Why Your Bill May Be Higher

In January, Delaware Electric Cooperative announced a proposed rate decrease—the result of lower wholesale power costs and your efforts to conserve energy during beat the peak alerts.

While the decrease will save you money each month, you may have noticed your electric bills have been higher the past two months. Each winter, our call center is flooded with concerns about higher winter electric bills and the reason is simple; the cold weather! 

If your home’s heating source is electric, it takes more electricity to keep your house warm in the winter than it does to cool your home in the summer. That is especially true if you heat your home with a heat pump. Heat pumps don’t work efficiently when temperatures fall below freezing.

When outdoor temperatures fall into the lower 20s, your heat pump may also need to use an auxiliary or emergency heat source to warm your home. The auxiliary heat element uses a lot of energy and many of the high bill complaints we receive each year are from members using heat pumps.

While sealing air leaks in your home can help lower your bill, members with heat pumps should leave the thermostat set to a constant temperature during the winter months. This ensures your system works efficiently, saving you the most money.