Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Gas companies like National Fuel and NOCO are advising people to prepare for significantly higher heating bills this winter based on the rising cost of natural gas.
National Fuel estimates that based on the current market prices, the average residential customer will pay $1,023 to heat their home this winter – November through March – with expected increases over last year hovering around 50%.
"As what happens every year with demand, as demand goes up, the costs go up," said Assistant Vice President of NOCO Energy Corporation, Pierre Aubertin. "What we're seeing this year is with lower storage levels, it's affecting the price of natural gas this winter. We're also expecting a colder than average winter, which will affect prices as well."
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects that U.S. households will spend more on energy this winter than they have in several years. The reasons behind natural gas (and electric) bill increases are based on domestic and global factors. Geopolitical events, such as the war in Ukraine, are also increasing demand for domestically produced liquified natural gas, exposing U.S. natural gas pricing to global market influences.
"This is broader than just locally, but of course, people in Western New York and across New York State, they're thinking locally, it's certainly going to impact them," Aubertin said. "We can understand the concerns they have there. We are seeing it here, just again, a lower supply, higher demand, and an expectation for a colder winter than last is what will factor in."
Although it is projected to be a colder winter this year, warmer weather could help push heating bills back down again. But if the upcoming winter is as cold as predicted, in what ways can people try to lower their heating bills this winter?
One thing people can do that will have an immediate impact is making sure their furnace has been serviced with a tune up.
"Many homeowners fail to have an annual tune up done on their equipment, and what happens is over time, small issues build and then kind of snowball into larger issues, and then that usually results in not having any heat when it's 10, 15 degrees out," said HVAC project manager Ian Donnelly with T-Mark Plumbing, Heating and Cooling. "As somebody who's been to those homes, talking to homeowners during those moments of desperation, this is a great opportunity to save yourself from having to be in that situation."
During a tune up, the equipment is inspected by an HVAC specialist for safety purposes to ensure there's no gas leaks, or leaking of water throughout the air conditioning season into the furnace that could cause any issues in the middle of the winter time. The inspection also takes a look at the filters to make sure the have been changed out regularly.
"If the filter gets too clogged up, and we see this way too often, what happens is the air is restricted, the air doesn't make its way back to the furnace," Donnelly said. "If the furnace is choking for air, then it's not going to heat as quickly as it should, and if it doesn't heat as quickly as it should, unfortunately, that's going to cost that homeowner more money than it ever should."
Also during a tune up, the HVAC specialist will take a look to make sure there's no carbon monoxide escaping out of the heat exchanger of the equipment.
"If homeowners are in a situation where either the chimneys not drafting properly, the equipment is unsafe or they just know that the equipment is quite dated, we look to help them make decisions to move towards higher efficiency equipment, with vents with PVC pipes to the outside," Donnelly said.
As for alternative solutions to the traditional ways of warming a home during the cold season, Donnelly says one thing homeowners can do is do their own assessments of how porous their home might be.
"Making sure that all the windows are all closed up, basement windows are closed up, going downstairs and inspecting the foundation around the sill plate in the house," Donnelly explained. "You'll be able to find spots where you'll see sunlight coming in, you want to get all those sealed up to the best of your ability. We had helped some homeowners go to local hardware stores and pick up batt insulation, the Pink Panther fiberglass insulation, if you lay a couple more layers of that in an attic that you're not using, you'll help your house hold on to more heat, which means they won't be using as much energy, which is pretty solid."
In addition, there are other heating systems people can utilize to heat their homes, and Donnelly recommends anyone to use safe heating systems for their homes.
"There are some different options where you can pair a high efficiency furnace with a heat pump to heat the home, so the heat pumps can provide a first stage of heating, as long as the temperatures stay above 40, 45 degrees. Your gas furnace will not turn on to heat the home, instead the electric heat pump would be using energy efficiency systems to then provide a first stage heat. And then the gas furnace kicks on once the temperature drops below, say, 40 degrees," Donnelly said.
More from our conversation with Donnelly is available in the player below: