America's Biggest Energy Thieves

vAmpere: JCPB's own super villain

Every day we walk past energy vampires, sucking away on our power supply, and most of us don't even know it. Cars left running or huge buildings with their lights glowing all night are obvious wasteful consumers of energy, but many times it is actually smaller and less noticeable power consumers that are - when aggregated across hundreds of millions of homes and offices - adding significant strain onto the US power production and transmission system at a time when blackouts are creating real concerns for companies relying on constant power supply.

Read more: http://energy.aol.com/2012/09/17/americas-biggest-energy-thieves/#photo-1

Preparing Your Home for Winter

The fall Equinox is a good time of year to start thinking about preparing your home for winter, because as temperatures begin to dip, your home will require maintenance to keep it in tip-top shape through the winter.
Autumn is invariably a prelude to falling winter temperatures, regardless of where you live. It might rain or snow or, as David Letterman says, "Fall is my favorite season in Los Angeles, watching the birds change color and fall from the trees."

Did you know there is only one state in the United States where the temperatures have never dipped below zero? Give up? It's Hawaii.

Here are ten tips to help you prepare your home for winter:

Read full article: http://homebuying.about.com/od/buyingahome/qt/92607_WinterHom.htm

ORNL roof-and-attic system keeps houses cool in summer, warm in winter

Heating and cooling a house are two of the biggest ongoing costs for homeowners and are responsible for the bulk of the average household’s energy consumption. A new kind of roof-and-attic system field tested at the DoE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) improves the efficiency of both winter heating and summer cooling. Importantly, the new system can be retrofitted to most existing roofs.

Read More: http://www.gizmag.com/ornl-roof-and-attic-system/24083/

EPRI calculates annual cost of charging an iPad at $1.36

 
Consumers who fully charge their iPad tablet every other day can expect to pay $1.36 for the electricity needed annually to power the device, according to an assessment by the Electric Power Research Institute.

The analysis shows that each model of the iPad consumes less than 12 kWh of electricity over the course of a year, based on a full charge every other day. By comparison, a plasma 42" television consumes 358 kWh a year. EPRI conducted the analysis in Knoxville, Tenn., at its power utilization laboratory. Costs may vary depending on the price of electricity in a particular location, EPRI noted.

Read more: http://www.naylornetwork.com/app-ppd/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=187561&issueID=26833

For energy efficiency, replace your windows last

When most people think about energy efficiency, once they stop talking about solar panels, they usually get to windows.  “My windows are so old,” or “They’re only single pane glass,” or “I need to replace them,” and so on, much if it fueled by the replacement window industry selling the energy savings. Unfortunately, in most cases, those savings just aren’t there, at least not at the level at which they sell them.

There’s a joke about window replacement that goes something like this: After her windows were replaced, a woman had yet to pay the bills she kept getting from the contractor who did the work. Finally, a year later, the contractor got her on the phone and asked her why she had not paid for them. Her response: “Do you think I’m stupid? Your salesman told me that in one year the windows would pay for themselves. It’s been a year!”

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/04/10/for-energy-efficiency-replace-your-windows-last/#ixzz21jn8nLro

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/04/10/for-energy-efficiency-replace-your-windows-last/

After the storm: Floodwater safety

Flooding forces homeowners to ask many difficult questions about water-damaged electrical equipment in their houses: Can I use appliances after they dry out? Are circuit breakers and fuses safe to use? Will I need to replace my electrical wiring?

Floodwater contaminants can create serious fire hazards if electrical wiring and equipment have been submerged in water. Even with professional cleaning and drying, sediments and toxins are difficult to remove.

As families begin to clean up after a flood, there may be hidden electrical hazards. This is not a do-it-yourself project! Before beginning, have a qualified electrician check the house wiring, assess other damages and proceed with repair work. Then, follow these important safety tips:

Read More: http://www.ul.com/global/eng/pages/offerings/perspectives/regulator/electrical/additionalresources/flooding/

Nationwide Scam Hits Home

Please review this previous post about a scam that recently targeted a JCPB customer:

Thanks to our friends at the American Public Power Association (APPA) for reporting on a multi-state scam that has targeted utility customers across the country. The scam aims to steal payments and identity information using in-person solicitations, social media, fliers, phone calls and text messages. Victims have been reported in states such as California, Illinois, Tennessee, Texas and Florida.

Nationwide scam targets utility customers