Programmable thermostat too complicated? Get a new one

By: Energy Efficiency Program Manager Cory Fuehrer As summer heats up, it’s great to know your home’s air conditioning system can provide relief. It’s also good to know you can find a cold beverage in your refrigerator to cool down with. That wouldn’t be possible without the refrigeration process pioneered in 1834 by Jacob Perkins, who introduced the first commercially successful vapor-compression refrigeration system using ether. For air conditioning systems, a refrigerant evaporates inside a coil and changes from a liquid to a gas. As it does, the refrigerant absorbs heat from inside your home and the system transfers it out. The amount of heat removed and how efficiently it is done depends in large part on the type of refrigerant used. For nearly 200 years, the refrigeration industry sought to develop the perfect refrigerant that would be efficient, non-corrosive, non-toxic, and non-flammable, with no ozone depletion and global warming potential. However, the first air conditioners and refrigerators employed toxic or flammable gases, such as ammonia, sulfur dioxide, methyl chloride or propane that often resulted in fatal accidents when they leaked. Then, in 1928, Thomas Midgley Jr. created the first non-flammable, non-toxic chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gas: Freon® (R-12). However, by the mid-1970s, scientists discovered CFCs such as R-12, were causing major damage to the ozone layer that protects the earth from ultraviolet radiation. In the 1980s, this lead to the adoption of hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) refrigerants like R-22. Compared to CFCs, HCFCs have a significantly lower potential to deplete ozone. But in the 2000s, climatologists began to correlate the use of HCFCs to climate change. To address this concern, the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 required transitioning to new refrigerants like R-32 and R-454B. The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers classifies these refrigerants as “A2Ls”. Starting this year, newly manufactured refrigeration and air conditioning systems must employ A2Ls. When compared to older refrigerants, they provide environmental benefits, improved efficiency, faster thermal recovery and regulatory compliance. They also help homeowners avoid the increasing costs of retiring refrigerants. Even still, don’t feel you need to rush out to replace all of heat pumps, air conditioners, refrigerators and freezers. Existing equipment and the parts, including refrigerant, used for servicing and repairing them are not subject to the new regulations and can continue to be used through equipment end-of-life. The supply of R-410a and R-134a will still be available, as was the case in prior refrigerant transitions in the 1990s and early 2000s. However, when you do find yourself in the market for a new refrigeration appliance, heat pump or air conditioning system, contact your local utility or visit www.energywisenebraska.com. They may have EnergyWiseSM incentives available to reduce the cost. Your local utility, in partnership with Nebraska Public Power District, wants to help you get the most value from the energy they provide.

One of the easiest ways to manage your energy bill in the summer is to be smart about your thermostat. Raising your thermostat by just a few degrees can lead to noticeable savings, and combining it with good cooling habits makes your home more comfortable and efficient. Try these strategies: • Set your thermostat at 78 degrees when you're home and higher when you're away. • Use a programmable thermostat or smart thermostat to automatically adjust settings when you’re sleeping or out of the house. • Don’t set the thermostat lower than usual to try to cool your home faster—it won’t work and it wastes energy. • Pair your thermostat with ceiling fans to circulate cool air and make higher temperatures feel more comfortable. • Keep internal heat sources like ovens and lamps away from the thermostat. • Make gradual temperature adjustments rather than big swings. If your air conditioner seems to run constantly, consider having it serviced. A well-maintained system cools more efficiently. Smart thermostat use, combined with seasonal maintenance and good airflow, can make a significant difference in your energy bill this July.

By: Energy Efficiency Program Manager Cory Fuehrer Have you stopped at or driven by a convenience store in the middle of the day and noticed the canopy lights over the gas pumps are on? Or have you noticed a streetlight in your area that never shuts off? What about a glaring yard light that irradiates over much more than the owner’s yard? Finally, when is the last time you entered a room and found the lights were left on after the last person left? These are all examples of improper or needless use of electricity through illumination.  Through the 2020 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, the U.S. Energy Information Administration found that electricity consumption for lighting accounted for about 6% of the electrical use in U.S. homes. That equates to 81 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity. In similar surveys for commercial buildings and industrial facilities, lighting accounted for about 17% (208 billion kWh) and 6% (53 billion kWh) of total electricity use in those areas respectively. Unfortunately, it is estimated that about half of all energy used for lighting is unnecessarily lost. Here are the leading causes of wasted lighting energy: Over-illumination – using too much light or leaving lights on unnecessarily. Inefficient fixtures – light is lost within the fixture before it can provide illumination of the desired area. Inefficient light source – bulbs like incandescent bulbs waste energy by creating much more heat than light. Poor fixture design – Some are not properly shielded and/or aimed sending light where it is not needed or desired. Poor design usually leads to glare. The picture to the right illustrates this problem. The fixture on the left either lost its shielding or never had any causing light to go directly into the observer’s eyes. The fixture on the right is properly shielded. Most of the light produced strikes the area being illuminated before reflecting into our eyes. Uncontrolled lighting – lack of lighting controls, occupancy sensors, or dimming systems allow lights to run unnecessarily. Not utilizing natural light – not taking advantage of natural daylight when and where it is available can lead to increased reliance on artificial lighting. Now that you know the primary causes, here are the solutions: Energy-efficient lighting – Switching to energy-efficient LED lighting and using smart lighting controls. Proper fixture design – Ensuring light fixtures are shielded and aimed correctly by directing light only where it's needed, reducing waste and glare. Natural light utilization – Maximizing natural daylight through window placement during building design to reduce the dependence on artificial lighting. Lighting controls – Installing and integrating occupancy and daylight sensors, smart switches, smart building systems and task lighting to optimize energy use. Your local electric utility, in partnership with Nebraska Public Power District, wants to help you gain the most beneficial light from the energy you purchase. They even offer EnergyWiseSM lighting incentives to help you make the most efficient choice. To find additional information, contact your local utility or visit www.energywisenebraska.com.

The comfortable spring weather is more likely to nudge you to open your windows than to turn on the air conditioner—and that makes this the perfect time to make sure your a/c is in shape for the summer heat that’s just a few months away. The best time to service your home’s air conditioning system is when you don’t need it. If you put it off until it’s 90 degrees outdoors, you could be dealing with some down time that can leave your home pretty uncomfortable. Annual service is important because your technician will lubricate and clean moving parts and check for—and repair—potential problems. That will make it more likely that your system will run smoothly all summer. Choose an a/c tech who is licensed by the state. Chances are the same tech can come back in the fall to tune up your heating system.

If you’re lucky enough to have an unused room to convert to a home office, a home gym or a home theater, add one more item to your “to do” list: Call an electrician. Setting up any of those rooms involves moving in a lot of big electronic equipment live a treadmill, a giant-screen TV, computers and printers, and stereo components. It’s quite possible that the electrical receptacles in the room won’t be able to handle the equipment that uses as much electricity as those pieces do. You also might not have enough outlets for all of the things you’ll need to plug in. Sure, you can buy a power strip that allows you to plug multiple pieces of equipment into a single outlet. But that power strip won’t add any juice to the circuit that powers that single outlet—which means you can overload it and set yourself up to trip your circuits or even cause overheating or a fire. So before you start using your home gym to get in shape, get the room in shape first. Ask a licensed electrician to inspect the room’s outlets and power supply and determine if you need to upgrade.

Southwest Public Power District located in southwest Nebraska, has an opening for the position of System Engineer. The System Engineer is responsible for recommending, planning and overseeing engineering projects, maintaining the District’s electric distribution models and assisting the operations department by providing technical support. This position will oversee all aspects of the engineering requirements and implement current and future technologies to ensure a safe, reliable and efficient electric distribution system. SWPPD’s operating hours are compressed work schedule with every other Friday off. A bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or electrical engineering technology is required. In lieu of a degree, a minimum of 5 years of experience in an engineering position at an electric utility may be considered. An effective working knowledge of electrical distribution system operations is required. A valid Nebraska driver’s license and passing a pre-employment drug and alcohol test is required.  Southwest Public Power District offers an excellent wage and benefit package, including paid vacation, sick leave, paid health insurance, and funded retirement plans. Southwest Public Power District is an equal opportunity employer and is headquartered in Palisade, Nebraska. The region’s schools, small communities, and recreational opportunities make it a great place to live and raise a family. Qualified candidates should submit a letter of interest, resume and references to Gary Hanken, System Engineer – jobs@swppd.com. Position will be open until filled.

Southwest Public Power District will never send anyone to your house to ask you if you need work done. And when someone does come for a legitimate reason, you’ll see a uniform, a truck with our logo on it and valid identification. Springtime is scam season. Don’t be surprised if you get telephone calls, uninvited visitors looking for work and loads of door hangers offering landscaping, roofing, painting and home-repair services. Your best bet: Say no to all of them. If you need work done around your house, visit the website of the state agency responsible for licensing contractors or join a contractor referral network that recommends only contractors who are licensed, insured, bonded and experienced. A few other tips: •Be wary of contractors with out-of-state license plates or detachable, magnetic company signs on their trucks. These could be “travelers,” who follow the warm weather from state to state and hire themselves out as home-improvement contractors. They’re almost always unlicensed in your state, and if you discover a problem with their work later, they’ll be long gone. •Do not pay in cash, and do not pay up front. Instead, work out a payment schedule that allows you to pay in increments as the work is completed. •Get bids from three reputable companies before you start. If you get one offer that’s way lower than the other two, something is probably amiss. •Don’t fall for these two lines: “I just finished a job at your neighbor’s house and I’ll give you a good price if you hire me today because I’m already in the neighborhood” or “I have leftover materials from a job I just did and I’ll sell/install them here for a deep discount because I don’t need them.” Hiring contractors can be expensive. Don’t waste your money on one who’s not licensed and legitimate.

You probably peel the lint out of your clothes dryer’s lint trap after every load of laundry. But that’s not enough to keep the appliance from posing a fire hazard for your home. Add a few more maintenance checks to your laundry-day routine, including: •Notice how long it takes the dryer to dry your clothes. If they’re still damp at the end of a typical drying cycle, or if it’s starting to take longer to dry clothes, your lint screen or exhaust duct is probably blocked. •Clean the dryer vent and exhaust duct at least once a year. The duct is the coil that sends the hot dryer air to the outdoors. The vent is the hole where the hot air leaves the house. Both can get clogged with lint and overheat, send dirty, moist air back into your home, or even catch on fire. You might have to disconnect the exhaust duct from the dryer and from the vent to remove a blockage. •Sweep behind your dryer regularly. Lint can accumulate there and also underneath. Move the dryer and clean the back of it. This might be a job for a service technician rather doing it yourself. •If your exhaust duct is plastic or foil, replace it with a rigid or corrugated, semi-rigid metal duct. Plastic and foil are too flexible and trap lint easily. They’re also easier to crush, which will prevent air from flowing through to the vent. •Avoid throwing gasoline, oil or chemical-soiled clothes and towels into the dryer. Instead, wash them several times and line dry them. If you have to use the dryer for them, choose the lowest setting, and remove them the minute the cycle is finished. Even washed and dried clothes that have come into contact with volatile chemicals can ignite. Best bet: Consider the clothes ruined and safely dispose of them.

By: NPPD Energy Efficiency Program Manager Cory Fuehrer You know it’s springtime when you hear certain sounds in the fresh morning air: the gentle rumble of an approaching thunderstorm, the soft buzzing of bees pollinating flowers, the singing of songbirds announcing their return . . . and that overzealous neighbor who always starts mowing before 7 a.m. on Sundays! You know what that neighbor needs? A robotic mower. Most operate within the range of 55 to 60 decibels (dB). That’s the average level of a conversation between two people speaking in a soft to normal voice. Your neighbor’s gas-powered mower, like others, probably ranges between 90 to 100 dB. That’s the same level of noise produced by hairdryers, blenders and motorcycles. You could also tell your neighbor about the other great advantages robotic mowers have, including: Time savings Whether you’re on vacation or doing projects around the house, robotic mowers operate autonomously, allowing you to set a schedule and forget about mowing. When the mower’s battery is nearly depleted, the mower heads to its station for recharging, which usually takes one to three hours. Then it heads back to keep mowing where it left off. Less maintenance The blades on a robotic mower should be replaced every two to three months. Other than that, occasionally clean the undercarriage, then check and lubricate moving parts, and you should be set. Compare that to the hassle of removing and sharpening blades and changing oil when relying on a gas-powered mower. Healthier lawn Because robotic mowers are designed to mow more frequently, clippings are smaller and decompose more quickly. Compared to mowing once or twice a week with a gas-powered mower, the robotic mower’s reduced length of cut creates less stress to grass and helps to promote a healthier, denser lawn. Efficiency and energy cost savings Consider the seasonal energy use and cost for mowing the average Nebraska lawn, which is reported to be 13,921 square feet according to Today's Homeowner, the #1 syndicated home improvement TV show in the U.S. Over the course of a seven-month mowing season, a randomly selected robotic mower clips the lawn every other day and consumes almost 62 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity. At last mowing season’s average cost of 11.56¢ per kWh in Nebraska, the total is about $7.14. In comparison, this size of lawn could be trimmed with a 21-inch, gas-powered mulching push mower every third day. By the end of the same seven-month mowing season, the push mower will have used 35½ gallons of gasoline and required 71 hours of someone’s time to push it. If gas were $3 per gallon, that comes to $106.50. You can determine what 71 hours of free time is worth. Safety Cutting on slopes with push or riding mowers always presents a safety concern. Robotic mowers can typically mow slopes of 20-35 degrees, with some tackling even steeper grades. More advanced models have sensors that can detect obstacles and maneuver around them or even automatically stop the blades when the mower is lifted. With a little luck, your neighbor’s early morning lawncare routine will never disrupt your morning tranquility again. Who knows? By now, maybe you’re interested in a robotic mower. To find additional information about incentives for purchasing a robotic mower or other energy-saving opportunities, contact Southwest Public Power District or visit www.energywisenebraska.com