Light Up the Holidays Safely and Efficiently - PSE Donates Energy-Efficient Holiday Light Strands for Customer and Community Displays

With the holiday season just around the corner, Puget Sound Energy recommends customers and communities invest in ENERGY STAR®-rated LED (light emitting diode) festive holiday lights to safely and efficiently decorate homes, businesses and public spaces.

"LEDs are becoming a popular choice for holiday decorating because they use 75 percent less energy than standard holiday lights, last 10 times longer and produce virtually no heat,” said Cal Shirley, vice president of Energy Efficiency Services for PSE. "With more and more homes and businesses using energy-efficient holiday lights, significant energy savings can be achieved in our region.

"Conscientious communities throughout Western Washington are using LED lights in a big way for their holiday displays,” added Shirley. "More than 1 million LED light bulbs are decorating the region’s trees and public walkways, such as Bremerton’s Harborside Park, Vashon Island’s Ober Park, the "Festival of Lights” and "Lighting of Langley” on Whidbey Island, Redmond’s Holiday Tree, Bellevue’s "Garden d’Lights,” Kent’s downtown buildings and Town Square Plaza, Mercer Island’s tree at Mercerdale Park, and the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia.”

To encourage energy efficiency during the holiday season, PSE donated 3,000 strands of lights, or 300,000 LED holiday light bulbs, to cities and communities with large outdoor displays. For every hour of operation, these 3,000 strands will collectively save communities approximately $3,000 on electricity bills compared to using traditional holiday lights.

The utility also gave away 200 strands of lights in October and November to customers participating in lighting exchange events on Bainbridge and Vashon islands and in Bellingham.

LED lighting uses plastic lenses (instead of glass), making them less likely to break and significantly cooler to the touch, and they can be used indoors and outdoors. They also operate up to 10 times longer than traditional incandescent, icicle and miniature lights. Most major retailers carry LED lights.

PSE also offers the following safety tips for decorating a home or business with holiday lights.

• Check for overhead power lines before installing outdoor lights. Make sure ladders, lights and people are at least 15 feet away from overhead power lines.
• Never insert nails, staples or tacks through any electrical wiring.
• Discard light strands with bare wires, worn cords or broken plugs to prevent fires.
• Follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the number of light strings that can safely be connected together.
• Make sure all lights and cords are UL (Underwriters Laboratories) approved.
• Turn off all holiday lights before going to bed or leaving home. Save energy by connecting your lights to a timer so they’re only on during the hours you select.
• Only lights designed for outdoor use should be used outdoors.

For more safety tips and a list of retailers in the Puget Sound region carrying LED lights, visit PSE.com or call a PSE Energy Advisor at 1-800-562-1482.

About Puget Sound Energy

Washington state’s oldest and largest energy utility, with a 6,000-square-mile service area stretching across 11 counties, Puget Sound Energy serves more than 1 million electric customers and nearly 750,000 natural gas customers. PSE, a subsidiary of Puget Energy (NYSE:PSD), meets the energy needs of its growing customer base primarily in Western Washington through incremental, cost-effective energy conservation, procurement of sustainable energy resources, and far-sighted investment in the energy-delivery infrastructure. PSE employees are dedicated to providing great customer service to deliver energy that is safe, reliable, reasonably priced, and environmentally responsible. For more information, visit www.PSE.com.