Dave G. left a comment on this blog Sunday about his high BGE bill, just arrived at his home. He was actually responding to a post we wrote a year ago, when THAT January's bills were coming in after a cold December - 2009.
I've picked up Dave's comment and I'm re-posting it here because I suspect a lot of people are choking on their own bills at the moment. So here's an opportunity to commiserate.
Here's Dave query, and my response:
"What is the difference in degree days for December, 2010 and December 2011? My usage was 55% higher this year than last. - Dave"
FR: Bill, I'll assume you meant Dec. 2009 and December 2010. According to the NWS, the total degree-days in December 2009 was 929. That increased to 1,003 in December 2010. That's an increase of almost 8 percent.
I just checked by own bills, and my electric usage (heat pump & lights, etc.) increased 11.7 percent. My gas (furnace and water heater) consumption was up 13.6 percent. During the same period, according to the bill, the average temperature was the same (32 degrees) both years.
Now, you do need to consider that your billing cycle probably doesn't match the calendar month of December, so you would not expect the average temperature during your cycle for those two months to track precisely with these HDD numbers for the calendar month. Mine, for example, runs from mid-December to mid-January. Plus, only about half of our annual utility bills arise from heating and cooling.
Also, the number of degree days is based on daily average temperatures - the day's high, plus the low, divided by two. That may not reflect the number of hours we actually spent at or below 32 degrees, where heat pump auxilliary heat coils typically switch on.
BGE released a statement Jan. 21 noting that the hours below 32 degrees in November-December 2010 jumped 43 percent compared with the year before. They warned that bills would be high in this cycle as a result. For that full release, click here.
This last billing cycle may also have been a day or two longer than the same one a year ago. Mine was 34 days this time, 33 days last time. That adds one day of usage. And, you may have other usage issues, like relatives who won't leave and teenagers taking 30-minute showers.
All that being said, Dave's 55 percent usage increase would seem to be pretty high. Maybe it's time for an energy audit.