Consumers Energy Summer Rates: Michigan’s Peak Hour Pricing

So, Consumers Energy is rolling out their summer rates. Hold onto your wallets, Michigan, because your next bill may shock you. The now annual rate hike kicks in from June 1 through September 30, on weekdays between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. During these peak heat hours, you'll be paying $0.215 per kilowatt hour (kWh). That's right, Consumers Energy has chosen the exact hours when you're most likely to crank your air conditioning down so you can cool off.

Related: Michigan Has Over $250 Million in Orange Barrels, Who Owns Them?

On non-peak hours, you'll be charged the current, unhiked rate of $0.166 per kWh, which will please early birds and night owls while leaving those who work 9 to 5 to sweat it out until after 7 p.m. You could also ignore the hike and pay the extra $0.049 per kWh, which doesn't seem like a lot until you do the math.

The Joy of Consumer's Energy Peak Hour Pricing and How it Will Add Up in Michigan

According to Great Lakes Energy, the average air conditioning unit uses 3,500 watts of electricity in an hour. Flat rate pricing, between 7:01 p.m. and 1:59 p.m., Consumers would bill you around $0.581 for an hour of A/C consumption.

With Consumers Energy's Peak Hour rate, the same hour of A/C use between 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. increases to $0.752 per hour, making the difference around 17 cents per hour. That may not sound like much, but with around 90 days and 5 hours of increased rates per day, you could spend an additional $75 or more over the course of the summer.

Consumers Energy explains that their summer rates are designed to help you be more aware of when you are using electricity.

Related: Tipflation: Michiganders 'Pressured' to Tip $500 More Per Year

It's time to start planning those off-peak activities in Michigan.