ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) – As temperatures stay below freezing across the Roanoke Valley, many families are looking for ways to stay warm without seeing their heating bills spike.
Cold weather forces heating systems to run longer and work harder, driving up energy use and monthly costs. Appalachian Power officials say the bigger the difference between indoor and outdoor temperatures, the more energy it takes to keep a home comfortable.
“Let’s say you set your house at 70 and it’s 75 degrees outside. Your heat or your cooling is only working to make up a 5-degree difference,” said Izzy Post Ruhland, a spokesperson for Appalachian Power. “But if you keep it at 70 and now it’s 40 degrees outside, it’s working to make up a 30-degree difference.”…