How Much Does it Cost to Deck the Halls?

(from PECO Energy)

The holiday season is here… and with the holidays comes decorating! PECO offers helpful information to get in the holiday spirit and save money. Below is an easy way to help calculate energy costs this holiday season.

1. Count the number of bulbs on your indoor tree and all of your other decorative indoor and outdoor lights. For example, 1000

2. Check the wattage per bulb -- one watt per bulb is common. For example, 1 watt

3. Multiply watts per bulb by number of bulbs. For example 1,000 x 1 = 1,000

4. Convert to kilowatts (kW) – 1000 watts equals 1 kilowatt. For example, 1 kW

5. Estimate the number of hours in a month the lights are on. For example, 5 hours per day x 30 days = 150 hours.

6. Multiply the total kilowatts by the total number of hours the lights will be on to get the total kilowatt-hours (kWh). For example, 1 kW x 150 hours = 150 kWh

7. Multiply the total kilowatt-hours by the total cost of electricity.

For typical PECO customers, the total cost for generation, transmission and distribution of their electricity is 15 cents per kilowatt-hour. For example, 150 kWh x .15 = $22.50

In our example, the total cost of holiday lighting would be an additional $22.50.

For additional savings, consider using LED holiday lights. A selection of LED holiday lights, and other energy saving products, are available at a 20 percent discount for PECO customers at www.peco.com/SAVE.