The summer months usually come with calls for power conservation and warnings about system overloads. But this year, residents cut back on their own — thanks to the soaring price of electricity.

Last Thursday, when the temperature in Honolulu hit nearly 90 degrees, electricity consumption on O'ahu was 2 percent lower than the same day last year. The day before, consumption was also down 2 percent from last year, a Hawaiian Electric Co. spokesman said.

Though HECO would not release consumption totals for the past three months, recently released figures show statewide residential power consumption from January to June decreased 4.6 percent, compared with the same period in 2007.

The numbers put the state on track for its first decrease in annual residential electricity consumption in more than a decade, despite a slight increase in the number of power customers and a hot, dry summer.

"Residential accounts are up, but consumption is down," said Ted Peck, administrator of the Strategic Industries Division in the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

"That's exactly the direction we want to go."

Experts say the high price of fuel is largely driving the trend.

But they say the decreased consumption could stick around, even if prices drop a bit, because more residents are installing energy-efficient appliances and getting used to new habits — like turning out lights in an empty room.

The lower consumption figures come as governments, businesses and residents are reeling from higher electricity bills. Despite the decrease in use, the total residents spent on electricity skyrocketed in the first six months of the year.

Statewide, residents spent 35 percent more on power from January to June, compared with the same period last year. On O'ahu, residents spent 40 percent more on electricity, new figures show. Commercial users statewide also spent 40 percent more on power, while commercial users on O'ahu spent 48 percent more.

FUEL COSTS PASSED ON

The price of fuel is to blame since that cost is passed on to customers, HECO spokesman Darren Pai said. The residential rate for electricity was 20.52 cents per kilowatt hour on average last year. Currently, it's 31.3 cents.

Pai said decreased electricity consumption is likely largely related to the higher price statewide.

"Customers are understanding the importance of conservation," he said, "and are making it part of their lifestyle."

That's true for Kaimuki resident Abigail Burdett, who said she has seen the electricity bill for her family of four go up by about $40 in the past several months. The increase comes despite their efforts to cut consumption.

"We shut off the lights, turn off the power surge cords before we go to sleep," said Burdett, 23, whose children are 1 and 3.

Honey Maluyo, of Kalihi, said there are 13 people in her multi-family home so cutting back on power is important — if difficult. Her electric bill for last month was $573, she said, up from about $400 in previous months.

She said the increase came despite less television and computer use and other smaller changes — like not leaving the rice pot on all day. "It's hard to cut down," she said, laughing.

But not everyone has caught the conservation bug.

Al Thanh, 44, of Kapi'olani, said electricity would have to get a lot more expensive for him to consider using his air conditioner less. Thanh's power bill has nearly doubled since last year, from $70 to about $135 a month.

"I've got to use my air conditioner. I'll turn it off when it's not hot," he said, before jumping on his moped, which he says is how he is cutting back on expenses.

Others — like Layne Silva and Gentry Goslin — are using air conditioning less. The Mo'ili'ili couple said they turn off their unit when they leave, whereas before they might have left it on. As a result, they haven't seen a big spike in their bill.

SUMMER HOTTER, DRIER

Summer is traditionally the peak of electricity use in the Islands, largely because people crank up their air conditioning.

And this summer was hotter and drier than normal, spurring drought conditions in parts of all islands.

Forecasters predict daytime temperatures will continue to stay in the mid- to high-80s through October. Trade winds will be erratic, sometimes dropping off completely, and no heavy rain is expected, said Tim Craig, National Weather Service lead forecaster.

In previous summers, HECO has put out urgent calls for power conservation when electricity output barely met demand. Those calls were issued three times from November 2005 to June 2006. Last year, power generation exceeded demand, and Pai said HECO has a cushion again this year — even if O'ahu's demand increases.

Meanwhile, residents also appear to be cutting back slightly on water use.

O'ahu residents used an average of 161.71 million gallons of water per day last month, down slightly from 164.22 million gallons a day in September 2007, said Cliff Lum, manager and chief engineer of the Board of Water Supply. The decrease is not notable, he added, while pointing out water rates have not gone up much over the past year.

Peter Rappa, an environmental review coordinator at the University of Hawai'i, said price is one of the strongest motivators for conservation, and points to the big dip in power use as evidence. "People's bills are through the roof," Rappa said.

He said as the price of oil falls slightly over the next several months, as drivers have already started to see at gas stations, the price of electricity will go down as well and "you might see more and more people tempted to go back to their old ways."

But he added that the drop in fuel prices is a "blip" that won't last.

Rappa added that one of the more encouraging results of the soaring prices is more residents are buying energy-efficient appliances. Last year, 5,295 solar water heaters were installed in the Islands. That's 44 percent of the 12,000 solar water heaters that were installed nationwide in 2007, according to Peck, of DBEDT.

Meanwhile, Pai said HECO has received more than 15,000 applications from customers this year seeking rebates after purchasing energy-efficient appliances.