Why do electric bills go up in the winter?

 Right after the joy of the holidays passes and we enter a new year, you will probably get a bill covering your electricity usage during the first cold month of the winter. For many households, winter bills are some of the highest of the year.

 Consider the following reasons:  

• You may turn your heating system’s thermostat up and down like a see-saw. Sudden increases in thermostat settings can cause “strip” or emergency heating to activate increasing your bill.
• If you heat your home with a heat pump, your unit’s efficiency is reduced when the outside temperature falls below 35 degrees F. Emergency or “strip” heating coils may turn on to supplement your heat pump’s regular heating capacity.
• Warm baths feel great on cold days, and heating extra water can increase your consumption and your electric bill. Be sure you water heater is properly insulated, that the heating elements are not too old or working inefficiently, and have it checked for leaks.
• Most consumers use the clothes dryer more often in the winter. Also, winter clothes usually take longer to dry.
• Winter brings holidays, which often mean more cooking and baking, and bright holiday lights, all of which increase your electrical usage.
• Shorter days and longer nights mean lights stay on longer, both inside and out.

 Try these solutions:

• Set your thermostat as low as comfortable and leave it.
• Don’t turn up your thermostat. Instead put on warm clothes.
• Wash clothes in cold water and only with full loads
• With your dryer, dry full loads, dry one load after another; use the energy-saving setting; clean the lint filter before each load; and keep the venting hose short, straight and clear of debris.
• Dry lighter-weight clothes separate from towels and other heavy cottons.
• When cooking, open the oven door only when necessary to avoid losing 20 percent of your heat each time, and use your microwave whenever possible.
• Replace incandescent lightbulbs in your home with compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) CFLs are 75 percent more efficient than incandescent lightbulbs and can last up to 10 times longer.

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