How does oil compare to gas for the cost of heating in 2011?
Using our latest typical gas bills comparisons for the coming month of November, 2011, residential customers will pay the heating equivalent of $1.85 per gallon of oil. (the BTU content of 1.38 ccf = 1 gallon of oil)
Natural gas prices usually rise when oil prices rise so it's important to consider that fact. Both fuels react to market conditions. However, we try to keep our gas rates stable using dedicated funds instead of raising fuel charges whenever the market jumps. One thing is guaranteed: this comparison will change!
How do I convert to Natural Gas heat?
Contact our gas division at (508) 947-1535 to determine if natural gas is available in your area.
If you already have gas service or service is available on your street, a natural gas conversion burner might be a lower-cost option than a new furnace provided your existing heating system operates well. A department technician will need to inspect your heating system to confirm this. If needed, we will install up to 150 feet of gas service line from the street to your home free of charge. Each additional foot of service beyond 150 feet will be billed at $2.00 per foot.
Our service technician will inform you of any charges and requirements needed to proceed with installing a natural gas conversion burner to your heating system. However, the initial cost is usually a fraction of the cost of an entire new furnace.
Call to make an appointment today.
I just got a flyer offering me a free set-up of solar panels on my roof from Sungevity. Can it work?
We've seen this flyer too. This California-based company leases the solar system to home-owners with no cost to install. How does this pay for an expensive solar array? It doesn't! Sungevity must retain the rights to any credits offered by the state and wholesale market for sunpower as well as any utility incentives by the larger investor-owned utilities (NStar, Nationa Grid) in order to make this work. In California, where there's much more sun and higher utility rates and incentives, this can be a thriving business.
One of our associates actually applied for a quote from Sungevity and they replied saying they are not currently offering interconnected systems in this service area but may in the future. At present, no one from Sungevity has contacted MG&E about our Net-Metering program and we currently require customers to own the solar array but this may change, as they say... in the future.
Will MG&E pay me to produce solar power?
Residential customers may install solar panels and receive credit for the power they produce in a process called Net Metering. But you must call us before you begin. MG&E works with our customers and their solar contractors to connect to our lines through your house meter safely and correctly so that customers receive full credit for any excess solar power they produce. Customers are responsible for the full cost of their solar installation. However, they receive the full retail value as a credit for what they produce. Please read the Net Metering package of materials below before you begin.
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Why is my bill this high?
Check the Energy Usage chart on your
bill. Is your use higher than last month? Higher than the same month last year?
Then compare degree-days for the same periods. If the number was positive and
higher, it was colder and you may have used more energy heating. A higher
negative number means it was hotter and air-conditioning may have run more.
There are many possible answers but home appliances account for most home energy
use today. To check out how much your appliances use and cost to run, click on
the "Home
Appliance Calculator".
How can I save energy and money on my bill?
Start by focusing on your largest energy users in the home – anything that heats or cools including your heating system, hot water heater, refrigerator – these are the largest energy users and having them cleaned and operating at their best can save the most. Next, eliminate the extra users for the winter and summer seasons, especially anything that heats or cools such as the spare refrigerator in the garage, the dehumidifier in the basement, and the filled hot tub and tropical fish tank. All add significant costs to your bill. We encourage any residential customer to call our toll-free Energy Hotline (888-772-4242) for more advice and assistance. Click on "Energy Hotline Info" to learn more.
Can my meter be wrong?
That’s very unlikely. But occasionally meter’s fail and when they do, the dial slows down, as most mechanical devices do when they age. This leads to a slightly lower usage recording – not higher. When we check a meter, we must remove it and replace it with a newer meter that may be more accurate.
Why is my neighbor's bill lower than mine?
If all charges on both bills are due strictly to energy use, than your neighbor is using less energy. The difference in the total bill is related to actual use. Houses are different. Lifestyles are different. This can make neighbors’ bills very different. To check out how much a variety of appliances cost to run, click on the "Home Appliance Calculator".
Can you tell me how much energy my home should be using based on its size?
There is no good rule of thumb that works for all customers. The size of the house is only a small part of the equation. The type and variety of appliances in the home, the heating system capacity, the number of people and their habits all contribute to the “typical bill”. But, in order to compare the effects of our rates with other surrounding utilities, we use the 500 kilowatt-hour average bill that has been in use for decades. (To see how this typical bill compares to other utilities around us, click on our "bill comparison".) Today, most homes average at least 750 kilowatt-hours per month.
Does my energy cost more at different times of the day?
You are charged the same amount for the energy you use throughout the day. But, like all utilities, MG&E buys this energy at different prices, with the highest costs for “peak use” which happens generally in the early afternoon on hot days and at the dinner hour on cold days. If everyone can cut down on energy use at these peak times, then we all pay less and everyone’s bills can go down.
Will I save energy if I buy a newer appliance?
Most
new appliances meet higher efficiency standards than years ago so you should
save energy – especially if you don’t add a lot of features that you didn’t have
before. Replacing an aging refrigerator that is constantly running will save
more energy than replacing an old dishwasher that is used only occasionally. To
check out the way to compare appliances and the Energy Star rating from the
Federal Government, click on the Energy Star
link.
Will turning back the thermostate during the day actually save much money?
Yes, most people can easily save energy by setting the thermostat to 68 degrees when you’re awake and at home, and lowering it when you’re asleep or away. You can cut your bill as much as 1% for each degree you lower the thermostat if the setback period is eight hours long, but even four hours can make a difference. Most modern heating systems bring the temperature back up quickly.
How much should I charge my teenager for using her blow-dryer for a half-hour every morning?
Most hand-held blow-dryers today use 1200 watts which means that if left on one hour, they would use 1.2 kilowatt-hours. One half hour use would equal six tenths of a kilowatt-hour. Our average residential customer typically pays 14.2 cents per kilowatt-hour so multiplying by .6 would mean the half-hour use costs about 8.5 cents or roughly $2.55 per month. Check out the operating costs of your other household appliances on our "Home Appliance Calculator".
Is the Amish Mantle and Miracle Heater too good to be true?
Customers are asking ... The ads say this beautiful heater that's made right here in America actually saves a lot in heating costs. At the standard heat setting, it costs only 8 cents per hour to run and if I run it all the time, won't that be just $60 per month? That costs a lot less than I pay in natural gas (or oil). And, right now, there's a special deal to get the heater for free if I buy the mantle that makes it look so good. But only if I act fast. Should I do this to save money heating my home?
No, because ... It is just a supplemental heater - really just an electric space heater, even if it is a really good looking one - and that's a really, really expensive way to heat your home.
Using the Miracle Heater in the Amish Mantle will cost you a lot extra on your electric bill. The heater insert is a space heater with heating coils that make a flame appearance and a blower that blows the heat into the room. It runs at 1500 watts at the high setting - just like the average electric blower-style space heaters you can get for much less money in a local hardware store. At 1500 watts, using this heater all day every day would use 1.5 kilowatt hours each hour for 36 kilowatt hours per day equaling 1,080 kilowatt hours per month. Our average cost per residential kilowatt hour is 13.7 cents so use of a single heater could cost as high as $148 per month.
If that still sounds low to you - considering that you could cut back onyour central heat (oil or gas) - for the average 2500 square foot home, you would need six of these heaters in the typical northeast home for the right btu level to equal the warmth of your central furnace.
Bottom Line: If you have to ask if it's too good to be true, it probably is. This claim has all the earmarks of a bad deal - buy the mantle, get the heater free ... only an impossible 8 cents per hour ... act fast! They don't want you to think! So we're glad you asked.
What's the cost to run the EdenPURE Quartz Spaceheater or any others for that matter?
Short Answer: You'll pay 17.5 cents per hour it runs, but will you keep the other rooms cold?
Our residential customers pay an average of 13.7 cents per kilowatt hour. According to their specifications, they use 12800 watts per hour (that's 1.28 kilowatt hours for every hour). If the heater runs eight hours while you are home, in one room, that can equal 10.2 kilowatt hours per day or $1.40 per day. In one month, that can add $42 to your electric bill.
I've just heard a storm is on the way. What should I do?
Among the best preparation guides we've ever read to be ready for a storm, the best is the guide put together by our friends in Florida - the Kissimmee Utilties Authority. They are also a public power utility but they face hurricanes far more often. Their guide includes alot of information about area contacts in Florida for their customers. For the rest of us, the most useful information takes the form of preparation guidelines, how to help your pets, where to ride out the storm and what to do after the storm. There's a section showing how any electric crews restore power that might give you some peace-of-mind too. Click on the guide below.
We ask our own customers to please be very careful using generators because they can backfeed into our system and harm our line crews trying to restore power. They can also cause CO poisoning if run impropely. Also, please report any downed lines to us and stay well away from them. We will work to bring power back on as quickly as we can.
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Today is: May 23, 2013
