Demand Rate

What is demand?

Demand is the amount of energy you are using at a given moment during our peak period. The more electricity you are using all at once, the higher your demand. High demand times occur when you use multiple large appliances simultaneously like running your A/C, washer, dryer, dish washer and oven all at the same time.

When demand across the entire system is high, electricity is more expensive to produce and strain is put on the system. Lowering demand helps stabilize rates and reduce system strain. Members can lower their demand by spreading out the use of large appliances, even when they use the same overall amount of energy.

Peak periods occur on weekday afternoons in the summer from 2-6 p.m. and weekday mornings in the winter from 6-10 a.m. Weekends and holidays are considered off-peak times. The summer season starts April 16 and runs through Oct. 15 each year. The winter season starts on Oct. 16 and runs through April 15 each year.

Demand is the highest 15-minutes of energy consumption during our peak periods. This amount is then spread over an hour and billed.

Off-peak demand does not count towards setting your demand. Electricity used on weekends, overnight, summer mornings, winter afternoons and holidays does not impact your demand charge.

Your home has a new demand reading every 15 minutes. However, you are only billed for your highest on-peak one of the month. Any demand reading below the highest does not count towards your demand charge.

Spread out your energy use into different 15-minute blocks to lower your demand. For example, running your washing machine and dryer at the same time has a higher demand than running the washing machine first and then the dryer after.

Demand is measured in kilowatts, which is abbreviated kW, while energy use is measured in kilowatt-hours, which is abbreviated kWh. It is important to recognize which is which when calculating your bill.

If you think of your home like your car, then the number of miles you drive is your energy charge and the highest speed you go is your demand charge. Driving slower, which is like using less electricity all at once, would lower your demand charge, while driving less miles, which is like using less electricity overall, would lower your energy charge.

In our second analogy, if you are filling a bucket in your sink then your energy charge is the amount of water in the bucket and your demand charge is the rate the water is coming out of the faucet. In this case, if you fill up your bucket slower, then you lower your demand. If you fill up your bucket with less water, then you lower your energy charge.

Your demand, which is measured in kW, will typically be in the range of 5-15 kW and will be multiplied by our demand charge which is measured in dollars.

Your energy use, which is measured in kWh, will typically be in the range of 1,000-2,500 kWh and will be multiplied by our energy charge which is measured in cents.

Mixing kW and kWh up is easy to do. If you use 10 kW and 1,000 kWh in a month you would have a charge of $130. However, if you mixed the two up you might accidentally think your bill was more than $7,000.

If you have been on our traditional energy rate, then you are used to paying based on the total amount of energy you use for a month.

On demand billing you have an energy charge and a demand charge. The energy charge is still the total amount of energy you use in a month like you have been billed before, but it will be at a much lower rate. You will also pay a demand charge. The demand charge is based on the highest 15 minutes of energy used during our peak times.

While your total energy used goes up each day as you use electricity, the demand charge is only set once a month. If you set your peak demand on the first day, your charge may not change for the rest of the month.

Overall, the demand rate is revenue-neutral for the cooperative, meaning that if every member were on the rate, the co-op would receive almost exactly the same amount of money. However, this means that some members will pay more, some will pay less, and some will pay about the same amount. If you can shift your energy use to off-peak times, then you can lower your demand and save.

Piedmont Electric serves more than 31,000 residential accounts. Working together to lower demand helps the cooperative save which helps keep rates stable for all members.

On your bill you will find your energy use in the “kWh Usage” column. This is the total amount of energy you have used for the month. Multiply this number by the energy rate to get your energy charge.

In the “Demand Usage” column you will find your demand for the month. If you are on our traditional residential rate, this number is not used in your billing. However, if you want to estimate what you would pay on the demand rate then you will use this number. The demand usage listed is your highest demand for the month, regardless of whether it is your on-peak or off-peak demand. If you primarily use energy off-peak, this number may be larger than the on-peak demand for which you would be billed. Multiply this number by the demand charge.

Add these previous two numbers together to get your overall energy costs.

Energy use charge = 1,361 kWh x $0.06 = $81.66

Demand charge = 11.787 kW * $7 = $82.51

Total charge = $81.66 + $82.51 = $164.17

The biggest user of electricity in your home is typically the air conditioner or heating unit. During the heat of summer and the cold of winter, we use these more even if we do not make changes to the thermostat. This is why energy use tends to spike in July, August, January and February.

However, there are a lot of other things you use on a regular but periodic basis. Think about your lights, refrigerator, television, microwave, washer, dryer, dishwasher, water heater, well/pool pump, kitchen appliances and personal electronics like cell phones and smart watches. While your use of these fluctuates from day-to-day, when you look at their use across a month or a year, they remain fairly regular.

The sum of these other uses of electricity form your home’s baseline energy use. This level of energy use is what your home would use if you turned off your heating or cooling unit. Members get closer to this level of energy use during our milder months like April, May, October and November.

Lowering your demand involves two main strategies. First, is spreading out the use of the items that make up your baseload power. Using your washing machine and then dryer uses lower demand than using your washing machine and dryer at the same time. The second strategy is to lower your peak energy use by controlling when you heat or cool your home.

With the demand rate, follow these tips to make the most of your energy dollars:

• Precool your home on weekdays in the summer by lowering your thermostat a few degrees below your normal setting from 12-2 p.m. and then raising your thermostat a few degrees above normal from 2-6 p.m.
• Preheat your home on weekdays in the winter by raising your thermostat a few degrees above your normal setting from 4-6 a.m. and then lowering your thermostat a few degrees below normal from 6-10 a.m.
• Do not use space heaters. A sweater or electric blanket are lower-energy alternatives.
• Put a timer on your water heater to have it shut off each weekday from 2-6 p.m. in the summer and 6-10 a.m. in the winter. If this is not possible, reduce your hot water use during these times.
• Spread out your use of large appliances like dishwashers, washing machines, dryers and ovens.
• Remember that smaller appliances can add up to big demand. Televisions, computers, microwaves, vacuums, hair dryers, irons, coffee makers, cell phone chargers, gaming systems and other household items all used at once will increase your demand.
• Charge your electric vehicle overnight starting at 10 p.m. and ending by 5 a.m. the next day.

Listed below are the demand values for common household electricity users in your household. These values are for illustrative purposes only. The  exact demand of the items in your home will vary depending on the exact wattage of the item, the length of time you run it and other factors.

The answer depends on your preferences and energy use habits.

• Residential rate: set it and forget it. Best for people who don’t want to think about their energy use at all and are not interested in shifting to save.
• Time-of-day (TOD) rate: savings maximizers. Best for those who want to pay attention each day to the energy they use and how much it costs. Every bit of on-peak energy use counts.
• Electric vehicle (EV) time-of-day rate: EV drivers. Best for those with an EV and can charge overnight. Extra savings for charging between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
• Demand rate: spread out the energy use. Best for members who can spread out their energy use throughout the day. On the demand rate, only the peak demand is used for billing.

We can help you compare these rates based on your historical usage if you call us at 800.222.3107, email info@pemc.coop or chat with us on our website or through SmartHub.

Demand is the instantaneous amount of electricity used. However, this can be difficult to precisely calculate for individual items without highly tuned equipment.

Knowing the wattage of your device and how long you use it is a good start. For example, a 1,000 W coffee maker run for 15 minutes would have a demand of approximately 1 kW.

There are two important things to note. First, if you run the coffee maker for less time, then you will have a lower demand. Second, a coffee maker does not use electricity evenly.

Your coffee maker uses a small amount of electricity as it sits idle. When the coffee pot is turned on, the energy use spikes as it heats the water. The coffee maker uses less energy as the brewing starts and then drops further as the brewing ends and the plate keeps the coffee warm.

The age and condition of your device will impact how much electricity it uses. If your equipment is in less-than-ideal condition, then it will use electricity differently than it is listed.

Additionally, if you use the electricity across two different blocks of time then the demand will be spread out. For example, if you start your brewing at 6:10 a.m. on a winter Monday morning and it ends at 6:20 a.m. then your coffee pot’s demand is spread across the two different blocks. Using it at the same time periods in the summer would be considered off-peak.