How to read your result
The table spreads one year of heating across the months the way Victoria's weather does: December and January carry the most, July and August almost nothing. The cost column is the extra you would pay BC Hydro for heating that month, not your whole bill.
BC Hydro's tiered rate charges a lower Step 1 price up to about 22.2 kWh per day and Step 2 above it. Heating sits on top of your other use, so most of it lands in Step 2. If you enter your other monthly use, we price the heating as the difference between your bill with and without it. If you leave it blank, we price all heating at Step 2, which is slightly high. The basic charge (23.44 cents a day on the tiered rate) is paid with or without a heat pump, so it is not part of the heating cost. BC Hydro bills every two months; monthly numbers are half a bill.
A higher HSPF2 or COP lowers every month. Real use also depends on your thermostat setting and how airtight the house is.
How we calculate this
- Yearly heat need: NRCan's typical Victoria heating loads (85 GJ for a pre-2004 detached home, 60 GJ for 2004 or newer, both about 2,000 sq ft), scaled to your floor area. NRCan, Heating with Oil, Table 3, checked October 8, 2026. Upgraded older homes: our assumption, halfway between.
- Monthly share: heating degree-days below 18 C for Victoria Int'l A, 1981-2010 Canadian Climate Normals (January 416.6 through December 433.0, 2,931.1 a year). Environment and Climate Change Canada, checked October 8, 2026.
- Heat pump electricity = heat need divided by seasonal COP; COP = HSPF2 divided by 3.412 (a unit conversion). HSPF2 is rated for a colder climate than Victoria, so this is conservative.
- BC Hydro tiered rate: Step 1 11.87 cents per kWh, Step 2 14.08 cents per kWh, threshold 22.1918 kWh per day, basic charge 23.44 cents per day. BC Hydro, verified October 7, 2026. Flat rate 12.70 cents per kWh. BC Hydro, verified October 7, 2026. Taxes and rate riders not included.