Reducing your electric bill is all about timing
There’s a new way to lower your Mountain Parks Electric (MPE) bill – beyond LED light bulbs, Energy Star appliances and traditional efficiency and conservation measures. How? By signing up for our new (optional) residential time-of-use rate and managing your electric consumption during our peak hours. Even better news: Many of you, without changing your current behavior, can save money right away with this rate.
Here’s how it works: MPE pays a premium for the power we deliver to you between 5 PM – 10 PM, Monday through Saturday. Electricity delivered outside of these hours – including all day Sunday – is less expensive. We want to pass those savings on to you. We already did the math to see if this new rate will benefit you personally. The answer: If you use 73 percent of your electricity outside of our peak hours, you will save money.
What’s the catch?
No catch, other than signing up for the rate and sticking with it for a 2-year period. The rate is different than what you are used to. Instead of paying 10.9 cents per kilowatt-hour regardless of the time of day, you will receive a 35 percent discount (7 cents instead of 10.9) for electricity used outside of our peak hours from 5 PM – 10 PM, Monday through Saturday. That means a discounted rate on approximately 86 percent of the hours in a given month. Electricity used during peak hours will cost more: roughly double (21 cents instead of 10.9 cents). But don’t let the numbers scare you. If you use 73 percent or more of your electricity outside of our peak hours, you will save.
How much electricity do I use during peak hours?
You can monitor and track your historic usage with our SmartHub portal (mpei.smarthub.coop/Login.html or you can download the app). SmartHub shows your hourly, daily and monthly electric consumption. Just compare how much power you use between 5 PM – 10 PM versus the rest of the day. If your usage outside of our peak hours is 73 percent or greater, or if you can shift peak-hour usage, this new rate could save you money.
What if my off-peak usage is less than 73 percent?
That is the beauty of this rate. You have control. To realize (or to maximize) savings, you might need to wash and dry clothes and/or dishes at a different time (or do them any time on Sunday), or use a programmable thermostat, or make other changes. If you own an electric vehicle (EV), you could save by programming charging to occur during off-peak hours. Don’t know how? Call us at (970) 887-7027 for help. And be sure to ask us how to save hundreds of dollars with our new EV charger and wiring rebates or visit www.mpei.com/rebates for details.