Tips for Customers to Save On Summer Bills

The sun is shining longer and temperatures are warmer, a sign for Southern California Edison's Time-of-Use customers that summer on-peak hours have begun.

Summer TOU rates run from the beginning of June through the end of September, either from 4-9 p.m. or 5-8 p.m., depending on the rate plan. That's when power is most expensive.

To save money on summer electric bills, it helps to shift tasks such as laundry, running the dishwasher or charging electric vehicles or battery storage units to before 4-5 p.m. or after 8-9 p.m.

But not all on-peak energy use can be avoided. During those times, many still need to use air conditioning, prepare dinner and unwind by watching a favorite show.

Still, making a few simple adjustments can help reduce costly kilowatt-hours and lower summer energy costs. Consider these options:

Avoid heating up your kitchen

• Try some no-oven or no-stove recipes that use a slow cooker, toaster oven or microwave to limit the heat created.
• Cook earlier in the day or batch cook over the weekend when there are no on-peak periods; freeze the meals, then re-heat.

One screen at a time

• Are there multiple TVs in your home? Try spending some nights using one screen or use laptops or tablets, which use much less energy than big-screen TVs.
• Consider making some nights "screen-less" and break out some board games.

Lighten the load on your A/C

• During on-peak hours, turn your air conditioner up by two degrees and use fans to conserve energy.
• Try pre-cooling. In smaller spaces, lower your thermostat to 75 degrees for one hour or up to three hours for larger spaces, then back to 78 degrees once on-peak hours begin.
• Closing blinds and curtains at the start of hot days can keep your home cooler and your A/C from working too hard.
• For homes with mini-split, window or portable A/C units, keep activity limited to one room, close doors and turn off cooling systems in unoccupied spaces. Homes with central A/C systems should always keep inside doors open to maximize air flow.

Why are TOU rates more expensive between 4-9 p.m. or 5-8 p.m.?

California's electric grid has an abundance of cleaner, less expensive renewable energy in the late morning and afternoon. As the sun sets, solar energy decreases and other sources, mostly generated from fossil fuels, ramp up to offset the decline in solar. At the same time, customer demand for energy generally increases. This combination puts pressure on the electric grid and increases the cost to safely deliver reliable power. This is the TOU on-peak period.

Find out more about SCE's TOU plans.