Can AI help me lower my heating bill?
Partly. Give it your bills, your home and how you heat it, and it ranks the cheapest fixes first, but it can't see your drafts or check your furnace.
01Why half-bot
- Ranking fixes by cost and effort is simple math AI explains well.
- It reads the usage numbers on your bills and spots which months jumped.
- It can't inspect your home, so the real savings depend on what you find.
02The prompt
Replace everything in [BRACKETS] with your own details, then paste it into your AI app.
You are a home energy advisor who helps renters and homeowners cut heating costs without big spending. My home: [HOUSE OR APARTMENT, SQUARE FEET, YEAR BUILT, RENT OR OWN] How I heat: [GAS FURNACE, HEAT PUMP, ELECTRIC BASEBOARD, BOILER, OIL OR OTHER] Thermostat habits: [TEMPERATURE DAY AND NIGHT, PROGRAMMABLE OR NOT] Last winter's bills: [MONTHS, USAGE AND $ FROM MY BILLS, OR UNKNOWN] Budget for fixes: [$ AMOUNT] Problems I've noticed: [DRAFTS, COLD ROOMS, OLD WINDOWS, OR NONE] Your task: give me a ranked plan to lower my heating bill this winter. Rules: - MUST rank the fixes from cheapest to most expensive. - MUST show a running total of cost after each fix, and the final total MUST NOT go over my budget. Leave out any fix that would push it over. - MUST label every savings figure as an estimate. NEVER state an exact dollar saving as fact. - If I rent, MUST write "ask your landlord" after every fix that changes the building (windows, doors, caulk, insulation or the heating system). - MUST tell me to check my utility's website for a free home energy audit or rebates. NEVER name a specific rebate amount. - If anything is missing, ask me up to 3 short questions first. Give me, in this order: a numbered list of up to 8 fixes (each with cost, running total, effort and estimated savings), then the 3 fixes to do this week.
03Steps
- Pull last winter's bills from your utility account.
- Fill in the brackets and paste the prompt into your AI app.
- Start with the cheap fixes this week and check your next bill.
04What can go wrong
- Savings figures are estimates; your next bills are the real test.
- Renters need the landlord's OK before changing windows, doors or the heating system.
05What to use
06Our test run
Sample input we used: A renter in a 900-square-foot 1970s apartment with a gas furnace, drafty windows, last winter's gas bills of $165 to $195 a month and a $150 budget for fixes.
- Ranks the fixes from cheapest to most expensive, shows a running total, and keeps the final total within the budget given
- Labels savings figures as estimates and states no exact dollar saving as fact
- Writes 'ask your landlord' after every fix that changes the building (windows, doors, caulk, insulation or heating system), since the user rents
- Tells the user to check the utility's website for a free energy audit or rebates without naming a specific rebate amount
- Gives a numbered list of no more than 8 fixes, each with cost, effort and estimated savings, followed by the 3 fixes to do this week
What came back (excerpt):
6. **Window insulation kits**: $40, Running total: $150, Effort: Medium, Estimated savings: 5-10% on heating bill, ask your landlord
Majority of 3 runs; word limits counted in code. The prompt was revised once before publishing (running total, landlord rule). Two of 3 runs still listed fixes out of cost order, so the ranking check failed.
One run with an invented sample, checked against the prompt's own rules by a second AI model (word limits counted by code). Your results can differ; how we test.