Expect to pay more to heat your home this winter than you spent last year.

That's the message from government analysts who sifted through forecasts for a colder winter and slightly higher energy prices.The Energy Department said Thursday that household bills are likely to be higher for all four main heating fuels — natural gas, electricity, heating oil, and propane.Expect to pay more to heat your home this winter than you spent last year.That’s the message from government analysts who sifted through forecasts for a colder winter and slightly higher energy prices.The Energy Department said household bills are likely to be higher for all four main heating fuels — natural gas, electricity, heating oil, and propane.But wait, not so fast.Steve Ohl, president of R.F. Ohl in Lehighton, said he always tells people not to get excited when they hear that heating fuel prices may go up.“Nobody can predict where prices will go,” he said. “You don’t know the reality until it actually happens.”And contrary to what people may think, heating oil companies don’t like to see prices go higher either. They pay the same price per gallon that the customer do; it’s not like in retail where there is a mark-up.“We don’t want to see prices go up,” he said. “Lower prices mean happy customers.”Ohl said his company offers two ways to help people with fuel costs. One way is with a monthly budget account. With this program, people pay a pre-determined amount every month, which lowers the amount that has to be paid by spreading it out over a year.The other program is called Capped Price Protection. Customers agree to pay a certain amount independent of market costs. Payment can be made during the season when the fuel is used or in monthly installments through a Monthly Budget Account.“It insulates them from the ups and downs,” he said. “It’s capped, so it will never go above that price.”Ohl recommends that if a person is concerned about covering his or her heating fuel bills, then he or she should call the provider and ask if it offers a budget account program.If winter turns out to be colder than expected, here is the Energy Department forecast for average household heating bill from October through March:— Natural gas: up 22 percent, or $116, to $635 on a national average. However, the average bill in the Northeast is expected to rise 29 percent, or $198, to $889.If winter is colder than NOAA predicts, the increases would be 31 percent nationally and 38 percent in the Northeast.Nearly half of all American homes are heated with natural gas. The price of gas is expected to rise a modest 11 percent over last winter, but still that would be the highest average winter price in six years.— Heating oil: up 38 percent, or $378, to an average $1,370.Only 5 percent of U.S. homes use heating oil, but it warms nearly one-fourth of homes in the Northeast. The bad news for them: The retail price is up by 42 cents per gallon, or 20 percent, since last winter because of higher crude prices. And if the weather forecast is right, Northeast residents will burn more oil.— Electricity: up 5 percent, or $49, to $945 due to higher consumption. Rates are expected to be flat.Nearly 40 percent of U.S. households heat with electricity, including more than 60 percent in the South.— Propane: Lower than most years, but higher than last winter, when temperatures were mild and prices low.In the Northeast, the forecast calls for an average increase of $346, or 21 percent, to $1,991.— Wood and wood pellets: The energy agency didn’t offer a cost forecast.“Electric bills vary based on the price customers pay for energy,” said Carol Obando-Derstine, regional affairs director for PPL Electric Utilities. “Customers can shop for energy from among many suppliers, and we encourage all customers to do that at

www.papowerswitch.com. PPL then delivers that energy.”Times News reporter Kristine Porter contributed to this report.