Tips For A Safe and Cost-conscious Christmas Season

Press Release from ComEd (Chicago)

'Tis the season for festive decorating, and while customers commence with stringing holiday lights ComEd is offering tips for practicing safety and calculating added energy costs.

Indoor and Outdoor Decorating Safety Tips
Decorative Lighting:
-- Only decorate with lights that have a NOEL or U/L testing agency label. Check wires, plugs and sockets for defects. Remember: If in doubt - throw them out.
-- Do not overload outlets and extension cords.
-- Do not run electric cords under carpet, seat cushions or anywhere they may be crushed or broken.
-- Keep electric cords and extension cords out of the reach of children.
-- Turn off all decorative lights when going to bed or leaving the house.

Outdoor Lighting:
-- Be sure decorative lights used outside are approved for outdoor use.
-- Outdoor lights should be hung with insulated staples or hooks rather than nails or tacks.
-- When decorating outdoors, be aware of all power lines. Do not work near overhead power lines or anywhere there is a possibility of contacting an overhead power line, either directly or indirectly with a ladder or other piece of equipment. Do not string lights on outdoor trees that are growing into or near power lines - entire trees may become energized if lights come in contact with a power line.

Christmas Trees:
-- Make sure natural grown trees are fresh. Cut the trunk on a 45-degree angle, about one inch above the original cut, and place it in a sturdy stand. A large tree should be anchored to prevent it from toppling over and possibly catching fire.
-- Be sure to place trees away from fireplaces, radiators, television sets, and other sources of heat that may prematurely dry out the tree and make it more susceptible to fire. Make sure the tree has a sufficient amount of water at all times.
-- When using an artificial tree, make sure it is made of a fire resistant material. Lights should be hung on plastic trees only, never place electric lights on a metallic tree.

Fireplace Safety:
-- Do not burn wrapping paper or boxes in the fireplace. These types of materials ignite quickly and may burn uncontrollably. Wrapping paper also may not always burn completely and can become lodged in the chimney, creating a fire hazard.
-- When cleaning out fireplaces, place ashes in a metal container and store outdoors away from combustibles. Ashes can remain hot for several hours, if not days. Discard ashes only when they have completely cooled.

Fireworks:
-- The coming of the New Year is routinely celebrated with fireworks. Always leave fireworks to the professionals!

How Much Will My Decorative Lighting Cost this Holiday Season?
As holiday celebrants plan for lighting decor at home, ComEd offers the following tips for calculating added energy costs:
1. Determine how many bulbs are on your strands of decorative indoor and outdoor lights. For example: 1,000 total bulbs
2. Check the wattage per bulb - one watt per bulb is common. For example: 1 watt
3. Multiply watts per bulb by number of bulbs. For example: 1 x 1,000 = 1,000
4. Convert to kilowatts (kW) - 1,000 watts equals 1 kilowatt. For example: 1 kW
5. Estimate the number of hours in a month the lights are on. For example: 5 hours per day x 30 days = 150 hours
6. Multiply the total kilowatts by the total number of hours the lights will be on to get the total kilowatt-hours (kWh). For example: 1 kW x 150 hours = 150 kWh
7. Multiply the total kilowatt-hours by the total cost of electricity. For typical ComEd customers, the total cost of energy supply, transmission and distribution of their electricity will be 8.6 cents per kilowatt-hour through the end of the year. For example, 150 kWh x .86 = $12.90

ComEd wishes all its customers a bright, warm and safe holiday season!
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation, one of the nation's largest electric utilities with approximately 5.2 million customers and more than $15 billion in annual revenues. ComEd provides service to approximately 3.7 million customers across Northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state's population.