PGE encourages reducing power use during extreme heat

As temperatures crawl into three digits over the Fourth of July holiday weekend — and in summer months to come — Portland General Electric urges customers to be conservative with energy use during extreme heat.

An excessive heat warning issued by the National Weather Service, effective Thursday, July 4 until the night of Sunday, July 7, affects the PGE service area.

Reducing power use supports service reliability during times when electricity demand is especially high which typically peaks in the summer between 3-9 p.m.

During peak times, PGE recommends the following actions:

If you have air conditioning, use your thermostat to manage temperatures carefully.Turn the thermostat up a few degrees to help reduce power consumption. If temperatures cool down enough for comfort, consider turning off the air conditioning for the night and opening windows to use outside air for cooling — if you can do so safely. During daytime hours, run the air conditioning only when you are home and keep temperatures at the highest level comfortable. Cool only rooms lived in.Avoid using large electrical appliances like ovens, dishwashers and washing machines during peak electricity use periods. If you charge an electric vehicle at home, and are not enrolled in PGE's Smart Charging program, considering setting your car to charge during off-peak hours. Turn off all unnecessary electrical equipment when not in use including home entertainment systems, computers, copiers and lights.

PGE employees are working toward addressing or preventing potential heat-related equipment issues and lower energy demand including:

Taking technical precautions to help keep essential distribution equipment from overheating.Assigning extra crews to ensure quick and effective responses to any outages. Activating the Peak time Rebate and Smart Thermostat programs. Encouraging commercial and industrial customers to reduce electricity use.

When temperatures rise, customers use more electricity to cool their homes and businesses. High demands place extra stress on electrical equipment, which can lead to power outages.

It's best to be prepared:

Have an outage kit with needed supplies ready just in case. If you rely on electricity for your health, and are not enrolled in the PGE medical certificate program, call to enroll at 503-612-3838.Consider food safety. Make extra ice by freezing water in plastic bags so food can be kept cold if needed. Have thermostats in your fridge and freezer to monitor for safe temperatures, and keep foods on hand that do not require cooking or cooling.

Learn more energy saving tips at portlandgeneral.com/tips.

Other helpful links for extreme heat at portlandgeneral.com/extreme-heat and outage preparedness tips at portlandgeneral.com/beprepared .