By Corey Ohlenkamp—
FORT WAYNE, Ind.—Decorating for the holiday season is a great way to spread cheer, but it can make a costly and hazardous time of year even more expensive and dangerous. Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is providing customers with energy efficient holiday decoration ideas and safety reminders to get into the holiday spirit.
According to the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), in 1882, Thomas Edison, who invented the incandescent light bulb, showed off to reporters the strings of electric lights around his holiday tree at his New Jersey home. Since then, electric lights have helped customers celebrate the holidays. Fast forward to today and our technology is more energy efficient, but we still need to be safe.
“Indiana Michigan Power is dedicated to making your holidays bright, efficient and safe,” said Heather Riggle, Energy Efficiency Residential Accounts manager for I&M. “If you’re using one string of lights or going all out like Clark Griswold in the movie ‘Christmas Vacation’, it’s always important to review safety procedures if decorating is part of your holiday tradition. Customers can create great displays or décor while being environmentally friendly and safe. We hope all of our 500,000 plus customers we serve have a safe and happy holiday season.”
Here are a few tips on how customers can decorate for the holidays while conserving energy and staying safe.
Deck The Halls and Conserve Energy:
Lights hung on trees or roofs are a great way to make your home or business shine during the holiday season. You candecorate and save money using these energy efficient ideas.
- Customers can purchase LED and strand lights to decorate and save energy. ENERGY STAR® qualifiedLED lights use 90% less energy than traditional bulbs – which means the cost to light a typical tree with LEDs is about $1 per season. LED lights generate less heat, are cool to the touch and can last up to 10 years. They’re brighter, eco-friendly and safer, since they are much cooler than incandescent lights. LED flameless candles are safe and energy efficient alternatives to candles.
- Customers can use path lights that come in festive designs and welcome people into their homes or businesses. Line the walkway with LED lights to save money and keep everyone safe as they enter.
- Customers can decorate without using electricity. Place ornaments in a glass jar for table decorations, addtinsel and bows for a touch of sparkle, or place figurines on office surfaces such as desks, shelves and countertops.
- Customers can use greenery for garland, indoor or outdoor wreaths and floral arrangements. Real or faux, greenery doesn’t use energy. Add LED lights and festive ribbon for an extra touch.
- Customers can use smart power strips to corral extra cords. These strips can sense when a device is turned off or not being used and will shut off the power automatically. Visit Electricideas.com to compare energy efficiency ratings to save money on smart power strips.
- Customers should consider using automatic timers. These will turn lights off when you leave your home or office.
For more than 100 energy efficiency tips, rebates and energy efficient efforts visit: www.electricideas.com.
12 Safety Tips
Having a happy holiday season with your friends, family and loved ones means having a safe holiday. Before you decorate, follow I&M’s top 12 tips of safety.
- Before installing lights, check each set – new and old – for damaged sockets, loose connections and frayed or bare wires. Discard damaged sets or repair them before using.
- Never use more than three standard-sized sets of lights per extension cord.
- Plug exterior lights into ground-fault interruptible (GFI) outlets. If the home lacks outside GFI outlets, call an electrician to install them.
- Don’t run electrical cords through door or window openings where they can be damaged.
- Before climbing a ladder, inspect it to ensure it’s in good working condition, and follow the weight limits specified on the ladder and manufacturer instructions.
- Never use a ladder on or near power lines or poles.
- Before decorating, determine how many outlets are available and where they are located. Plan your displays accordingly to avoid anyone from tripping over cords.
- Avoid overloading electrical outlets with too many decorations or electrical cords.They can overheat and cause a fire.
- Don’t connect lights while adjusting them on the tree. Unplug lights when changing bulbs.
- Don’t let bulbs touch flammable material, including needles, branches and other decorations.
- Make sure household smoke detectors are working properly.
- Warn children never to touch tree lights or electric toys with wet hands.
For more safety tips visit: www.IndianaMichiganPower.com/safety.
ABOUT INDIANA MICHIGAN POWER
Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is headquartered in Fort Wayne, and itsapproximately 2,100 employees serve more than 600,000 customers. More than 85% of its energy delivered in 2020 was emission-free. I&M has at its availability various sources of generation including 2,278 MW of nuclear generation in Michigan, 450 MW of purchased wind generation from Indiana, more than 22 MW of hydro generation in both states, nearly 35 MW of large-scale solar generation in both states, and 2,620 MW of coal-fueled generation in Indiana.
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