Consumer Outreach
End of Trail for Energy Hogs
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When officials of Tideland Electric Membership Corp. decided it was time to round up a bunch of energy hogs, Heidi Smith signed on as part of the posse taking on the job.
Larry Caraway (l) and Joe Avery (c) of Tideland EMC prepare to remove member Patrick Gurley's inefficient, 1950s-era refrigerator. (Photo By: Heidi Smith/Tideland EMC)
“Getting old refrigerators and freezers off of our system was one of the quickest ways the co-op could accumulate a lot of kilowatt-hour savings,” said Smith, the Pantego, N.C.–based co-op’s manager of economic development, marketing and corporate communications.
The idea for a short, end-of-summer promotion came together after Smith and other co-op personnel visited the area food bank to conduct a complimentary energy audit.
“They had 22 refrigerator-freezers that had been donated by generous, kind-hearted people, but their electric bills were really high,” said Smith. “Many of the units were more than 20-years-old and they use a lot of energy.”
Co-op staffers knew many consumer-members had similar old units in garages and barns or on back porches where they chilled beverages or stored leftovers following family gatherings.
The co-op’s directors approved a program aimed at permanently disconnecting up to 500 aging refrigerators and freezers.
They selected August for the promotion, and printed the details on the cover wraps used to mail out the monthly edition of Carolina Country magazine. “We offered $100 credits on future electric bills for each working refrigerator or freezer turned in,” said Smith.
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