Avoiding Outlet Overload

Each year we become the owners of more and more items that require electricity. Whether it’s large TVs, computers or chargers for our phones, we must plug these items in to use or charge them. Frequently our needs outnumber the available electrical outlets, especially in older homes that have fewer outlets.

Tennessee’s electric cooperatives remind homeowners to resist the temptation to use multiple extension cords and power strips because overloading outlets can lead to a fire.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, about 5,300 residential fires each year are caused by overloaded outlets or circuits. Many times multiple outlets – or even entire rooms – can be on a single circuit. Even if you are using multiple outlets, you can still experience issues if all of the outlets are fed by the same circuit. Circuits should be marked on the breakers in your breaker box. If your breakers are not labeled, you can turn your them off one by one to identify which outlets, appliances or household systems are affected. If this doesn’t work, you should contact an electrician for assistance.

How do you determine how much is too much? Grab your calculator.

First, calculate the total wattage off all the items that are powered by a single circuit – most electronics will be labeled. Divide this combined wattage by the voltage of the circuit (120 volts is typical for most homes). The result will be the amount of amps you’re using on the circuit.

Go back to your breaker box to see what size breaker is used for the circuit – most will be 15 or 20 amps. You should only use about 80 percent of the available amperage on a circuit. If you are above 80 percent, consider moving some of your devices to other circuits.

Of those 5,300 home fires caused by overloaded outlets and circuits each year, about 2,000 occur during the holidays. You may be surprised how much energy Christmas trees, lights and other electrical holiday decor can consume. Be sure to be aware of the extra wattage you’re adding and take the necessary precautions.

/by
,

License plate honors Tennessee lineworkers

Across Tennessee there are 3,500 electric lineworkers who put their lives on the line to bring power to homes, farms, hospitals, schools and factories across the state.

In 2019 the Tennessee’s electric cooperatives worked with state lawmakers to introduce a specialty license plate to honor the important work that Tennessee’s electric lineworkers do each day.

Funds raised through the sale of the Powering Tennessee specialty plates go to the Tennessee Lineworker Lifeline Fund, a nonprofit foundation established to support lineworkers and their families in the event of a serious injury or fatality while on the job.

While we hope that the funds never have to be used, but the foundation is ready to assist lineworkers and their families when tragedy strikes.

The Powering Tennessee specialty plates have been available for just over a year, and already hundreds of motorists in our service area are using the plates. You don’t have to be a lineman to order a plate, and we encourage you to join us in supporting Tennessee’s electric lineworkers. You can learn more about the Powering Tennessee specialty license plate, or learn how to order your own, at poweringtennessee.org.

/by

A Moment of Hope

Kevin Murphy, President, Southwest Tennessee EMC, Board President, TECA

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted many important events this year. Public health concerns forced organizers of graduations, weddings and birthday parties — even the 2020 Olympics — to cancel or postpone to later dates.

Electric cooperatives across the state have even made the difficult decisions to alter their annual meetings earlier this year.

Each October, our nation’s cooperatives recognize National Co-op Month. While this is a relatively insignificant celebration and certainly a poor substitute for other meaningful events, I propose that Co-op Month holds greater significance this year than ever before. Here’s why:

Co-ops exist to serve.

Co-ops are built to solve a problem, not make a profit. Members of our communities needed power, so they built electric cooperatives to bring electricity to places that other power companies refused to serve. Even today, we continue this mission to serve our communities, neighbors and friends.

Co-ops bring people together.

Whether it is an agriculture co-op, a power co-op or a credit union, all cooperatives share the fundamental notion that people can accomplish more when they work together.

Tennessee’s electric cooperatives will use Co-op Month to recognize the hard work of our employees throughout this challenging time, and we invite you to join us by seeking out opportunities to serve others in your community.

As the coronavirus pandemic impacts our nation’s health and economy and a divisive presidential election highlights some of our greatest challenges, the co-op principles of service and unity seem to hold special significance this year.

Tennessee’s electric cooperatives will use Co-op Month to recognize the hard work of our employees throughout this challenging time, and we invite you to join us by seeking out opportunities to serve others in your community.

Even if you don’t celebrate Co-op Month, I hope you and your family can find something to celebrate. Maybe one of your kids made a good grade or mastered a new skill. Maybe you or someone you love received some good health news. Maybe you just found a dollar bill on the sidewalk.

It has been a difficult year, and we all need a reason to celebrate, regardless of how small it may be. Celebrations are moments of hope, and hope reminds us that brighter days lie ahead.

/by
,

Tennessee electric co-ops provide $1.65 million to support communities during pandemic

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s 23 electric cooperatives contributed $1.65 million to assist their communities during the COVID-19 public health crisis. An additional $388,000 in matching grants was secured through the Tennessee Valley Authority’s COVID-19 Community Care Fund, resulting in total community support of more than $2 million.

The contributions were made to a variety of projects, including support of local nonprofits and food banks, construction of community Wi-Fi hotspots and utility bill assistance.

Throughout the spring and summer, electric co-ops committed to keep the lights on for Tennesseans impacted by the pandemic, and co-ops continue to work with consumers who are struggling to pay their energy bills. Unfortunately, the overall impacts of the pandemic in much of rural and suburban Tennessee have been deep and lasting.

“From financial struggles to health concerns, COVID-19 has impacted every aspect of life,” says David Callis, executive vice president and general manager for the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association. “Co-ops are in a unique position to see and respond to the specific needs of their communities. They care deeply about the people and places they serve.”

More than $1.4 million went to support local food banks and other nonprofits already working in co-op communities to address emergency needs such as food and shelter, but co-ops also found other ways to help.

As the pandemic pushed school, church, work and other activities online, several co-ops utilized their existing broadband networks to develop community Wi-Fi hotspots for their communities.

“The pandemic presented challenges for healthcare, education and commerce, especially in rural areas where internet access is limited,” said Paul Thompson, CEO of Tri-County Electric. “The five Wi-Fi hotspots we installed will ensure that everyone in Trousdale County can take advantage of online educational and healthcare services.”

“Every community that we serve has been affected,” said Keith Carnahan, CEO of Meriwether Lewis Electric Cooperative. “ We know that the impacts of the pandemic will stretch far into the future, and we are committed to serving our members and meeting the needs of our communities.”

 

/by
, ,

Celebrate Democracy: Register and Vote

The best way to celebrate democracy is by encouraging full participation in public life. That’s why Tennessee’s electric co-ops are supporting National Voter Registration Day on September 22, 2020.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, less than 70% of eligible American citizens of voting age – 18 and over – were registered to vote in 2018. That means that up to 30% have not filed the required applications with their counties, parishes or states of local voter registrar’s offices, which are essential for making our voices as meaningful in American life as they might be.

We’re among thousands of organizations committed to making September 22 the most successful National Voter Registration Day in history, because we believe its goals are more important than ever before. Here’s why:

Unusual Year-Unexpected Changes

While 2020 began as a very active political year, disruptions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic concerns altered the campaign plans of many candidates. They also dramatically reduced overall access to voter registration forms through department of motor vehicle offices, public libraries and schools.

Suspension of on-site classes at many high schools prevented guidance counselors and government teachers from passing out registration applications to students who reached voting age this spring and summer.

Voter education efforts by churches or by state and local officials who normally would have booked space at community events to encourage community outreach found many of those events scaled back or canceled throughout spring and summer.

Lingering concerns about a resurgence of COVID-19 cases this autumn continue to fuel uncertainties on exactly how polling locations will operate or just how states and other jurisdictions will handle absentee and mail-in balloting.

The Challenge Ahead

“According to the PEW Charitable Trust’s state-by-state comparison of voter turnout for the 2014 midterm elections, Tennessee was dead last at just 28.5 percent,” said Trent Scott, vice president of corporate strategy with the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association. “Increasing overall participation in the election process begins with registering as many eligible voters as possible.”

That’s the goal of National Voter Registration Day. Recognized as a civic holiday since 2012, the annual event has served as a rallying point for voter registration initiatives supported by a network of nonpartisan organizations committed to increasing overall participation in the electoral process.

“Voting is central to American democracy,” said Laura Vogel, a senior political affairs advisor at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. “That’s why many electric cooperatives and their statewide associations are committed to making this year’s National Voter Registration Day the most successful event ever.”

Vogel, who represents electric co-ops on the National Voter Registration Day steering committee has worked with co-ops in [State] and throughout the nation to help develop new and effective ways to encourage co-op members to participate in local, state and national politics.

“Since 2012, National Voter Registration Day awareness efforts have helped to register more than 3 million voters,” said Vogel. “This year, we’re putting even more emphasis on digital engagement, because 41 states and the District of Columbia allow voters to register online.”

Many electric co-ops are using their social media pages to promote voter registration, and encouraging political engagement with articles in their newsletters, on their websites and with bill attachments or point of contact brochures and leaflets.

“More than 20,000 volunteers are committed to promotion of National Voter Registration Day,” said Vogel. “In the weeks ahead, electric co-ops will be promoting webinars on digital organizing and working closely with community organizations and businesses that are likely to remain open even if a resurgence of COVID-19 pandemic concerns occurs this autumn.”

“National Voter Registration Day is a great opportunity for us all to begin focusing on the most important aspects of this political season,” said Scott.  “This nonpartisan program promotes participation, and that includes ensuring that those who are registered to vote stay abreast of any changes that we might see in how to legally cast ballots in our state on election day.”

Remember to mark your calendar for National Voter Registration Day on September 22, and together, let’s enjoy the rights and opportunities we all share as Americans and celebrate our democracy. To learn more about National Voter Registration Day, visit www.nationalvoterregistrationday.org.

Derrill Holly writes on consumer and cooperative affairs for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the national trade association representing more than 900 local electric cooperatives. From growing suburbs to remote farming communities, electric co-ops serve as engines of economic development for 42 million Americans across 56 percent of the nation’s landscape.

/by
, ,

Tennessee co-ops assist with Hurricane Sally recovery

NASHVILLE – Sixty-eight volunteer lineworkers from seven electric co-ops across Tennessee are heading to Alabama to assist with Hurricane Sally recovery efforts.

The Category 2 hurricane brought strong wind, significant rainfall and widespread power outages to the Alabama Gulf Coast. Tennessee co-ops are assisting with efforts to reconstruct the severely damaged electric infrastructure in the region.

The Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association in Nashville coordinates requests for mutual aid and makes travel and lodging arrangements for crews who respond.

Assisting Baldwin Electric Membership Corporation in Summerdale, Alabama, are:

  • Seven lineworkers from Chickasaw Electric Cooperative in Somerville
  • Five from Ft. Loudoun Electric Cooperative in Vonore
  • Five from Mountain Electric Cooperative in Mountain City
  • 21 from Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation in Murfreesboro
  • Five from Pickwick Electric Cooperative in Selmer
  • 13 from Upper Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation in Carthage
  • 12 from Volunteer Energy Cooperative in Decatur
/by
,

TECA, The Tennessee Magazine honored for communication efforts

NASHVILLE – The Cooperative Communicators Association and the Statewide Editors Association recognized the communication efforts of the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association in the past week.

The Cooperative Communicators Association, an organization of co-op communicators from all sectors, announced its communication awards on Tuesday, Sept. 15. Highlights of the CCA awards include Cover of the Year to The Tennessee Magazine, Photographer of the Year to Robin Conover, and Best Long-Term Campaign to Trent Scott for TECA’s 2019 Power and Opportunity Campaign. TECA competed against national brands like Dairy Farmers of America, GROWMARK, CoBank and FarmCredit.

The Statewide Editors Association, a national network of electric cooperative statewide magazine editors, announced its annual communication awards during a ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 10.

“We are honored to be recognized by our electric co-op peers,” says David Callis, executive vice president and general manager for the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association. “Communications is a critical part of our work as co-ops. We are fortunate to have a talented and effective team of professional communicators here at TECA, and they take pride in sharing the stories of electric co-ops and the rural communities they serve.”

Awards presented by the Cooperative Communicators Association

Awards presented to the TECA Communications Department were:

  • The Tennessee Magazine was awarded Cover of the Year
  • 2nd place, Programs & Projects, Promotional Video, for the 2019 Washington Youth Tour video
  • 1st place, Publications, Brochures, Pamphlets and One-Time Publications, for the 2019 Tennessee Magazine media kit

Awards presented to Robin Conover were:

  • Robin Conover was awarded Photographer of the Year
  • 2nd place, Photography, Portrait, for Wilson Fly
  • 1st place, Photography, Scenic/Pictorial, for Fog at Sunrise
  • 2nd place, Photography, Scenic/Pictorial, for Smelling the Flowers
  • 3rd place, Photography, Scenic/Pictorial, for Little River
  • 1st place, Photography, Photo Feature, for Sparks Fly
  • 2nd place, Photography, Photo Feature, for Fly General Store
  • 1st place, Photography, Photo Feature, for Welding at Ermco
  • 1st place, Photography, Smartphone, for Washington Youth Tour
  • 3rd place, Photography, Photo Illustration, for Dressed for the Season
  • 1st place, Photography, Photo Essay or Story, for Santa Fe – The Place to Be
  • 2nd place, Best use of Photos in a Publication, for The Tennessee Magazine
  • 2nd place, Publications, Words and Pictures, for Santa Fe
  • 3rd place, Writing, Column or Series, for Point of View

Awards presented to Trent Scott were:

  • 1st place, Programs and Projects, Campaigns and Programs Long-term, for TECA’s Power & Opportunity campaign
  • Honorable Mention, Programs and Projects, Website, for tnelectric.org

Awards presented by the Statewide Editors Association

  • Gold Award, Best Historical Feature, Scopes Trial, to Bill Carey
  • Merit Award, Best Personality Feature, Santa Fe The Place to Be, to Robin Conover
  • Merit Award, Best Column, Point of View, to Robin Conover
  • Gold Award, Best Digital Communication, tnmagazine.org, to Trent Scott

 

/by

Bright lights for long nights

Outdoor lighting can have a significant impact on safety and security for both homes and businesses. As the days get shorter and the nights longer, this is a great time to consider outdoor lighting options from your local electric cooperative.

Contact your local office for more information on outdoor lighting. Improving lighting is a low-cost way to significantly improve the safety, security and overall comfort of your home, business or church. Effective lighting can bring the light of day to the darkest nights.

/by
,

Tennessee electric co-ops assist with Laura recovery efforts

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Sept. 9, 2020) – Seventy-nine lineworkers from across Tennessee are traveling to Louisiana today to assist with recovery and reconstruction following Hurricane Laura, a powerful Category 4 storm that struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 27. These workers will replace workers from two Tennessee co-ops who have been in Louisiana since shortly after the storm hit.

“The current recovery is going to be long,” said Jeffrey Arnold, CEO of the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives. “We cannot give co-op members an estimate of time other than ‘weeks’ at this moment because of the number of transmission poles and towers that are down and the time and effort it will take to rebuild the power grid.”

Returning home are 18 lineworkers from Plateau Electric Cooperative and Southwest Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation who have been assisting Jeff Davis Electric Cooperative in Jennings, Louisiana.

Traveling to assist Jeff David Electric Cooperative in Jennings, Louisiana, are:

  • 10 lineworkers from Southwest Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation in Brownsville

Assisting Beauregard Electric Cooperative in DeRidder, Louisiana, are:

  • 11 lineworkers from Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation in Clarksville
  • Five lineworkers from Duck River Electric Membership Corporation in Shelbyville
  • 10 lineworkers from Holston Electric Cooperative in Rogersville
  • Five lineworkers from Meriwether Lewis Electric Cooperative in Centerville
  • 21 lineworkers from Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation in Murfreesboro
  • Six lineworkers from Mountain Electric Cooperative in Mountain City
  • 10 lineworkers from Sequachee Valley Electric Cooperative in South Pittsburg

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Aug. 31, 2020) – Eighteen lineworkers from two Tennessee electric cooperatives are in Louisiana to assist with Hurricane Laura recovery efforts. The powerful hurricane left massive amounts of destruction after it made landfall last week.

“Our crews have a reputation for responding quickly, working safely and showing compassion to those who are in need,” says David Callis, executive vice president and general manager of the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Associaiton. “We commend their desire to serve and wish them well in the days to come.”

Crews will be assisting Jeff Davis Electric Cooperative in Jennings, La. Following the storm, JDEC reported that 100 percent of the co-op’s 11,000 meters were without power and more than 1,000 poles had been broken. Tennessee crews are expected to be in Louisiana for seven to 10 days before being replaced with additional Tennessee crews.

“Hurricane Laura left catastrophic damage in its wake,” said Mike Heinen of JDEC. “In response, we’ve launched a massive storm recovery and power restoration effort, assisted by hundreds of personnel from other states. Even so, a full recovery could be weeks away.”

Please keep the people of coastal Louisiana, as well as our volunteer lineworkers and their families, in your thoughts and prayers in the days ahead.

Below is a list of Tennessee co-ops providing assistance. This information is likely to change as crews are replaced in the coming weeks.

  • Plateau Electric Cooperative in Onieda, Tenn. – eight lineworkers
  • Southwest Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation in Brownsville, Tenn. – 10 lineworkers

 

 

/by