High Electric Bill

By:  K. Michael

Deltona, FL. (February 7, 2010) -

For those who have already received their electric bills without question found a BIG surprise thanks to the record low temperatures Central Florida experienced last month. With reports of electric bill doubling and tripling in some cases, Progress Energy encourages customers to contact them at 800-700-8744 to review what payment options are available to keep their accounts in good standing and avoid disconnection.

Heating systems in Floridians’ homes and businesses worked overtime to keep up with the extreme cold weather. For example, when the average temperature is 20 degrees lower than what is typical, as Florida customers experienced during the recent cold spell, maintaining a home’s internal temperature at 68 degrees may cost an average residential customer with an 1850-square-foot, single family home about $10 more per day.

Here in Florida the cost to heat during extreme cold weather is more than the cost to cool during a heat wave. When it is 35 degrees outside, heating a home to 68-70 degrees pushes the heating system to overcome a temperature differential of more than 30 degrees. On a 95-degree day, cooling a home to 78 degrees requires the air-conditioning system to overcome a much smaller temperature differential– less than 20 degrees.

In addition, many Florida homes have heat pumps with heat strips that function when the system is set to the “Emergency Heat” or “Auxiliary Heat” settings. Heat strips require a great deal of electricity, making these systems more expensive to run than a heat pump alone. The strips activate when the outside air stays very cold or when the thermostat setting is increased more than one or two degrees at a time.

Progress Energy also offers a number of programs and efficiency tips to help take the sting out of high power bills and to help customers struggling financially.