MEDIA ADVISORY: SPECIAL PROGRAMS AND ENERGY SAVING TIPS

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The hot weather has many people thinking about conserving energy and staying cool. It’s also a good time to be reminded of special programs offered through Duke Power.

Air Conditioning
Make sure your central air conditioning system or window unit is properly sized for the space it is intended to cool. Improperly sized units use more energy than necessary. Remember that window air conditioning units generally are not designed to cool more than one room.

• Clean or replace window unit or central air conditioning system filters monthly. Dirty filters cause air conditioners to work harder and use more energy.
• If you have a central air conditioning system, do not close off unused rooms or close air registers in rooms. Such action makes the system less efficient.
• Make sure an outside air conditioning unit or heat pump is not blocked by shrubbery, leaves or other objects.
• Set the thermostat on the highest comfortable setting. Raising the temperature just 2 degrees can reduce cooling costs by as much as 5 percent.

Insulation
Check weather stripping around doors and caulking around windows. Properly sealed doors and windows help prevent warm air from entering the home.

• Close blinds, shades or drapes during the hottest part of the day to block heat.
• Make sure the attic is properly ventilated to relieve excess summer heat. Duke Power recommends one square foot of free area for every 150 square feet of total attic floor space.

Household Tips
Place heat-producing appliances such as lamps and televisions away from the air conditioning thermostat to prevent inaccurate temperature readings.

• For homes without air conditioning systems, use fans to draw cooler air inside during the night and to circulate air throughout your home during the day. Ceiling fan blades should rotate clockwise in the summer months.
• Save jobs that produce moisture -- like mopping, dishwashing and washing clothes -- for early morning or night-time hours. The humidity from these activities can make homes uncomfortable. On hot days, cook outdoors, use a microwave oven or prepare cold meals to avoid excess heat in the kitchen.

Special Programs
Duke Power's Cooling Assistance and Fan-Heat Relief programs are funded through The Duke Energy Foundation and the company's Bulk Power Marketing Sharing Programs.

Cooling Assistance
Annual contributions of more almost $600,000 are spread among the counties within our service area. A specific agency (or agencies) is selected in each county to distribute the funds and to determine the criteria for family eligibility.

Fan Relief
The summer heat can pose a serious health concern, particularly for many of our senior citizens. Duke Power and the Duke Energy Foundation contribute $130,000 through state agencies in North Carolina and South Carolina for the purchase of fans for senior citizens.

Duke Power, a business unit of Duke Energy, is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities and provides safe, reliable, competitively priced electricity and value-added products and services to more than 2 million customers in North Carolina and South Carolina. The company operates three nuclear generating stations, eight coal-fired stations, 31 hydroelectric stations and numerous combustion turbine units. Total system generating capability is approximately 19,900 megawatts. More information about Duke Power is available on the Internet at: http://www.dukepower.com.

Duke Energy is a diversified energy company with a portfolio of natural gas and electric businesses, both regulated and unregulated, and an affiliated real estate company. Duke Energy supplies, delivers and processes energy for customers in the Americas. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune 500 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available on the Internet at: http://www.duke-energy.com.