Video: Save Money on Your Power Bill During Winter

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STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Winter is here. And even though Mississippi doesn’t get as cold as some of those northern states, it’s chilly enough to drive up those power bills when we’re trying stay warm.

4 County Electric’s Jon Turner says there are things you can do to keep your power bills under control.

Like being aware of how you use energy. Especially when you use more electricity this time of year.

“With the cold weather, and of course with the holidays, folks are going to be at home, kids are off of school. You’re going to be doing more cooking. You’re going to be having folks over. You’ve got Christmas lights up, so basically it’s a very energy intensive time of year,” Turner said.

He says you should look for ways to combat power use.

It’s as easy as turning down your thermostat, turning off your lights when you can, and changing your air filter regularly.

“Heating and cooling pretty much count for 40 to 50 percent of our typical electric bill, and when it’s colder of course, your heater’s going to be running more, and you’re going to use more energy.”

And if you have one, turn off small space heaters when possible.

“Don’t expect them to be able to heat a large room, and don’t expect them to do anything efficiently,” Turner said. “It’s going to cost you money. That’s a very inefficient and very expensive way to heat.”

The summer and winter months aren’t just more costly for customers, but for power companies too.

“You’ve got to make that electricity, and just like anything else, when there’s a high demand for something, of course prices are going to go up, so it costs more to buy the coal, to get the natural gas, to make the electricity at those peak times,” Turner said.

But for now, we’ll just have to wait for some relief in the spring, when it’s not so cold.

For more energy saving tips, go here: http://www.4county.org/ressavingtips.php.