What is the Peak Savers rate?

For Heartland members who are willing to keep an eye on their electric usage during peak times in the summer, the Peak Savers rate provides more control over your bill than ever before. On April 1, 2022, this became the default rate option for non-prepaid Heartland consumer-members. Watch this short video for a quick overview: 

Bill components:

  • Service availability charge: $39.00

  • Energy charge: $0.101510 per kWh

  • Peak charge: $2 per kW used during the consumer-member’s monthly peak hour (hour of highest electric usage)

    • Peak charge only occurs in June, July, August, and September       
    • Peak hour will only be calculated on Heartland-declared Peak Days      
    • Peak hour can only occur between 3 and 8 p.m.      
    • Peak Days will never occur on weekends or holidays           

How will the peak charge be calculated?

  • For each summer month, the peak charge of $2 per kW will be calculated by examining the consumer-member’s hourly usage between 3 and 8 p.m. on Peak Days.
    • Whichever one-hour increment has the highest usage will be used to calculate the peak charge.
    • For example, if a consumer-member’s hour of highest usage is 10 kW from 4 to 5 p.m. on July 29, their peak charge for July would be $20 (10 kW x $2).
    • The average Heartland consumer-member's highest usage during the summer peak is less than 6 kW, so their peak charge would be less than $12.
  • Consumer-members can save money on their bills by spreading out their usage between 3 and 8 p.m. on Peak Days and avoiding using too many appliances at the same time.

How will people be notified of Peak Days?

For SmartHub users:

  • Consumer-members on the Peak Savers rate who are enrolled in our free SmartHub service will receive an email or text notification the afternoon before a forecasted Peak Day advising them that they can save money on their bills by reducing usage from 3 to 8 p.m. the next day

  • Consumer-members will receive email notifications by default, but will need to opt into text notifications through SmartHub if desired.

For consumer-members who ARE NOT enrolled in SmartHub:

  • Everyone who calls our office on Peak Days will receive an automated message from the phone system informing them that it is a peak day.

  • For those who do not want to call in, it is suggested that they control their usage during 3 to 8 p.m. on any summer weekday where temperatures are expected to reach 90 degrees or higher.

How can I reduce my usage on Peak Days?

The key to keeping your peak charge as low as possible is spreading out your usage on Peak Days between 3 and 8 p.m. so you're not drawing a lot of kW at once. See below for some practical tips for lowering usage: 

  • Cook dinner using a grill or a countertop appliance such as an air fryer, instant pot, or crock pot.  
  • Load the electric clothes dryer, but wait to run it until after 8 p.m.
  • Load the dishwasher, but wait to run it until after 8 p.m.
  • Pre-cool your home by running your air conditioner until the peak time starts at 3 p.m.
  • If you have an electric water heater, avoid using a lot of hot water between 3 and 8 p.m.
  • Avoid running your pool pump from 3 to 8 p.m. 
  • For those with electric vehicles, wait to charge them until after 8 p.m. 

For more information, see our Energy Basics page. 

How do I know if Peak Savers is the best rate for me? 

  • Visit the Rate Calculator Tool to determine which rate option is most likely to be best for you based on your past usage. You can request to be put on the Time of Use rate using the form on that page.