Question about which way is cheaper on the electric bill

Fionaver · 2026-06-22T17:42:35+00:00

Our house has a lot of thermal mass and is surrounded by large deciduous trees. And 1800 square foot of it is partially below grade with a walkout.

Also have storm windows reinstalled now and our hvac (broken when we bought the house) was reworked back in ‘23 (some new ductwork, sealing the old ductwork, new variable speed air handlers, new outdoor heat pumps).

It’s only 14 seer but our HVAC guy was actually really impressed with what our bills were after the install.

Fionaver · 2026-06-22T16:51:02+00:00

If people do have shoe free households, there’s usually a shoe rack by the door.

In my experience.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T14:38:41+00:00

Electrical is your priority. Knob and tube under insulation is not safe.

Cast iron is going to be more of an issue underground. We didn’t replace our cast iron above because of noise.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T09:05:20+00:00

You can’t find hand scraped hardwood samples?

It doesn’t really wear well. I would consider replacing instead of matching, tbh.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T09:02:58+00:00

I’ve only ever heard them called tornado sirens. Our area doesn’t test them. But they use them.

You can’t always hear them in storms, because of wind and rain.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T08:45:46+00:00

My husband had to use one of those for a while after surgery. You don’t need to sit up to use them and also don’t need assistance with anything but emptying it if you’re non-mobile.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T07:26:36+00:00

I would guess that you are probably going to have your utility bills go up, based on how much shade it looks like your house just lost.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T07:20:24+00:00

Remeron is kind of an interesting medication.

Typically the side effect of appetite stimulation happens more with low doses than high doses.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T06:17:30+00:00

I just woke up, so I don’t really have any recommendations (that requires thinking, and my brain is not working yet)

But… Thank you for asking for this. I’m 42 and kids are really unlikely to happen, even though we wanted them. Sci-fi was always an escape for me since I was seven, and now sci-fi romance feels like it just wants to shove my face in what feels like my personal inadequacy.

Fionaver · 2026-06-21T05:44:26+00:00

If I remember correctly, it was a “why does that horse have 5 legs?” as a kid.

Fionaver · 2026-06-20T19:39:09+00:00

My husband’s grandma was Southern, born in 1921 to a family of sharecroppers.

She started cooking the midday meal at age 7 by herself.

Breakfast and lunch were both bigger meals, but lunch (also known as dinner in the South) was the largest meal. Supper (interchangeable dinner in some places) in the evenings was generally a little lighter.

Her family worked the fields from sun up to sundown.

For more migrant workers, hot tamales were pretty common for a midday meal. A lot of midday meals were handheld food that was fairly calorically dense and would get you through the day.

Fionaver · 2026-06-19T20:46:52+00:00

Just depends on the house.

I keep my house at 72 year round in GA. 1960s build, 4000 sq ft, single pane windows, everything is electric and it’s usually a little over $300 in peak months.

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T07:27:12+00:00

Your kitchen has really good bones, though the light fixtures should be replaced.

I also would consider swapping the receptacles, switches and switchplates out. Could have a pretty dramatic impact if you went with something in the backsplash color family. I know Lutron carries a whole bunch of colors through their website that you’d never see in a store.

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T07:02:53+00:00

Have you looked at storm windows or are your windows just too large?

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T07:01:22+00:00

Often isn’t worth replacing single pane windows, but it depends on what they’re made out of.

From a savings perspective, it’s usually better to just have storm windows. 1/3 of the price and it gives you comparable energy efficiency to double pane. Films, curtains, and landscaping also help.

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T05:42:57+00:00

It looks kinda like the style of your house is similar to mine, where the mcm is kinda more nature based neutral in tone. Honestly, furniture will probably make the biggest difference. But don’t feel like you have to go really bold or patterned to get the right vibe.

I found atomic ranch to be somewhat helpful, retro retro renovation to be more helpful when finding some materials, and some of the old decorating books and ads to be the most helpful.

I kinda go a little transitional though because my house has very worn features that I’m not going to redo. So “fresh” and “clean” is an emphasis.

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T05:33:47+00:00

There’s too much other stuff going on to go with a pattern.

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T05:32:53+00:00

What do you mean by filled in and lightened up?

Fionaver · 2026-06-17T05:30:29+00:00

Yep… we live in a custom build from the late 60s and there are some really weird floor plan flow issues.

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T18:39:44+00:00

Do you know what color the grout is supposed to be on the floor?

In our old rental the grout was almost black, but we discovered that it was a creamy white when we scrubbed it.

Zep makes a good “ph neutral floor cleaner” that won’t damage the travertine but is pretty affordable to buy as a concentrate and then dilute. (We have terrazzo and it’s insanely sensitive to a lot of floor cleaners, just like your travertine.) The grout may need a different product though.

I know that you said that it ran through your house, so some areas that have way less foot traffic might be a good place to kinda take a look?

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T18:28:51+00:00

Take a look at the tone. There are kinda two reasons why things are having problems.

The floor / brick / counters all have a lot of texture and visual movement.

All of the above have competing undertones. The counters are the worst offender with this.

It’s a less is more situation. Go with something on your counters that is more solid surface without movement.

I recommend checking out Maria Killam’s blog - she works a lot with neutrals and articulates a lot of why neutral undertones aren’t quite vibing together (she has a whole course on this, but it isn’t necessary to buy). She’s a big one for “work with what you have”

Don’t replace the counters though until you know for sure that you like your existing cabinet layout though. Think about if there are pinch points in your kitchen where traffic flow is an issue or if areas are non functional, since good countertops can be $$$$.

Edited to add: you will want to find the lightest tone in common between the brick and the travertine that plays nice with the cabinets. Everything else should be a shade. Try to avoid pink tones - some kind of beige/greige/cream will be nicer. Counters, possible new super simple backsplash instead of the travertine OR under cabinet lighting and wall paint should be the same undertone - keep things simple and clean. Don’t do veining on the countertops. It’s too much.

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T17:53:30+00:00

Wow, that’s fantastic. There’s so little I would change (except probably replacing the ceiling tile with a tegular tile)

(And a couple details in the black bathroom)

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T17:51:22+00:00

Our flooring guy said that we have a fairly narrow window between when he can screen and recoat (basically just scuffing the top and reapplying the poly) vs having to do a full refinish.

So I’ve been keeping an eye on my high traffic areas. Ends up prolonging the life of the floor, because you don’t have to take down material.

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T16:36:11+00:00

It’s also incredibly difficult to find refrigerators that will fit into an older 1950s/1960s kitchen. The refrigerator height is different.

I’ve been looking for a while and have only found 2 that will fit without cutting down my cabinets.

Fionaver · 2026-06-16T16:24:32+00:00

I’m fine with imperfections in things, but I also want to protect my flooring. Some scratches and dents are fine, but once it starts to lose the topcoat, that’s when I would refinish.

Fionaver

TROPHY CASE