Local power group’s advice to combat the hot weather, use less energy

OMAHA, Neb. —

In this type of weather, your instincts may be to turn the air conditioning down, but local power companies encourage you to use other alternatives.

Electric companies recommend having a plan to divvy up the energy in your home to reduce energy for you and the entire grid.

“We might experience a power outage during a heat wave, but it’s not actually caused by the heat itself,” Eric BenSalah, OPPD’s energy advisor, said. “It’s generally caused by everybody turning their air conditioner down.”

Omaha Public Power District said Sunday there was an outage in Omaha due to a failed switchgear, causing more than 1,600 customers to lose power.

Monday morning, around 1,500 customers were without AC for an hour after a tree limb fell on a power line in Sarpy County.

BenSalah said powerful winds can be an asset.

“We’re actually able to use a lot of that wind energy to help supplement the electricity on the grid, so our reserves can kind of stay a little bit higher,” he said. “We still have the ability to bring those in if we need to.”

MidAmerican spokesperson Geoff Greenwood said customers can combat the heat by closing blinds, turning on the ceiling fan and taking care of their AC appliances.

“Make sure your air filter is clean and that you are periodically replacing it, because if you have a dirty air filter, it’s making your air conditioner run harder,” Greenwood said.

BenSalah said not only does reducing your AC usage help conserve energy, but it also helps your wallet.

“It’s going to use a lot less energy than turning the thermostat down,” BenSalah said. “Each degree you change your thermostat, it could change your energy usage by as much as 5% to as little as 3%, but it matters.”

According to MidAmerican and OPPD’s power supply, both grids are operating normally.

They say if you experience an outage, report it to the companies.

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