Customer Spotlight

The Puceliks – Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Earth Day Power Thinkers

 Looking for ways to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day? Try some tips from our Power Thinker family, the Puceliks from Cedar Rapids. 

Like true Power Thinkers, the Puceliks believe that small changes can lead to reduced consumption and lower energy bills. One year they held a family competition to see how much they could lower their usage over the previous year by making small changes like turning off the lights, turning up the air conditioning, unplugging electronic devices when they’re not in use.

“We’re always looking for teachable moments with our children,” says Lisa. “Sometimes we get caught up feeling like we have to do something big in order for our efforts to be meaningful. Instead, if everyone just did something (no matter how small) collectively it would make a huge difference.
Here are some of the bigger energy-saving changes they’ve made in the last 5 years:

                       • Completed a Home Energy Audit
                       • Upgraded to new ENERGY STAR® appliances
                       • Removed and recycled their secondary refrigerator
                       • Replaced all the lighting with CFL’s
                       • Installed a programmable thermostat

“I read recently that if the entire planet lived the way North Americans live; we’d need the resources of five planets to sustain our lifestyle. The 40th Anniversary of Earth Day seems like a perfect time to give a little “gift” back to the planet in terms of limiting our use of electricity.”