How many of us remember dropping into the co-op office with our parents and grandparents to pay the light bill? Whether you do that in person, by mail or on-line today, paying your monthly bill does a lot more than just keep the lights on.
Electricity keeps us connected to our modern world. Consider all the necessities and conveniences we enjoy in part because of the power lines running to the electric meter outside your home.
Take a moment and count up the number of televisions, desktop computers, laptop and tablet computers, printers, gaming consoles, music and video players and personal assistant devices. Whether they get used every day or just occasionally, the electricity that keeps them working comes from Eastern Illini.
Have you looked around your kitchen lately? Between the coffee maker and toaster and the microwave and air fryer, a lot of us have added several other modern small appliances.
If you’ve got a craft nook, workshop, or extra garage space for projects, the power tools and machines you use to cut and shape your projects are either plugged in or recharged from the outlets connecting your household wiring to Eastern Illini, your member-owned, not for profit cooperative connection to powerful solutions.
You use electricity to run all these devices, along with the lights, the stove, heating and air conditioning too. The good news is, even as we rely more on electricity, it’s still a bargain, especially compared to other things we pay for regularly.
Since 2011, medical care, residential rental rates and education have increased by 3 percent or more per year. Butter, meat and egg costs have also increased by more than 2 percent annually, and even bread costs have risen significantly.
Electricity costs rise about 1 percent a year, but co-ops across the country have reported a decline in average residential use per household since 2010. That means we’re doing more things with less energy.
Kilowatt hour use per household dropped by 8 percent between 2010 and 2016, slightly less than the 9 percent decline reported by all electric utilities, nationwide.
When it comes to value, electricity is a clear winner, and we’re always looking for ways to work with you to make it even better. That’s why EIEC encourages energy efficiency, promotes the use of ENERGY STAR® appliances, and suggests technology, designed to give member/owners more control over their electricity use.
Energy performance dashboards, smart thermostats and power strips, and adjustable appliance settings also give you opportunities to control or even trim your monthly bills.
That’s good for families, couples and individuals trying to live within their budgets. And it’s going to become even more critical as digital devices and Internet-connected technologies become even more important in our every day lives.
The average home now has 10 Wi-Fi connected devices. That number is expected to explode to 50 by 2020. Technology and the gateways that keep it working use electricity, so you’ll depend upon Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative for more than the power that keeps the lights on.
That’s why we’re always on for your, working to provide service that’s reliable and even more valuable to you, our member/owners.