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I called the Gas/Electric company and they basically told me that it's all calculated automatically blah blah blah. We have central air but it hasn't been terribly hot; we keep it at about 73-74. I'm going to talk to the office now.
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Aug 29, 2012 21:15
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Doghouse posted:I just got a bill for one month of gas and electric for my one bedroom apartment in Baltimore - and it's for $335! Is this normal?? In St. Louis it was a third of that. We keep the lights off most of the day and it hasn't been that hot. What the hell. Has BGE installed the smart meters in your house yet? It should actually let you view which rooms are using the most juice. I'd also contact the land lord and ask them to have an energy auditor come by to take a look. They can usually get it subsidized to some extent. e: Oh, and if you just moved in then part of that is probably the turn on fee, admin fee, and security deposit that they love to gouge you for.
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Aug 29, 2012 21:23
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psydude posted:Has BGE installed the smart meters in your house yet? It should actually let you view which rooms are using the most juice. I'd also contact the land lord and ask them to have an energy auditor come by to take a look. They can usually get it subsidized to some extent. I'll look into the smart meters, I didn't see anything about it on my bill. Yeah about 68 is for the deposit, but I already paid another 88 when I moved in which was 68 for deposit and another 20 for...whatever, activation or something.
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Aug 29, 2012 22:39
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Doghouse posted:I called the Gas/Electric company and they basically told me that it's all calculated automatically blah blah blah. Often it's based on previous usage and they may not have actually looked at your meter. Is that what you mean by calculated automatically? I don't know if you could request a meter reading but I don't see why not. 73-74 is pretty cool. My electric/gas bill was $140 something in June when I used my A/C a lot and I had it only on like 76-78 the whole time. The next month it was $60 when I had it on a lot less. If nothing else, reconsider how low you keep the temperature. I also don't leave mine on when I'm not home.
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Aug 30, 2012 02:25
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For those in need of new couches and other home furnishings, this time around Labor Day is always a great time for sales and discounts at both outlet warehouses and regular home furnishing stores.
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Aug 30, 2012 17:37
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What's the opinion on desktop dishwashers? Moving to an apartment that will require it id I don't want to do everything myself. Anything to watch out for?
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Aug 30, 2012 20:59
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Eggplant Wizard posted:Often it's based on previous usage and they may not have actually looked at your meter. Is that what you mean by calculated automatically? I don't know if you could request a meter reading but I don't see why not. Yeah maybe the air is it. We didn't have central air in our last apartment. Well, BGE basically told me to screw off when I talked to them again, so I guess we'll have to try the air thing. Thanks for the insight.
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Aug 30, 2012 21:09
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Doghouse posted:Yeah maybe the air is it. We didn't have central air in our last apartment. Well, BGE basically told me to screw off when I talked to them again, so I guess we'll have to try the air thing. Thanks for the insight. Ask for historical records and see if you're in line with that.
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Aug 30, 2012 21:46
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I just had the opposite happen to me in terms of power bills. My previous house was a mid-century stuffy duplex with central heat/AC. The unit was poo poo and decided to poo poo itself every other year, and when it did work, it had weak airflow and sucked power like mad. The HVAC guys told us every time that the unit was poo poo and should be replaced, but while the landlord was happy to fix it, they reeeally didn't want to replace it while it was still fixable, despite how inefficient it was. So yeah, if anyone knocked the thermostat below 75, the power bill was astronomical and my housemate in the basement would freeze and threaten to turn on the baseboard heater (another massive power hog). I guess we kind of just dealt with it because were students/first-time renters and had no point of reference for how much we should have been paying in power. Last month of me living there, electric was like $250. My new place is a second-floor unit in a 111-year-old quad, so no central AC. Despite being on the second floor, the place has really good thermal management due to high ceilings, lots of windows, attic venting, and apparently good insulation, so we don't actually need AC to be comfortable. Just got the electric bill, and it was $32. It was glorious. Even so, $300 for a 1-bedroom is loving insane. These places are 4-bedroom and spacious 3-bedroom, respectively, in a land of decently hot summers (PA). I'd try to get the AC unit checked out/fixed/replaced, because a unit that's working double overtime to keep the house cool due to it being an inefficient piece of poo poo does untold damage to your electric bill.
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Aug 30, 2012 22:34
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Comstar posted:What's the opinion on desktop dishwashers? Moving to an apartment that will require it id I don't want to do everything myself. Anything to watch out for? What's a desktop dishwasher? Just get a dish rack and wash your own dishes dude. On your question from the previous page about rugs, have you considered Flor tiles? It's modular carpet (tiles instead of one big wall-to-wall piece) so if you spill something, just replace the one tile instead of an entire rug. website: http://www.flor.com/ Also, don't wear shoes inside your house. That will track a lot less dirt inside and keep your floors cleaner.
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Aug 30, 2012 23:53
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The desktop ones look like they hardly hold anything at all. Is a regular sized dishwasher an option? I got mine from craigslist for free and built a cabinet on wheels to hold it. Just hook up a hose to the sink when its running, and you're set.
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Aug 31, 2012 00:11
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Jesus christ, there is an original two-seater Knoll Saarinen pedestal on Craigslist for $250 and my girlfriend won't let me buy it because the edges have some nicks in them.  Fake edit: she said this is beat up.  
Fixed Gear Guy fucked around with this message at 00:46 on Aug 31, 2012 |
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Aug 31, 2012 00:34
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If she has no understanding of design history I could understand her point of view. I'm a designer so I say you should get it anyway. I mean, if I showed that to my boyfriend I guarantee his reaction would be "why would you want that old thing?".
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Aug 31, 2012 01:19
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Aquatic Giraffe posted:If she has no understanding of design history I could understand her point of view. I'm a designer so I say you should get it anyway. The crazy thing is that she likes the crappy CB2 knockoff (and the even crappier IKEA one). I just got a check from a car insurance refund for $180 so gently caress it, I'm buying it tomorrow. The one side to the right looks clean so maybe the owner just really likes the distressed look (I do too). That thing with the Crate and Barrel walnut series 7 knockoffs 
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Aug 31, 2012 01:24
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ConfusedUs posted:Ask for historical records and see if you're in line with that. Yeah I did ask - the average month over a year came out to a quarter of what I paid. I pointed this out to the BGE person and they said that I had to take into account that this was only an average, and maybe this month was more because it was hot.
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Aug 31, 2012 01:26
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Fixed Gear Guy posted:Jesus christ, there is an original two-seater Knoll Saarinen pedestal on Craigslist for $250 and my girlfriend won't let me buy it because the edges have some nicks in them. This looks like it'd be wobbly as hell. Disclaimer: I know nothing about furniture design or aesthetics.
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Aug 31, 2012 01:59
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Fixed Gear Guy posted:Jesus christ, there is an original two-seater Knoll Saarinen pedestal on Craigslist for $250 and my girlfriend won't let me buy it because the edges have some nicks in them.
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Aug 31, 2012 02:06
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i like nice words
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Is that supposed to be an end table or are those really large frames?
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Aug 31, 2012 13:34
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Went to do the inspection report. Many things broken, including no smoke alarm (which is a legal requirement here). This is fortunate as the old gas stove grill puts out so much smoke it would cause any smoke alarm to go off. Agent says smoke detector will be installed Monday. I probably need to replace the stove myself to stop it filling the apartment with gas from the dodgy hot plates before it fills the apartment with smoke. Bathroom has zero ventilation - the window is painted over. A four foot patch of mould above the shower HAS been fixed at any rate after the roof was pained. Agent says it may take "weeks" to get a quote to install a vent or get the window opened. The lounge room windows won't open (more paint) and the bedroom window won't close. Is it normal for double deadlocks not to be able to open on the inside without a key? If there's a fire and I don't have a key to the door to escape, I'm 3 floors up and doomed. I'm going to get the lock changed anyway. There is a distinct stench of someone smoking dope 3 apartments down which gave me a splitting headache every time I walked past. The stench of the smoke was not much dissipated by the stench of strong incense that was infesting the entranceway later. And I found a news report saying someone died in a top floor apartment after a painter noticed someone "tied to a chair and apparently dead". The police commented that it was "not suspicious". It may have not been my apartment - it's a 50/50 chance it was. Al in all, today was not a good day.
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Sep 1, 2012 12:57
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Any recommendations on good bedsheets?
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Sep 1, 2012 14:53
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DanManIt posted:Any recommendations on good bedsheets? Multiple page sperging about sheets from much earlier in the thread 
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Sep 1, 2012 14:57
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In all fairness sheets are stupidly confusing.
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Sep 1, 2012 21:31
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Anyone have a link to one of the Mattress threads that pop up from time to time? I'm in the market for a new one.
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Sep 2, 2012 03:25
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Our apartment has some big bay windows, which are generally awesome. However, the blinds that came with the place are not doing much to cut down the light that comes in. Does anyone have recommendations on what sort of material to use to really block out light? It would also be great if they served to dampen sound and improve insulation a little for the winter. Suggestions on places (retail or online) to get decent curtains would be great too.
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Sep 2, 2012 12:24
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Ashcans posted:Our apartment has some big bay windows, which are generally awesome. However, the blinds that came with the place are not doing much to cut down the light that comes in. Does anyone have recommendations on what sort of material to use to really block out light? It would also be great if they served to dampen sound and improve insulation a little for the winter. Blackout curtains are a good choice if you want to block out 100% of the light, like if you work nights and have to sleep during the day. Otherwise, any kind of drape or curtain should be better than blinds, blinds are terrible for this sort of thing. Look in person at a few, and hold them up to the light to see how much they let through. Also, check the linings, there are UV rated linings that are supposed to block out a certain % of light and it will say so on the package. Other than that, it's really hard to give links and so forth because light is a secondary concern for most people after window dimensions and style. These are some pretty basic blackout curtains,
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Sep 2, 2012 16:45
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I live in an old building where the only bathroom ventilation is a hole in the wall, covered by a grate, that leads into an air shaft that's shared by me and at least 5 other units next to and below mine. The problem is that I live on the top floor, and any strong chemical odor that gets in the vent tends to rise and come into my bathroom. It wouldn't bother me if it was only once in a while, but most mornings, this incredibly strong perfume scent that I have a pretty bad allergic reaction to comes through into my bathroom. It's so strong that it can wake me up if I happen to leave both my bedroom and bathroom doors open. Can anyone suggest some kind of way I can neutralize that smell in my bathroom? Some kind of odor-eater thing maybe? If I can avoid it, I'd rather not go knocking on 5 different doors bothering my neighbors about something that won't have anything to do with most of them.
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Sep 2, 2012 17:40
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So winter is coming, and my bed linens are looking pretty worse for wear. Does anyone have experience with IKEA's down comforters (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80133510/) pillows, or other bedding?
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Sep 2, 2012 22:24
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ghableska posted:So winter is coming, and my bed linens are looking pretty worse for wear. Does anyone have experience with IKEA's down comforters (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80133510/) pillows, or other bedding? I had IKEA sheets and a comforter/duvet cover for four years while in college and they held up pretty well. The sheets aren't the softest things in the world, but their duvets are really nice and toasty warm.
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Sep 3, 2012 00:58
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Awesome, do they breathe pretty well? I have a micro fleece blanket and I get warm and start sweating, and then get cold, several times during the night.
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Sep 3, 2012 02:56
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I'd say they breathe decently. There were a couple times I woke up sweating, but those were few and far between and usually for other reasons besides the comforter, like being sick and whatnot. The one I had was pretty flexible, so it was easy to kick off in the middle of the night.
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Sep 3, 2012 04:41
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Last night my ancient computer chair (of about 8 years) finally gave up the ghost and had one of the arms snap into half while I was leaning back. It's still usable for the short term but it's pretty much time to replace it. So I'm looking for a new chair. I'm fairly tall so I want a chair that sits pretty high and it needs to breathe well so I'm looking for something with a mesh back - something like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16848201134 this. T arms bug me though but I guess I probably won't find a chair those days with a mesh back AND arms that are attached. Do you have any recommendations?
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Sep 3, 2012 14:54
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Did you know that Overstock has a bunch of MCM knockoffs? Because they do. I just bought two Eames rocker chairs and a Nelson bench for under $400 delivered. Holy poo poo.
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Sep 3, 2012 16:13
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I just moved into a new place and have a question about the window AC. The apt is a one bedroom with a window AC in the bedroom. To determine the power this thing should have, do I take into account only the bedroom size or the size of the whole apartment? Not that much cooling gets past the bedroom door. The thing is 18000 btu and the apartment is no more than 600sqft; the bedroom can't be over 250 or so. Basically the thing seems to be way larger than it should be in either case? I've never had anything but central air so I'm new to this. It is really damp and management is dragging their feet about checking it out. Apologies if I missed an ac thread. 
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Sep 3, 2012 18:02
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I'm not quite sure what your question is. Usually a window unit won't cut it for more than one room at a time, no, so that's normal. I'd suggest getting another unit or a dehumidifier for the rest of your apartment.
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Sep 3, 2012 19:42
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Brannock posted:Last night my ancient computer chair (of about 8 years) finally gave up the ghost and had one of the arms snap into half while I was leaning back. It's still usable for the short term but it's pretty much time to replace it.
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Sep 3, 2012 20:18
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That A/C is way oversized for your bedroom and more than sufficient for the total square-footage of your apartment. Your bedroom will overcool without the dehumidifying effect. Circulating air between your bedroom and the living area will be difficult. Depending on layout, you'd probably be better off placing the A/C in a larger central room and using a fan to circulate air between your living room and bedroom.
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Sep 3, 2012 20:21
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The ac is built into the wall (which is also the reason I haven't attempted to remove it in order to clean it) so I can't move it.  I'm actually fine with the living room being warm; I guess I was trying to figure out if the ac was comically oversized or just a bit oversized. So I assume that it being 3x as strong as it should be is probably why it is so damp? Can I force the landlord to put in a smaller ac? Ugh moving.
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Sep 3, 2012 20:42
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Newbie apartment hunt question: if the listing says "credit report required", and I basically have nonexistent credit, should I even bother contacting them? I pulled the free report from one of the big bureaus (Trans-something? I have the hard copy somewhere) but it was just a list of my student loans (which I'm assuming don't help my case at all).
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Sep 4, 2012 07:24
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Mike Danger posted:Newbie apartment hunt question: if the listing says "credit report required", and I basically have nonexistent credit, should I even bother contacting them? I pulled the free report from one of the big bureaus (Trans-something? I have the hard copy somewhere) but it was just a list of my student loans (which I'm assuming don't help my case at all).
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Sep 4, 2012 07:27
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Mike Danger posted:Newbie apartment hunt question: if the listing says "credit report required", and I basically have nonexistent credit, should I even bother contacting them? I pulled the free report from one of the big bureaus (Trans-something? I have the hard copy somewhere) but it was just a list of my student loans (which I'm assuming don't help my case at all). From your post I am guessing you are either still in college or a recent grad? It's not unusual for people in your demographic to have a pretty shallow credit history. They might ask you about your job or your income, but assuming that you have that and your answer to 'How are you going to pay the rent' isn't 'bitcoins' you should be fine. The reason they are pulling your credit is basically to see if you have a ton of bad accounts, and particularly to check if you have anything from a previous rental you ducked out on. Assuming all your student loans aren't delinquent or something you should be fine.
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Sep 4, 2012 14:35
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