If your electric bill jumped noticeably this month, you are not imagining it. Shoemaker Heating and Cooling LLC, headquartered in Honey Brook, PA at (610) 671-3595, has been fielding more calls from Main Line homeowners in Wayne, Radnor, Villanova, and Newtown Square asking why their July bill looks so different from June. Two things are happening at once, and only one of them is inside your control.
PECO’s Price to Compare rate, the default electric supply rate most homeowners pay, increased on June 1, 2026, and the new rate remains in effect through November 30, 2026, according to PECO’s official rate schedule. That increase alone raises the cost of every kilowatt hour your AC uses this summer, independent of anything happening inside your home.
What You Can Actually Control
The rate increase is fixed and applies to every PECO customer, but how much electricity your AC system consumes to keep your home comfortable is not fixed. That is the part homeowners in Wayne and the surrounding Main Line communities can influence, and it is where the biggest differences between neighbors’ bills usually come from.
A system that is low on refrigerant, has a dirty condenser coil, or is working through a partially clogged filter has to run longer to reach the same thermostat setting, which uses significantly more electricity for the same result. Routine HVAC maintenance keeps a system running at its designed efficiency instead of quietly losing performance and driving up runtime.
Thermostat setpoint matters more than most homeowners realize. Every degree lower than 78 degrees Fahrenheit while the home is occupied adds measurable runtime and cost over a full summer. Ceiling fans, window treatments that block afternoon sun, and a slightly higher overnight setting when the home is empty all reduce the total hours the compressor runs without a noticeable comfort tradeoff.
Why Larger Main Line Homes See Bigger Increases
Wayne, Villanova, and Radnor include some of the largest and oldest housing stock in the region, much of it dating to the early twentieth century Main Line development era. Many of these homes were built long before central air conditioning existed and have had systems added later, sometimes with a single zone trying to cool three stories of finished living space.
For homes in this situation, the electric bill increase from a rate hike is magnified because the system was already working harder than a properly zoned system would need to. Shoemaker frequently recommends zoned cooling or, for homeowners planning a longer term investment, geothermal heating and cooling, which can meaningfully reduce electric consumption for large homes compared to a standard single zone central air system.
A Few Changes That Add Up Over a Summer
- Set the thermostat to 78 degrees Fahrenheit when home, higher when away, and use ceiling fans to maintain comfort at that setting.
- Replace air filters monthly during peak summer use so the system is not working against restricted airflow.
- Schedule an annual tune up to catch refrigerant loss, dirty coils, and electrical wear before they increase runtime.
- Consider a smart thermostat that automatically adjusts the setpoint based on occupancy.
- For homes with a single system cooling multiple floors, ask about zoning or a system upgrade during your next estimate.
If your bill has climbed and you want to know whether your system is part of the problem, request a free estimate through our air conditioning services page or call (610) 671-3595. Shoemaker also serves the broader Main Line and greater Chester County service area.
Frequently Asked Questions
Summer Electric Bills in Wayne, PA
PECO’s Price to Compare rate increased on June 1, 2026 due to higher regional capacity market costs, and it stays in effect through November 30, 2026. That rate increase, combined with the longer AC runtimes required during peak summer heat, is the main reason electric bills climb in July and August for most homes in PECO territory, including Wayne and the surrounding Main Line.
78 degrees Fahrenheit when the home is occupied is the widely recommended setting for balancing comfort and efficiency. Raising the setpoint a few degrees when the home is empty, combined with ceiling fans to improve comfort at a higher setpoint, can meaningfully reduce runtime and cost without sacrificing comfort.
Larger, multi story homes common in Wayne, Villanova, and Radnor often have more square footage to cool, older single zone duct systems not designed for the home’s full footprint, and in some cases two or more separate systems. Any inefficiency in an aging system is magnified across more square footage, which shows up directly on the electric bill.
Yes, when paired with a properly functioning AC system. A smart thermostat that adjusts the setpoint automatically when the home is empty, along with scheduling based on actual occupancy patterns, typically reduces runtime hours without homeowners noticing a comfort difference. It will not fix an underlying mechanical inefficiency, but it removes wasted runtime.
Yes. Shoemaker installs high efficiency central air systems, zoned systems for multi story homes, and geothermal heating and cooling for homeowners in Wayne, Villanova, Radnor, and Newtown Square who want to significantly reduce long term energy costs. Call (610) 671-3595 for a free estimate.