibility requirements and receive some form of additional benefits, a few of the programs are as follows:

• Food Stamps
• Emergency Assistance to the Elderly, Disabled, and Children
• Head Start
• Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
• Mass Health/ Medicaid
  

Budget and Payment Plans

Budget and payment plans are extremely helpful for most, especially for those who live paycheck to paycheck. There is a free budget billling plan offered, which allows customers to spread their bill over a 12 month period. This period is interest free. A payment plan is offered as well. The payment plan is an arrangement between the company and the customer, allowing the customer to pay back the over-due amount in a certain amount of time.

Arrearage Management Programs

What are arrearage management programs? They are programs that can help customers come to terms with their overdue bill, and manage the bill effectively. The utility company will then set up an affordable payment, will not shut-off service, conduct a home energy audit, and forgive part of the debt if the payment plan is followed. The requirements for this program differ between utility companies, however, most likely the following requirements will be in place:

• Be eligible for fuel assistance
• Owe a minimum amount on overdue bills
• Agree to take part in budget counseling and energy efficiency program

Click here to download the Massachusetts Energy Resource Guide.

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New equipment provides heat and electricity

With winter right around the corner, many homeowners are looking for ways to lower their energy bills. At Boston's recent Greenbuild 2008 conference, the American Honda Motor Company unveiled an energy-efficient heat and power generator.

The machine can provide savings of up to $1000 when installed with a furnace system because it provides additional "free-watt" electricity.

The generator has been in existence for several years, but it did not arrive in the United States until 2007. Since it was introduced in Asia in 2003, however, Honda has sold more than 50,000 units.

"Across all markets in which we sell products, the Honda mission is to bring advanced, innovative and environmentally responsible products to our customers," Steve Bailey, vice president of power equipment forAmerican Honda, tells Green Building Elements."

Bailey continues: "The Honda MCHP systems fulfill this mission by helping homeowners save energy, reduce greenhouse gasses and save money ontheir home heating while enjoying the high level of comfort and performance they have come to expect."

By offering the combination of home or water heating and power generation during outages, the Micro-Sized Combined Heat and Powergenerator, or the MCHP, offers homeowners another resource to reduce their heating costs and make their homes more environmentally friendly.

Click here for the complete article.

--Bridget O'Sullivan

Lock in home heating oil rates now

Before the price of oil rebounds to the highs seen this summer, talk to your heating oil provider to lock in a rate for the winter. Securing a rate early can help save a lot of money if the price of oil goes up over the course of the next few months.

According to a WBZ-TV report, the average price of a gallon of oil in mid-September was around $3.80, but in the first few days of the month, it had reached as high as $4.62.

Even a few cents can make a big difference because of the large amount of oil many homeowners mustbuy to heat their houses each winter.

"It's certainly the lowest we've seen in a few months time," Michael Ferrante, president of the Massachusetts Oilheat Council said to WBZ-TV about the price of home heating oil.

Late September, however, can be a tricky time to buy because of the potential for large swings in the price of oil due to the potential for severe weather such as hurricanes. Concern over damage to oil processing machinery along the Gulf Coast was considered at least partly responsible for the rapid price increases in early September.

In addition, if the dollar weakens due to deteriorating economic conditions, oil becomes a more attractive investment. This increase indemand for oil can in turn drive the price up. Now that the price is at a relative low, it's an ideal time to lock in a rate for the winter.

Check out the deals Consumer United has on home energy here. Also, click here for the WBZ-TV report.

--Bridget O'Sullivan

Gas price tumult fuels interest in alternatives

Is the search for alternatives fuel coming to an end?

Over the summer, $4 gas has changed the way Americans live. The cars we buy, the places we live, the "stay-cations' we take and the crowded trains we are forcing ourselves to jump on all have to do with the summer's high gas prices.

Now that gas prices are down to a near $3.60 in the Boston area, will we change our gas-budgeting ways? "Right now, I hear people exclaiming with glee that they paid $3.39 for gas somewhere," says Art Kinsman, spokesman for AAA Southern New England. "People have to remember, they're still paying almost a dollar more than they were last year. So prices are still extraordinarily high."

According to The Boston Globe, with gas prices down, the critical moment is now. Will Americans go back to their old habits, or will they demand improved public transportation options from the government? Investors may or may not continue to show interest in alternative fuels. American's miles spent in the car may continue to plunge, however, with current gas prices their is potential for miles to begin an increase.

Gas prices will rise and fall, and the time and research spent on alternative fuels may come to a halt if we go back to our gas-guzzling days. Henry Lee, a director of the environment and natural resources program at Harvard's Kennedy School says, "We're going to have to do a lot more if we're going to significantly reduce our use of oil."

--Bridget O'Sullivan

Oil change in New England?

This year, home heating oil prices have gone through the roof.

Many in Mass. are considering converting to gas heat. The upfront cost of this heating alternative and the rising oil prices are factors in making the switch, leaving New England residents weighing the pros and cons of an "oil change."

The cost of converting oil heat to gas can costs on average $10,000. This includes a new furnace and complete installation. This is a huge upfront expense. However, if oil prices continue to rise, this cost may actually save money over time.

The Energy Information Administration, a statistical arm of the Federal Department of Energy reports that heating oil will average $4.34 a gallon this year, up from $3.31 last year. Gas will be $15.58 per thousand cubic feet, up from $12.72 last year.

Philip Giudice, commissioner of the state's dept of Energy Resources doesn't think one is better than the other. But this year Giudice says gas is the "better economical choice."

Read more here.

Oil-buying groups save big bucks on heating oil

As homeowners worry over the cost of rising energy bills, several dozen families in Weston, Mass. will save hundreds of dollars on heating oil this winter.

Spearheaded by Weston resident Jan Fine, WBZ reports that he helped families come together to organize a buying group to secure a bulk discount.

The families buy such a large quantity of oil that companies bid on their contract. The wholesale nature of their purchase allows them to save hundreds off of the total price that individual households would pay.

"Last year we averaged about 50 cents per gallon savings over retail cost," Fine tells WBZ's Joe Shortsleeve. "So if you use a thousand gallons that saves you 500 bucks. Two thousand gallons -it saves you a thousand bucks. It's quite a bit of money."

Fine stresses that these groups are fairly easy to organize. To get started, he encouraged people to commit to their interest in the effort by entering their information in an online database, then he got in touch with oil companies.

“We are not an organization. We are simply a group of people who got together on the same database,” he says.

If you’re inspired by Fine’s grassroots effort to negotiate a better deal on heating oil, you can tap into the power of Consumer United's group discount here.

Boston's inflation rate trumps other metro areas

Inflation is impacting Americans across the country, but the Boston area has been hit especially hard by rising prices. The Associated Press reports that consumer prices increased over six percent last year, the biggest jump of all metropolitan areas.

Overall, inflation rose about 5.5 percent last year. The country has not experienced that kind of year-to-year jump since 1991. One of the major underlying causes for the increase is the price of fuel.

As the price of crude oil spent weeks setting records, those price increases translated into higher prices for gas, food and other goods.

These effects have been compounded in the Boston area because of the region’s distance from the country’s main production centers of food and fuel. A significant amount of the nation’s oil comes from the South and the Midwest, and the Midwest and California are the major agricultural centers.

The more it costs to transport these items and the further they have to go, the more consumers must pay. In addition, many homes in the Boston area are dependant on oil to heat their homes, so an increase in the price of fuel causes home heating bills to rise as well.

--Bridget O'Sullivan

Save gas money in the morning?

Do you pump gas in the morning to save money? You may consider sleeping in.

According to a Consumer Reports article, you won't save money by pumping gas early in the morning. The advice is to pump gas in the early morning before the heat of the day causes the oil to increase in volume. The early morning gasoline will be denser, meaning you'll get more energy per gallon than later in the day. As gasoline goes from 60-75 degrees Fahrenheit, it increases in volume by 1%, while the energy content remains the same.

The facts are true, but the advice is not. Gasoline is stored underground where the temperature variation is little or none at all throughout the day. Craig Eerkes, former chairman of the Petroleum Marketers Association of America talks of an expansion of gas with a change in the day's temperature. Eerkes calls the change, "Just so, so minuscule as to be almost nonexistent." The first few gallons at the pump may be slightly warmer than the gallons to follow, due to the gas sitting in the pump dispenser which was warmed by the sun. Aside from that, the time of day will not make a difference in the weight of your wallet.

Judy Dugan, Research Director for the California advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, says, "If fuel is warm when it’s delivered to a station, it’ll still be warm when it’s sold a few hours later." So the real advice? Go to the pump whenever you would like. The gasoline temperature will not increase with the afternoon sun.

Mass. residents heating oil bill forecast to hit $3,000

This year, the cost of heating oil is on the rise. The average 2009 oil bill for a Massachusetts household could top $3000 a month. This is a 30% increase from 2007. This year, residents could be paying $1 billion more in heating than in 2007, a very scary thought for a person working from paycheck to paycheck.

The price of oil, and this winter's temperature will hopefully contribute to a drop in price as the temperature drops.

"Maybe the people who are very, very wealthy won't bat an eyelash," says Joseph P. Kennedy II, chairmain of the Boston-based non-profit Citizens Energy Corp to the Boston Globe.

"But for the regular people who are working from paycheck to paycheck and week to week, and don't have anything in the bank account, this is devastating." Kennedy's company provides discounted oil to senior citizens and low-income residents.

Mass. heating oil jumps $1,300 higher this winter

According to Mass AREA (Mass. Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance), those who use oil to heat their homes can expect to pay $1,300 more than last year to heat their home.

Here are a few low-cost tips from the group to save:

*Turn down the temperature of your water heater to the warm setting (120°F).

*Clean or replace furnace and heat-pump filters regularly

*Install low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators

*Change the five most-used lights in your home to compact fluorescent lamps and you’ll save more than $60 every year in energy costs

*Unplug that second, old refrigerator! Today’s models use at least 40% less energy than even the conventional models sold in 2001.

*Lower your thermostat – for every degree you save about 2 percent off your heating bill.

*Weather strip doors and windows – properly air sealing cracks and openings in your home can significantly reduce heating and cooling costs, improve building durability, and create a healthier indoor environment

*Use Power Strips – plug your electronics into power strips – especially televisions and computers. When you’re done using them, turn the power strip off to prevent the stand-by mode that draws unnecessary electricity

*Use the air dry setting on your dishwasher

*Keep shades and curtains open during the day on the south side of your home to allow solar heating. Close them at night to retain heat.

Consumer Prices Spike in June

Consumer prices spiked 1.1 percent last month—the second fastest increase in 26 years with a majority of the surge blamed on soaring energy costs--according to a report released by the Labor Department.

Swelling rates on home heating oil, gasoline and natural gas reflect the largest increase in years with a 6.6 spike upward in June. The report on retail inflation reflected similarly grim news revealing a 1.8 percent increase in wholesale prices.

Democrats in Congress say the new inflation report emphasized the need to pass a second stimulus package.

“We're not seeing danger for the economy on both sides ... growth is too slow and inflation is too high,” says Sen. Charles Schumer in a statement.

The White House expressed concern about the weakening economy in a recent press conference.

"The President is very concerned about the impact high prices are having on Americans, especially those who are on lower incomes,” presidential press secretary Dana Perino tells reporters.

“What the president would reiterate is what he said yesterday ... that the health of the overall economy is dependent on inflation remaining low,” Perino continues.

Click here for more information.

Big Chill Expected With Home Heating Oil

Sure, it's July but experts in Boston are already predicting that home heating oil could cost as much as $4.50 per gallon, possibly leading to deaths of the elderly and people on fixed incomes in the upcoming winter months.

The Senate's Post Audit and Oversight Committee released a report on July 1 warning that the spike in home heating oil prices could have a profound impact on low-income New Englanders. “People could literally freeze to death,” says Sen. Marc Pacheco (D-Taunton), chairman of the Senate committee. “It's a looming crisis.”

Energy experts have been stunned by the rise of heating oil prices this spring, when the cost of the fuel usually drops due to lower seasonal demand. The problem: crude oil prices have continued to set record after record on the wholesale world markets.

“I’ve never seen in 30 years anything like this,”remarks Joe Kennedy, president of Citizens Energy, a fuel-assistance nonprofit program in reports.

Consumer United's solution? We've partnered with Mass Energy where our members can save $150-$300 per year.

Last heating season, Mass Energy members saved an average of 24 cents per gallon compared to the state average--with the biggest per gallon savings occurring in the coldest months when most of the oil was consumed. This amounted to about $175 in savings per household.

Click here to learn more about Consumer United's heating oil solution.

As fuel costs soar, airlines charge $30 for baggage

As oil prices soar to $130 per barrel, airlines are scrambling to generate enough revenue to compensate for a $30 billion increase in fuel costs.

The good news? There isn't any.

United Airlines plans to start charging customers $30 round trip to check one bag on domestic flights and will boost the fees on other baggage beginning with airline tickets sold as of last Friday, June 13.

The fee to check three or more bags, overweight bags or items that require special handling will increase form $100 to $125 or from $200 to $250, depending on the item, the airline says in a released statement last Thursday.

“With record-breaking fuel prices, we must pursue new revenue opportunities, while continuing to offer competitive fares by tailoring our products and services around what our customers value most and are willing to pay for,” confirms John Tague, executive vice president and chief operating officer. Click here for more information.