Electric bill suddenly high
Why is my electric bill suddenly high in Longwood, Florida?
When the AC is the reason, it is almost always the system running longer to do the same job: a dirty coil, duct leakage into a 130°F attic, ageing equipment near the end of its life, or — on older Longwood homes — electric strip heat firing when it should not be.
Diagnosis
What is most likely wrong
| # | Cause | How common | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dirty condenser or evaporator coil | Very common | The system runs longer for the same result; often paired with weaker airflow at the vents. |
| 2 | Duct leakage in the attic | Very common | Cooled air escapes into a 130°F attic before it reaches the register; common in the city's 1970s and 80s duct runs. |
| 3 | Ageing equipment near end of life | Common | Florida's working assumption is a 10–15 year lifespan; efficiency degrades before a system fails outright. |
| 4 | Electric strip heat energised unexpectedly | Common | A miswired or stuck-on backup heat kit runs alongside cooling and is expensive to miss on a bill. |
| 5 | Low refrigerant charge | Less common | The system works harder for the same cooling, with runtime and the bill both rising gradually. |
| 6 | Thermostat or scheduling change | Less common | A schedule left on a warmer setting, or a system stuck in an unintended mode, is worth ruling out before assuming equipment failure. |
Before you call
What you can safely check yourself
- Compare the bill to the same month last year, not last month — Florida's cooling load swings hard with the season, and that alone explains most jumps.
- Confirm the thermostat mode and schedule are what you think they are.
- Feel airflow at several registers; noticeably weak airflow with rooms that never quite cool points at duct loss.
- Look at the outdoor coil for visible dirt.
- If the air handler has a heat kit, check whether the strips could be energising during cooling — a technician can confirm this quickly and safely; do not open the panel yourself.
Where the licensed line is
Refrigerant, capacitors and the inside of an electrical panel are not homeowner jobs. A run capacitor holds a lethal voltage after the disconnect is pulled, and refrigerant handling requires EPA Section 608 certification. In Florida the work itself is regulated: an air conditioning contractor licensed under §489.105(3) may replace, disconnect and reconnect the power wiring at the dedicated disconnect, and repair or replace disconnects, breakers and fuses on dedicated HVAC circuits — that scope exists because this is not general-purpose electrical work.
Verify any Florida contractor’s licence before you let them start work, at the DBPR licensee search.
In Longwood
Why this happens in this housing stock
Duke Energy will pay up to $450 back for a duct test and repair as an instant rebate, without buying any new equipment — the single best-targeted fix for a bill that has jumped without an obvious cause in a city where 66.5% of the housing stock was built 1970–1989 and the supply runs are often the same age as the roof. The full rebate sequence · what duct work costs.
Strip heat is the other Longwood-specific line item. Two thirds of the city’s housing dates from the era when a straight-cool air conditioner paired with electric resistance heat strips in the air handler was the default installation, and a strip kit that energises during cooling — usually after a miswired changeout — is expensive precisely because resistance heat converts electricity to heat at one to one, with none of a heat pump’s efficiency. Heat pump vs strip heat.
Cost
What the fix typically costs
| What is being priced | Researched range | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Diagnostic visit | $75–$200 | Commonly cited Florida diagnostic or service-call fee. Some sources put Florida contractors at $65–$95, and the fee is frequently waived or credited toward the repair if the work proceeds. |
| Condensate drain line clearing | $150–$250 | Condensate drain line clearing — the routine Florida call. |
| Refrigerant leak repair | $400–$1,600 | Refrigerant leak repair and recharge; finding the leak is most of the cost. |
| Duct repair or replacement | $2,500–$6,000 | Duct replacement, added to a changeout rather than instead of one. |
These are researched market estimates, not a quote
Every money figure on this page is a published third-party range, compiled in September 2026 from the pricing guides listed in the sources at the foot of the page. They are here so you can sanity-check what a contractor offers you before you sign, not so you can hold anyone to a number they did not write. The one exception is the City of Longwood permit fee, which is the City's own published figure and is linked to its fee schedule.
Sources
- Smart Home Air & Heat, AC Repair Cost Orlando 2026 (Central Florida contractor, market ranges from 2025-2026 service data). https://smarthomeairheat.com/our-blog/ac-repair-cost-orlando-2026/
- Duke Energy news release, 9 June 2025 — expanded Florida home improvement rebates. https://news.duke-energy.com/releases/duke-energy-expands-home-improvement-rebate-program-to-help-florida-customers-save-energy-and-money-this-summer
- Duke Energy, Home Energy Improvement — HVAC Replacement. https://www.duke-energy.com/home/products/home-energy-improvement/hvac-replacement
- Seminole County Property Appraiser CAMA extract (Parcels.csv, dated 5 September 2026), tax district L1 — Longwood; improved residential parcels, DOR codes 01 and 04. https://www.scpafl.org/
- NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Orlando station. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals
Figures are dated. Permit fees, rebate amounts and code cycles change — re-check the primary source before you rely on a number here.
Not getting anywhere?
Tell us the symptom, roughly how old the house is and roughly how old the equipment is. That usually narrows it to two candidates before anyone drives out.