Gulf Power Company is offering some cold weather energy savings tips for everyone, including customers of other utilities.
This week, Northwest Florida will be experiencing very cold temperatures. Gulf Power wants to make sure you stay warm, safe and conserve energy.
Things you can do right now to save money and energy
Set your
thermostat to 68 degrees or lower to conserve energy. Reverse the direction of your ceiling fans so they rotate clockwise as you look up at them. This will force warm air down from the ceiling. During the middle of the day, open blinds and curtains on the sunny side of the house. Also, where possible, reduce the traffic in and out of the house. Don’t use your oven to heat your home — it’s not efficient and most important, it’s not safe. A fireplace is not always an efficient heat source. If not used properly it can actually make the rest of the house cooler because airflow up the chimney removes the heated air. When using the fireplace, close all doors and warm air ducts to the room where the fireplace is located. Glass doors on a fireplace will reduce the outflow of warm air. And a fireplace with a blower system is ever better because it actually blows the warm air around the firebox back into the room. An electric blanket is more economical than heating the entire house all night long. Use a portable electric heater to heat only a small area. Buy models that are
thermostatically controlled. Keep it at least three feet from items that could catch fire like curtains or furniture. Make sure you have working smoke detectors on every floor and in every sleeping room of your house. Make sure vents and return air registers are not blocked by furniture, draperies, doors or other obstacles. Use “draft stoppers” or towels/blankets to block drafts at foot of door. If you should lose power, go to your
thermostat and turn off your heating system. Please wait 10 to 15 minutes after power...
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