Chelan PUD Ask Consumers to Conserve Energy to Prevent Outages This Winter

The Chelan County Public Utility District (PUD) is suggesting residents conserve energy this winter to stay comfortable and avoid causing power outages.

"Our electrical system is designed to handle this kind of weather,” says PUD Communications Specialist Rachel Hansen. “However, when there's more electricity demand, that means there's more stress on the equipment that's delivering that electricity, so we are a little bit more prone to outages right now.”

Here are some tips Chelan PUD recommends for keeping warm while saving energy this winter:

• Placing a “door sock,” a towel or blanket, by the door to help reduce the amount of cold air coming in.
• Close the shades to retain heat. If it’s particularly sunny, you can open the blinds temporarily to let some solar energy in.
• Replace air filters in case they are clogged.
• Remove any air conditioning unit in your window and close it.
• Dress warmly or wear extra layers around the residence.
• Close the damper in your fireplace. Chimneys are designed to move heat out of the house.
• Lower your water heater temperature to 125 degrees.
• Close or tape your foundation vents.

To reduce the risk of your water pipes freezing, you can try leaving a cold-water faucet on and/or open your cupboard doors under the sink to let heat your pipes.

You can also search for the water shut-off valve inside the home.

Using fuel-burning devices inside the resident is highly discouraged due to the threat of a fire or carbon-monoxide poisoning.

If an outage does occur, crews recommend you turn all lights off except for one to check if power was restored.

Once power is restored, it's recommended to stay away from non-heating appliances for at least two hours to prevent another power outage from occurring.

If you see a downed line on the ground or trees, stay away from it and call the PUD at 877-783-8123, or call 911 instead. Crews are the only ones who can move them safely.

To stay updated on outages near you, visit the new outage map or call 877-783-8123 to report a new outage.