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Customer Newsletters
Table of Contents Have Fun, Stay Safe Let an Electric Lawnmower Power Your Yard Understanding the "Ups and Downs" of Electricity Use Clear the Way! We Battle Winter Storms To Keep Your Lights On Protect Your Investment & Stop The Surge Electricity - From Us To You Call Before You Dig Landscaping? Be Power-Wise When You Plant A Downed Wire Is A Dangerous Wire Help Our Lineworkers Keep The Power On Light Your Way To Savings Bulb Labels Light Your Way To Savings A Dangerous Combination Don't Let Your Old Refrigerator Guzzle Electricity Use Care With Extension Cords Compare and Save On Electric Appliances |
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HAVE FUN, STAY SAFE For kids, the neighborhoods of our hometown are full of adventures. But some places should never be part of an adventure. Overhead power lines, substations, and other electrical equipment should never be seen as part of the neighborhood playground. Children should never climb utility poles or trees that are growing into power lines. Remind your children to keep out of substations and away from utility equipment. Call us if a kite, ball, or other toy is in power lines or utility facilities. We are working to keep you and your children safe. LET AN ELECTRIC LAWNMOWER POWER YOUR YARD As you prepare for another season of yard work, are you in the market for a new walk-behind lawnmower? If so, you may wish to consider purchasing an electric lawnmower. In just the past few years, many homeowners have discovered an alternative on the lawn-care market: the electric lawnmower. Available in cordless and corded models, electric mowers have a number of advantages over traditional gasoline powered push mowers. Homeowners that have used electric lawnmowers have discovered that they're easy to start, quieter, and cost only a few dollars annually to operate. Maintenance is simple, too - no spark plugs, oil, gas, or tune-ups are necessary. Electric lawnmowers make about half the noise of conventional mowers, and start with the touch of a button. (No more pull starts!) And cordless, rechargeable mowers have enough power to mow up to half an acre on a single charge. That means that 75% of all yards mowed with walk-behind gas mowers could be mowed with a cordless electric model instead. Electric lawnmowers are available at many hardware stores. UNDERSTANDING THE "UPS AND DOWNS" OF ELECTRICITY USE You may find that your cost of electricity varies with each bill. Many factors determine your level of energy use from month to month. Have you been on vacation? If so, you've used the lights and appliances in your home less than usual. Or maybe you've had houseguests? That can mean more lights on, or more water to heat, bigger and more elaborate meals to cook, and perhaps more laundry than usual, too. And, of course, changes in the weather can result in higher costs for home heating and cooling. It's likely that a big increase in your bill is only temporary. CLEAR THE WAY! Guard dogs, bushes, fences and locked doors; all these can be obstacles to our meter readers. When we visit your home, can we get to your utility meters? It is important that our meter reader can reach your meters so that we can determine your energy use. Keep in mind that if you can't get to your meter, neither can we. Please trim bushes in front of your meters and make arraingements, if necessary, for a meter reader to have access to your meter. Barriers can be hazardous, as well as inconvenient. WE BATTLE WINTER STORMS TO KEEP YOUR LIGHTS ON Here at Orrville Utilities, every season brings a different challenge to the reliable service you've come to expect from us. In the winter, snow and ice collecting on trees and wires can interfere with your electric service. It can cause tree limbs to snap and fall on power lines. Help us prevent outages - tell us about trees growing near power lines, so that we can trim them before a storm occurs. In the event that power does go out due to a winter storm, rest assured that our crews will work hard to restore your power as soon as possible. We work very hard to provide reliable electricity to you every season. PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT & STOP THE SURGE DVD players, answering machines, personal computers, fax machines and many other electronic gadgets have become household necessities - and investments. However, they are particularly susceptible to power surges, which are momentary increases in voltage. Lightning, even striking far from your home, may cause strong surges, despite the protections built into our utility system. Surges can also result from other factors inside or outside your home. Delicate electronic components can be destroyed by large surges. The cheapest way to protect equipment is to unplug it, especially during storms or power outages. However, this can be inconvenient -- or impossible, if you are not at home. A more reliable protection is a surge protector, which plugs into an outlet, shielding items plugged into it. Surge protectors absorb stray voltage, preventing it from reaching electronic devices. ELECTRICITY - FROM US TO YOU You probably take electricity for granted. You plug into an outlet or flip a switch, and there it is, but that electricity had a complex journey before it reached you. The trip began at the power plant, where electricity was created from another source of energy. Many sources can be employed to generate electricity: fossil fuels, wind, water and solar energy; and nuclear power. From the plant, electricity was routed at high voltage over transmission lines to your neighborhood. Power arrived at a substation where the voltage was reduced before being delivered over smaller distribution lines to your home and local businesses. Although electricity has a complex journey, it is a rapid one, as electricity must be used almost as soon as it is created. We keep power flowing through this complex network, so that you can continue to take your electricity for granted. CALL BEFORE YOU DIG Planning yard work this summer? Before you do, remember that utility services of all sorts are often provided by underground lines. Damaging or disturbing underground utilities can cause power outages in your neighborhood. Worse, you could be seriously hurt. Call us if you plan to dig - no matter how deeply - on your property. We'll help you avoid underground utility surprises. LANDSCAPING? BE POWER - WISE WHEN YOU PLANT! Planning a new look for your yard? If so, please consider the location of utility equipment before you start planting: • Leave enough space around electrical equipment to allow for easy access for service. • Don't plant trees that will grow into power lines. Select a site away from wires, or trees that will grow no more than 20 feet tall. • Make sure your meter will be accessible to our meter readers.
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