“Money doesn’t grow on trees!” When was the last time you heard someone say that to you? I’m betting it has been a long time. And why? Everyone knows that’s true, especially if you have a family, a home, a car. We are all well aware of the need to save money wherever and whenever we can. After all, Money doesn’t ... well, you know.
For that reason, GAMA Air has been explaining to our friends and neighbors in the Beverly Hills, Culver City, Mar Vista, Miracle Mile, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Los Angeles, West Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Pacific Palisades, Brentwood, Bel Air, Westwood, Downtown Los Angeles, Vernon, Huntington Park, Sherman Oaks, Encino area what may be causing your electric bill to be so high. Now we’ll pick up where we left off with the possibility of your central heating and air conditioning system causing your utility bill to spike.
First let’s talk about your type of heating system. If you heat your house with a fuel burning forced air furnace, which could be a natural gas furnace, a fuel oil furnace, or an LP furnace, then the amount of electricity used to heat your house is minimal. The source of the heat is the fuel burned in the furnace. The method of circulating the heat is with a fan, and that’s where the electricity is used. During cold snaps your furnace will obviously be running more than when the weather is only mildly cold. However, the increased run time of your fuel burning forced air furnace will only result in a small increase in your total electric usage.
What if you have an electric forced air furnace, or electric baseboard heater strips? Then I feel sorry for you. Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t dangerous or a horrible idea, but they are among the more expensive ways to heat a home. Since the source of the heat is directly from the electricity, then during a cold snap you will definitely see a spike in your electric bill. There’s no fix for this. A good maintenance routine and seasonal tune-up will make sure the unit is running at its best, but there is no way to avoid a jump in your electric usage when you need to run your heaters more. A simple tip is to throw on an extra sweater and put slippers on your kid’s feet and then set your thermostat down two or three degrees from where you typically set it. A small change in your thermostat will make a significant difference in your electric usage.
If you are considering replacing your electric forced air central heating system or electric baseboard heater strips with a different type of system, please give the friendly folks at GAMA Air a call at (310) 651-6936 or use our online form to schedule a visit for a free estimate. You won’t be disappointed since we guarantee your satisfaction 100%. We won’t just give you a price for a new system, we will analyze what your needs are, and help you choose the type and size of heating system that will be the best for your home and family. Plus, we can help you calculate how much you will likely save on your monthly energy bills, which will offset the cost of changing out your existing heating system.
What if you have a heat pump central heating system? That will be the covered in our next segment, so stay tuned for more reasons your electric bill may be so high!
Would you like to ask a question about heating or air conditioning but don’t know who to ask? Visit our “Ask an Expert” page, fill out the form, and our resident expert will get back to you quickly with the answer.