What kind of fuel?

We heat with a combination of propane stoves and electric heat pumps. We only use the heat pumps when the temps get so low that the dogs get cold in the laundry room, about 5 degrees.

Last year when we had the cold snap, my electric bill was really high, but this year, it was cold longer, and we used a lot less KWH. Our co-OP really jacks up the price during a cold spell, too.

Propane last winter was 1.00 per gallon higher than this year.

Our energy bill went up like crazy in Feb because it was so cold that the geothermal was running more than normal...and solar panels don't work well under a foot of snow. But we can't complain since our total energy costs are so low overall.

We have gas forced air heat. We just got our Feb bill and were shocked. DH and I have talked about this interesting change since putting on the addition. The addition is on the south side of the house. More wind there.

Our gas bills dropped dramatically after we put in the tankless water heater a few years ago when there were the federal tax credits. The HVAC we put in two years ago was only a little more efficient on gas than what we had. Our house is small so heating is not too bad. Our electric bill shows we are normally more efficient than an energy-efficient home the same size and age.

Our heating is all propane. Crazy expensive.

Funny about tankless...we were all set to go tankless. Then we went to the local plumbing place we planned to use. In our conversation, I don't think they meant to do this, they actually talked us out of going tankless. DH researched everything again and came up with a 2 tank system. 1st tank preheats the water to 90 degrees which then goes into the 2nd tank which takes it up from there. In talking to people with tankless, some love it, some hate it. You definitely need to research it and determine if it fits your application. gsciencechick, glad it works for you and saves you on your gas bills!

Our electric has gone up a little bit, but our kids come and go at all hours, always leaving lights on, and we have three electric heat mats.

In my dream house I would want gas hot water radiant heated floors with both wood and gas fireplaces. Actually, in my dream house I would have a fireplace in almost every room : )

FWIW, natural gas prices have dropped, I believe. Meanwhile here in FL, our power company was recently taken over by Duke Energy & our bills have gone up almost 200% for this time of year. Duke also got into trouble last year, soon after the takeover, when they changed their billing cycle & almost tripled power bills for many customers - they had to refund the $$(in the form of credits, of course). They also still haven't done anything about the rate hikes they instated to pay for a proposed nuclear plant that they now admit will never be built.

So I guess where you live & who's in charge makes a big difference...

So jealous. I joke that I'm paying a fortune this winter to be cold all the time in my own home. We don't have gas in our area so heat pumps are typical here though older homes have oil heat. Heat pumps are terribly inefficient in very cold weather, or should I say, it switches to aux/electric heat once the temps dip down below freezing. I live in the mid-Atlantic where we don't get too many of those temps usually but this winter has been ridiculous. I think we've had very few days at our average temperature, most have been not only below, but well below. Since I'm the only one home during the day, I tend to bundle up and suck it up. On very cold days I keep the thermostat down around 63 to prevent the aux heat from coming on. Our January Bill was $500 (2000 sq ft home) when it normally is closer to $200-250 in winter months. That wasn't even our coldest month. I'm afraid to open our current bill as I'm sure it is quite a bit more than last month. I've been begrudgingly telling my friends that I'm paying more than twice as much as usual yet my house isn't even warm! The cold only seems to affect me...my boys routinely hang out in shorts w/sweatshirts while I'm carrying around a hot cup of tea half the day to keep my hands warm!

My dd was supposed to play in a soccer tournament today. I was so thankful we ended up getting 6" of snow Thursday b/c a cold blast was predicted for the weekend. The snow canceled the tournament thankfully b/c her first game was schedule for 8am this morning when it was 16 degrees outside. So today I'm actually appreciating the 63 degrees inside my home as I could've been freezing my butt off at a soccer tournament.

We have propane, and it's been super expensive, even with our mild winter. Our power bill is also ridiculous! I'm constantly turning off lights and turning down the heat.

We have gas radiant heating and a woodstove. From a comfort perspective, I adore the radiant. From a financial perspective, I have not really found it to be any cheaper than when we had gas forced air. If I were to build again, I would absolutely still get it but not because it supposedly saves money (which is what we thought it would do). With forced air, one son's skin would dry out terribly with eczema and we would often have to use prescription steroid creams. He has never had that problem since we have been in this house with radiant.

I had a new furnace put in last spring, 95% efficiency, so up from 80%. My heating bills for Nov. and December were down @ 30 - 40% from the prior year, so I was psyched! Jan. bill was only slightly lower, and Feb. bill was slightly higher than 2014, but I'm sure it's because we've had such relentless frigid temps and that, if I had the old furnace, my bills would have been VERY high.

My electric bill is what has surged. Electricity is very expensive here to begin with (second highest in the country, next to HI), rates were increased recently, and the other section of my house is heated by electric heat, and again, because of the constant below-20 temps, I had to run it FAR more than I have in the past to keep the one water pipe in there from freezing.

I never thought whether radiant was more efficient. Years ago went to the Netherlands and stayed in a house with all radiant heat in the concrete floors (some covered in carpet). It was so comfortable. I was sold on radiant.

We should have super cheap electric here because of Niagara Falls but we don't. Supposedly our electric is higher than other areas. We should be reaping the benefits of low cost power!

Next house, if there is one, I would like to have some solar. We have plenty of sun here but not many do it.

We have gas heat and are on a plan where we pay the same monthly throughout the year so no crazy bills during the winter months.

Our heating is forced air by propane gas, we have two huge units that are fairly old but still pretty efficient. Three gas fireplaces, more propane, and the ignition system on the forced air furnaces are electric, so our power bills are insane. Our electricity runs about $600 per month, but DH has an electric car so that's a trade off with paying at the gas pump. We are strongly considering solar panels to offset some of our electric costs. We're in a rural coop and pay extra voluntarily so that a certain amount of our electricity is from green sources. It would be cheaper to provide that savings to ourselves.