Tag Archives: energy conservation

11.22.16
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ES (energy simply) and EVs (electric vehicles)

Energy Simply customers are part of a special market segment. Busy, upscale professionals who are sophisticated in leveraging their consumer powers. That is why we’re dedicating today’s post to the intersection of ES and EVs.

Recently, the Chevy Bolt EV was named Motor Trend’s 2017 car of the year. “Simply put, it’s twice the car for half the price of a BMW i3,” guest judge Chris Theodore said. “A better car, better package, much better handling, with twice the range.”bolt

On the flip side of the news cycle, Tesla recently came under a bit of fire for announcing they’d no longer offer free electric charge-ups to their customers. Depending on how much driving and electric rates, the added costs are estimated between $300 to $1000 per year.

But we’re not just shilling for Chevy or slinging at Tesla. Those who wish to save on their fuel costs by purchasing an EV can save even more if they are in the cheapest electricity plan. Why? Because electric rates vary widely in Texas between lows of 3 cents and highs of 14 cents and if you are charging your vehicle you would not want to pay nearly 5 times more than you have to, right? So, smart and savvy consumer, sign up for http://www.EnergySimp.ly, and take a deep breath knowing that you’ll always have the cheapest electric rate available.

11.18.16
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FAQ: What if Comed is the cheapest?

Comed’s electric rates have recently gone down in Illinois prompting the question: what if my cheapest option is the “default” option? In Illinois, if you don’t proactively choose a retail electric provider you auto-default to Comed. This is different from Texas where you must choose a retail electric provider.  Diagram.

For Customers Who Want the Cheapest Electric: There are times when Comed offers a competitive rate, but even when their prices go down, there are typically still a handful of cheaper rates or incentives packages that we can switch our customers into. While the savings might, for a limited time, become smaller they’re still savings. And when prices begin to swing back up – you’ll rest easy knowing that you’re still getting the cheapest.

The Green Answer: Many of our Illinois customers utilize our service to ensure they’re always getting the cheapest 100% renewable electricity. Typically the cost is the same or just slightly more, as outlined in this past blog post. Since we are constantly monitoring and switching our customers into the cheapest rates, our customers often get to take advantage of cash back and gift card incentives from their electric providers as well.

10.01.16
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Seasons Changing, Energy Needs Changing

fall

Today marks the first day of October and you have likely made some changes in your home climate control (or soon will be.)  If you’re in a warm part of the country like Texas, your electricity needs may be decreasing significantly as the weather cools-off and you can turn-down your air conditioning.  If you’re in a cooler part of the country like Illinois, your electricity needs may be increasing as you need to heat your home.  For many of Energy Simply’s customers, electricity usage varies by more than 2x between the summer months and the winter months.

If you’re not already signed-up as a customer of Energy Simply, having us keep you in the best electricity plan for YOUR home, now is a great time to consider signing-up.  Learn more about how Energy Simply saves you significant money by keeping you in the best electricity plan for your home at: https://www.energysimp.ly/how-it-works.

04.22.16
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Obligatory Earth Day Post

Too cynical? Probably, but if you’re like me you’re probably a little tired of every company using Earth Day as a way to sell its wares. Well, today we aren’t buying into the hype. We make good decisions every day to promote Earth’s health and environmentalism, and our company is working – one household at a time – to try and get more people using renewably produced electricity.

Here’s an article from Inhabitat writer Jill Fehrenbacher about the top 5 worst Earth Day Gimmicks. It’s a fun read, and a good reminder that our actions every day are what count. It’s a good reason to think about what habitual changes you can make to protect the health of the planet. Might we suggest choosing 100% renewable electric? There’s a good chance it won’t even cost more than traditional. Happy Earth Day!

01.07.16
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Seasonal Variance and Personal Variance

How do seasons and personal energy usage impact costs?

Your electricity bill varies significantly by season.  If you live in Texas, you’re likely using relatively little energy during the winter months and likely using lots of energy during the summer months.

We use data below from a randomly selected sample of twenty-five Energy Simply customers from Texas.

SEASONAL VARIANCE: Look at the line in the graph below labeled “TX Average.”  The horizontal line labeled “1” below represents average usage.  Looking at the six months from November to April, electricity usage is well below average; but for the three summer months from June to August, usage is well above average.  If your average usage was around 1,000 kWh, you would want to find the best plan for 750 kWh in the winter months and around 1,500 kWh in the summer months.  Rarely is one plan the best plan at both of these usage levels so you’ll want to be switching plans when the seasons change (or let Energy Simply do this for you.)

Seasonal and Personal variance PNG

PERSONAL VARIANCE: Seasonal variance is a big factor in choosing the best plan for you, but personal variance is also very important.  “TX Customer 1” and “TX Customer 2” represent two customers from the randomly selected sample of 25.  They illustrate the significant variance individuals might have even from the average.  Assuming an average monthly usage of 1,000 kWh for both of these customers, “TX Customer 1” used more than 2,500 kWh in June; more than 2.5x their average.  “TX Customer 2” used about 333 kWh in February and March; about 1/3 of their average.  Most plans that are good deals at 2,500 kWh/month are not so good at 1,000 kWh or 500 kWh; and same for plans that are good deals for 500 kWh/month aren’t often so good for 1,000 kWh/month or 2,000 kWh/month.

If you want to be in the best plans for your personalized usage, you should be changing with the seasons (or letting Energy Simply do this for you.)

11.10.15
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Winter is coming: let us help you save

It’s November and winter is coming.  According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 65% of energy costs are tied to heating or lighting; and these are costs that will increase in the winter months: Winter is coming jpg

  • Colder outside temperatures mean more energy is needed to heat your home and water
  • Shorter winter daylight hours mean more energy is needed to light your home

There’s a good chance you’re probably paying more than you need for the electricity you’re going to need more of.  Energy Simply is a consumer-focused service that monitors the complex and frequently changing energy market and helps you get the best deal, personalized FOR YOUR electricity usage.  Learn more about how Energy Simply works and sign-up to start saving today:https://www.energysimp.ly/users/sign_up.

(Data and graphic from: U.S. Department of Energy)

11.05.15
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Chicagoland Residents could go green AND save 5% vs ComEd

A large number of people in the Chicagoland area are with their incumbent electricity provider, ComEd, and likely paying too much for electricity.

From, October 2015 through May 2016, ComEd is charging its customers $0.07006/kWh.  If you’re in a two-bedroom apartment and using 1,000 kWh/month, you’re paying $70.06 (plus a fixed delivery fee) per month.  If you’re in a four-paying too muchbedroom house using 2,000 kWh/month, you’re paying $140.12 (plus delivery fee) per month.

If you just wanted the cheapest plan, you could be saving about 15% and if you wanted to go green with 100% renewable energy, you could still be saving 5% compared to your default ComEd rate.

Energy Simply actively monitors the Illinois energy market including the nearly 80 plans available for Chicagoland residents as of early October and watches for the best deals for our customers.  We automatically switch you to the cheapest electricity provider for your home based on applying our proprietary models to your own energy usage.  Learn more at:https://www.energysimp.ly/how-it-works or sign-up at: https://www.energysimp.ly/users/sign_up.

10.28.15
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Chicago Case Study: Go Green and Save Green

Case Study: Go Green and Save Green

Abbie works for an environmental non-profit in the Chicago-area.  She cares deeply about the environment and wants to use renewable energy for her small apartment.  BUT, Abbie also works for a non-profit so she was worried that green energy would be too expensive.   girl_environmental_activist_H

Abbie saw our cost comparison for green energy and decided that for about 0% – 15% premium, she could afford to choose 100% renewable energy.  Abbie had been on the default plan for her area and by signing-up for Energy Simply she actually was able to get a lower price on 100% renewable energy than she had been paying.

Sign up for Energy Simply’s service and you can rest easy knowing you’re getting the cheapest or cheapest green energy at all times.

10.14.15
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It’s Rob’s Birthday and he wants you to switch to renewable

Ecofriendly Birthday Cake

Picture courtesy of http://www.ecofriend.com

This week I celebrate a milestone birthday and I have a small favor to ask: please consider switching to 100% renewable energy.  As shown in a previous blog post, renewable energy is sometimes the same price as or sometimes 10%-15% more expensive than non-renewable energy.

This was a big year for my spouse and I as we raise our first child in (see my personal Facebook page for pictures) and we are experiencing all of the joys and challenges of parenthood.  One of those joys and challenges is thinking about the world you want your child to live in.

I have heard people say that the current generation is the first generation to experience the effects of pollution and the last one that can make a major change.  I hope that for sake of the next generation, we have the collective will to make a change.

Thanks–

–Rob

P.S. Energy Simply is only available in some states, but there are options to go 100% renewable in nearly all states.  For example, in Washington state, Seattle City Light and Puget Sound Energy both offer programs to go renewable:

Rob Dolin is the Co-Founder and CTO of Energy Simply.  He has over a dozen years experience in the technology industry including work in the Office, MSN, and Windows divisions of Microsoft Corp. and technical partnerships with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Sina Weibo.  Rob holds a B.S. in Engineering with Honors from the University of Illinois and a Graduate Certificate in User-Centered Design from the University of Washington..

06.11.15
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Case Study: Small Apartment

Our company is primarily focused on saving Texas consumers money on their electricity. But we also have a unique offering in Illinois that makes up a smaller percentage of our business.

small apartmentAnne was an early adopter of the Energy Simply offering and she has been so pleased with our concept that she’s offered to provide customer testimony for marketing. When I first told Anne about our company I wasn’t sure I would have much chance of gaining her business. Her residence is a small, energy-efficient apartment in Chicago so her electricity use is extremely low. But what struck a chord with Anne wasn’t the money she could save – it was the convenient, no-risk way we could guarantee her the cheapest 100% renewable electricity. She’d carried the guilt around for months and months – knowing she could be buying energy produced from wind and solar, but not knowing where to start or how to avoid paying too much. Energy Simply provided the solution and now Anne’s carbon footprint is smaller – and she’s saving a few bucks a month to boot!

To review – even if you’re in a small apartment, Energy Simply can:

-Help you save if the apartment is older/innefficient

-Lower your carbon footprint by getting you the cheapest 100% renewable

-Ensure you’ll avoid expensive variable rate pricing or hidden fees sometimes associated with renewables

Check out our explainer video or contact us to learn more.