Hvac peoples

We run a heat pump with a propane furnace as back up heat. We also have a stove and a tankless water heater that runs on propan. Our monthly utility bill for electricity and propane is about $120 a month and we couldn’t be happier with how everything works.
I need to clarify something. The initial signal for heat is sent to the heat pump. If the thermostat senses that the temperature doesn’t raise a certain number of degrees in a certain amount of time it shuts the heat pump down and starts the gas/propane furnace.