Lassen MUD Can Help You Save Money
By Maura Giles
1 of my favorite things about summer is the opportunity for fresh, homegrown food, whether shopping at the local farmers market or sharing the abundance of garden tomatoes with a neighbor. It’s amazing how just a few seeds, some fertilizer, and water can become a bounty.
When I think about energy efficiency, I think about that bounty of food and how you can use less electricity with just a few simple actions and reap the rewards of energy savings.
You don’t need to be a farmer or botanist to know plants need water—just like you don’t have to be a lineworker or engineer to know adjusting the thermostat or turning off lights can reduce your monthly electric bill. In fact, if you read Lassen Municipal Utility District’s (LMUD) publications regularly, visit our website at the LMUD website, and follow us on Facebook, you know there are a lot of things you can do at home to save electricity and money.
Summer months bring some of the highest energy bills of the year. Cooling your home accounts for a large portion of your monthly energy use, and the hotter it gets, the harder— and longer—your air conditioner works to keep you cool.
There are several ways you can manage energy use at home, we’re providing a few tips that can help grow your summer energy savings.
But I’d also like to share a few ways we’re here to help you save—not only during the dog days of summer but throughout the year.
1 of the great things about being part of Lassen MUD is that we’re owned by the community we serve. So, instead of making profits, we can focus on helping our community. That’s why we’ve developed incentives and programs to help you keep your money in your wallet.
Save money with these easy incentives:
- Rebates. LMUD offers several ways to give you money back for efficient equipment you buy, such as heat pumps and water heaters. Many of our rebates can be claimed by simply filling out a form online and uploading your supporting documents. Find a list of all our rebates at the LMUD website.
- Free energy audits. Our team of energy advisers can determine the overall efficiency of your home and help you find ways to improve it. If you want to do it yourself, we can help with that, too. We offer a handy online bill estimator, but if you’d rather talk to someone to walk you through your energy use, call us at (855) 561-2105. We can also schedule an in-person audit. Some restrictions apply.
- Take control of your use. Use our SmartHub app to track your energy use. You can even get alerts when your use spikes so you can make changes in real-time.
- Rates. Understanding the price you pay for energy is a big part of controlling your bill. LMUD’s residential rate is 19.5 cents per kilowatt-hour. A kilowatt-hour is the amount of energy it takes to run a 100-watt light bulb for 10 hours. The average LMUD customer uses about 800 kWh per month, which equals $156.
- Ways to pay. If you’re having difficulty paying the higher bills that come with increased use in the summer, contact us. We may be able to help with payment arrangements. If you are experiencing a sudden financial setback, our Emergency Energy Assistance Program provides a 1-time payment to help income-eligible customers avoid disconnection.
Most people don’t know everything about electricity, and that’s why we’re here to help you. There are no investors making profits here. Just knowledgeable people with local jobs, working for our neighbors to ensure electricity is available when you need it. Contact us, and we can work with you to find more ways to save energy—and money.