Staying cool without breaking the bank during the heatwave

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Summer has officially started, and this week, you can definitely feel it as Mother Nature is sending us some of the hottest temperatures we will feel all year.

But before you crank up that AC, it’s important to know how to stay comfortable without breaking the bank. So what can you do to stay cool without coughing up an arm and a leg?

“Do your dishes later in the evening when it’s not so hot. Same with laundry. Between water heating and air cooling and heating, those are the two big things that use the most electricity in your house. So if you can maybe do your laundry a little bit later in the evening or what, run your dishwasher a little bit later in the evening, that helps a lot,” said Kim Phelps, senior director of communications and public relations for Warren RECC.

But is it worth it to turn up the temperature? Well, heat like this can crank up the bill, and even saving just a few percent on your bill can add up over time.

“If you can do a degree, every degree is about 3% on your bill, which is all is every little bit helps. But, I think that’s that’s one thing. And I know that that does make everybody uncomfortable, but it does help a lot if you can, just turn it up a tiny bit and run a fan. That definitely will help,” Phelps said.

However, all this heat can cause some great stress on the grid. And while the Tennessee Valley Authority says they’re not expecting trouble when it comes to this heat wave, every small action could mean the difference between staying cool, and a power outage.

“The grid is stable. Our power provider, TVA, has let us know that they are, not expecting any issues, so certainly want to get that word out. The grid is stable, but and as we do run everything all the time, it does. It can stress the grid a little bit. That’s another reason. Good reason to, do the laundry or the dishwasher in the evening when it gets a little bit cooler. If you can keep from doing that between, say, ten and three. Those are really the peak hours when it’s really hot like this,” Phelps said.

Warren RECC says that if you experience a power outage to immediately let your power provider know. Phelps also recommends to check in on your elderly neighbors, making sure they are ok and bring them into the air conditioning if they do not have access to it.