As the calendar turns to March, Spring is on the horizon. Although, if you’ve lived in south Mississippi long enough, you know that it’s not unusual for us to experience all four seasons within one month. Spring usually means milder temperatures, and with it, lower power bills. But have you ever wondered why that is? Let’s take a minute to talk about how the weather directly impacts the amount of your power bill, especially during extreme temperatures.
The below-freezing arctic weather we experienced during the Christmas holidays caused a spike in energy use all across the country and for Dixie Electric members as well, meaning many members received higher bills than normal. Additionally, we’ve experienced many nights where the temperature remained in the 30–40-degree range.
Our heating and cooling units are the biggest energy users in our homes. During those below-freezing days and nights, your heating systems worked overtime to make up the difference between the outside temperature and the inside setting. Even if you kept your thermostat set at the recommended temperature and never touched it, your unit worked harder and longer and used more energy in the process. Also, many heating units operated on emergency heat during the extreme cold weather, which is a setting that switches the source of your heat from the heat pump to electric heat strips, which uses significantly more electricity than heat pumps alone. By the way, you may want to ensure your heat is no longer running on the emergency heat setting, as some units must be manually switched back.
In addition to heating your home, water heating during freezing weather will also cause you to see an increase in your bill. Water heaters, which store hot water until it’s ready to be used, also work overtime as heat is consistently lost to the environment. When the water cools down, the heating unit turns on, using more power to constantly reheat the water.
To better see how the weather directly impacts your energy use, I encourage you to download the SmartHub app or create an account at dixieepa.com. Inside your account, you can see your daily energy use and the weather for that day. You will be able to see the spikes in your use when the temperatures are extreme and notice when they are lower during more moderate weather. These tools will help you realize where your energy dollars are going. If you need help setting up the SmartHub app, give us a call.
At Dixie Electric, our goal is to be your trusted source for advice about energy use in your home or business. We aren’t quite like other utilities because our business model is different. Cooperatives like ours are not-for-profit organizations, meaning we don’t focus on profits; we focus on the people we serve. If you have questions concerning your bill, we have a great team of energy advisors here to help you.