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200 Volunteers are Sought for
New "Beat the Peak" Program Farmers' Electric Cooperative is seeking 200 members to participate in a new program that will determine if the cooperative will ask for voluntary systemwide participation in 2012. "In the past, we have used the voluntary participation in the Switch Team program to help lower the demand on our system and it has made a difference in our rate structure," said Steve Shoot, Manager of Member Services for FEC. "But we really need to take a look at a program that will allow all members to help during peak times, which in turn would make a difference on future rate structures." Volunteers participating in the program
will receive a small plastic-cased unit that plugs into a regular Usually, there are an average of three peak alerts per month, ranging from 2 1/2 to four hours in length. "This is a program that is designed to let members help the cooperative to reduce its power costs, which in turn has an impact on their rates in the future," Shoot said. The Beat The Peak program uses the same SCADA technology that FEC has used since 1996 to control water heaters and cooling systems. The Beat The Peak units will be provided free to the volunteers who take part in this program in November. Just give us a call at the office to register as a volunteer. Winter Peak Alert Season is Just Around the Corner It's important to take action on managing the energy usage at your home or business whenever you hear a "Peak Alert" issued by FEC. Why? The demand Farmers' Electric members place on the Associated Electric Cooperation (AECI) generation system has a significant impact on the bill FEC receives from AECI for a 12-month period. You can make a difference in your energy usage during peak times and if enough members take action during the Peak Alert windows, it can make a difference. Whenever you are aware of a Peak Alert, it is important to use as little energy as possible. For example, instead of using the dishwasher and the clothes washer at the same time, just operate one of the appliances. Any appliance that generates heat, such as a clothes dryer, uses a lot of energy. If at all possible, delay using the clothes dryer until the Peak Alert is over. How can you tell when a Peak Alert has been issued? FEC announces the Peak Alert and the time the Peak Alert will run on four area radio stations. They are KCHI FM, Chillicothe,98.5; KGOZ FM, Gallatin, 101.7; and KMZU FM, Carrollton, 100.7 and KZBK FM, Brookfield, 96.9. Generally Peak Alerts are usually called for the late afternoon and evening hours. However, during the winter months, Peak Alerts may be called in the morning, too, when exceptionally cold temperatures drive the system demand higher as heating systems run. longer. Winter Peak Alerts will usually range from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. or 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Occasionally Peak Alerts will be called in the morning and the afternoon, but this is very unusual. Most of the time during the winter months, the Peak Alerts will be during the evening hours. |
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wall outlet. The unit has three lights on the front: Just select an outlet
within the home where the unit can be easily observed. Plug the unit into the outlet. When
it is plugged in, all of the LEDs will flash three times to indicate that the device
is working properly. The green LED light indicates the system is receiving valid messages from
the Beat The Peak System. The yellow Peak Alert LED lets you know there is a
strong potential for a Peak Alert to be called within the next hour. The red
Beat The Peak LED lets you know a Peak Alert is underway. Whenever the yellow Peak Alert LED or
red Beat The Peak LED is on, members voluntarily cut back on their energy usage during the
Peak Alert times. This lowers FEC's demand, which in turn has an impact on the
cooperative's monthly power bill... which in turn has an impact on your electric rate.