Dynamic Rate Electric Pricing

[icyappraiser]

So I signed up for one of these "dynamic" rate pricing plans with my electric company. They sent me an ecobee smart thermostat at no cost for doing so. Essentially,

I pay less than the standard rate at off peak hours (11p-7a) and weekends, equal to the standard rate at moderate hours (7a-3p, 7p-11p) and more than the standard rate at peak hours (3p-7p). In addition, they can occasionally call "critical" events on weekdays from 3p-7p where I would pay 10x the usual rate (95c per kwH), but they will notify me in advance.

Some research shows this saves the average person 10% in energy cost and >95% of customers pay less when on the plan. I generally get home from work around 6p during the week, but my A/C is currently set to come on at 5p remotely. I don't run much A/C though, honestly, as I set it to 78F and I live in a climate where we only get a handful of 90F+ days per year.

So....

Is there any downside to this I am missing?
Should I switch my A/C to not come on until 7p this summer? Or set it to cool the house before 3p?

[Daniel]

Nice! We also have a Time of Use Rate. It's great for electric vehicles because you can just set it to charge when the electricity is cheapest.

Definitely change your A/C so it doesn't normally come on during the high cost time. We pre-cool our house (Cool to below our desired temp. right before the hot times) and have it turn off during the most expensive hours, then if we need it again when it's cheap we turn it back on (though usually we can just open windows at that point...) I'm not familiar with the Ecobee but I suspect it's also very easy to set-up a schedule and override it in extenuating circumstances.