Ever open a bill and think you’re staring at a made-up language? Reading your gas bill can feel like that sometimes. Many homeowners look at the price, shrug their shoulders, and pay it without a second thought. Educating yourself on the details included in your gas bill can go a long way toward learning how to control energy usage in your home.
Details you should pay attention to:
Reading your gas bill means you’ll need to be aware of the terminology. All of the information is there; you simply need to know the definition of each item. Pay special attention to these terms:
- Baseline allowance – To calculate your bill, the gas company uses a tiered system. As you use more gas, the cost per unit exponentially increases. The gas company sets a baseline allowance, which indicates how much energy they have calculated will fulfill your basic needs.
- Btu (or BTU) – This abbreviation of British Thermal Unit indicates a measurement of heat energy that your home is using. You may also see this on your bill as either “therm” or “thm.” If your heating system is expending more heat than the baseline allows — even though you’ve taken steps to reduce your energy use — your equipment might need servicing or replacement.
- CCF and MCF – These terms might seem a little redundant, but they provide an alternate way of determining your energy use. CCF indicates 100 cubic feet of gas, whereas MCF indicates 1,000 cubic feet of gas.
Reading your gas bill can lower your costs
In order to evaluate your home’s energy use, you must be able to determine how that energy is being spent. Understanding the terms on your gas bill will help guide you in making necessary changes to your appliances or their daily use. Making these changes can help you formulate a plan to stay under your baseline allowance.
For more expert advice about reading your gas bill, or for questions regarding home comfort, please contact the friendly experts at Ace Hardware Home Services, Inc. We have been serving the HVAC needs of Dayton and the Miami Valley since 1978.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Dayton, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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