Surviving Heat Wave Tips

Tips for Surviving Heat Wave

                            

BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- With high temperatures and humidity expected to stick with New Yorkers the next few days, Con Edison reminds customers to stay safe, stay comfortable and watch their energy usage. Here are some simple tips.

1. Set your AC to the highest comfortable temperature. Every degree you lower the thermostat drives up your bill by 6 percent.

2. To reduce heat and moisture in your home, run appliances such as ovens, washing machines, dryers and dishwashers in the early morning or late at night when it’s cooler outside.

3. Cook with a microwave, or barbecue.

4. When the AC is running, close doors to keep cool air in and hot air out. Shop owners are reminded not to keep front doors open while running air conditioning inside.  This wastes energy and puts a strain on the grid.

5. Keep shades, blinds and curtains closed. About 40 percent of unwanted heat comes through windows.

6. Use ceiling fans instead of your AC, if possible. Ceiling fans use less energy.

7. Turn off AC units, lights and other appliances when not at home and use a timer or smart technology to turn on your AC before arriving home.

8. Replace old appliances with new energy efficient Energy Star appliances.

Con Edison offers a variety of energy-efficiency programs for this summer. The coolNYC program connects customers with smart technology to control their room air conditioners from their computer or mobile device. Customers whose air conditioners are not Wi-Fi-enabled can buy a smart AC kit or borrow one for free and keep it if they participate in at least three heat events. Customers with Wi-Fi-connected Friedrich Kühl or Frigidaire Cool-Connect units can enroll these Energy Star ACs and earn up to $125 in rewards. Learn more by visiting:www.coolnycprogram.com

Replacing an old air conditioner with a new Energy Star unit can reduce energy usage by 15 percent. Con Edison will pay a $20 rebate to customers who buy a new Energy Star air conditioner.

Customers can report outages and check service restoration status atwww.conEd.com or by calling 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633).  When reporting an outage, customers should have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power.

Customers who report outages will be called by Con Edison with their estimated restoration times as they become available.

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