Tips for Buying a Smart Thermostat

Our member utilities offer rebates of $10-$100 for ENERGY STAR® certified Smart Thermostats designed to save up to $100 each year on their customers’ heating and cooling bills.

A “smart” thermostat is a Wi-Fi enabled thermostat that allows you to control your home’s heating and cooling temperature settings from your “smart” devices - phone, tablet, or computer.  Smart thermostats offer greater convenience, energy savings, and control than manual or programmable thermostats.

Here are some tips to help you select a smart thermostat:

• Make sure it’s compatible with your heating and cooling system. 

• Consider using the same brand as your furnace, AC, or heat pump manufacturer.

• Check that you have a compatible home network to connect the thermostat – most work on WiFi.

• Look for the ENERGY STAR label!  Smart thermostats that have earned the ENERGY STAR go through an independent certification process to verify energy savings.

Not only do smart thermostats save you money and provide better comfort, they also help protect the environment by operating your AC, furnace, or heat pump only when needed.

Click here and select your utility for more ways to save energy and money.

Click here for our latest "Current" newsletter

Our newest issue highlights fiscal actions taken by SMMPA to reduce the amount of risk associated with the energy market cost variances, spotlights the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission accepting the Agency’s Integrated Resource Plan, identifies benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act and more. This edition of the Current is available here and in the Financials section of the website.

If you would like to be put on the mailing list to receive Current directly (either by mail or electronically via email) please click here and provide your name and mailing or email address.

Make Your Energy Choices Count in 2023

Our member utilities offer programs to help their customers use energy wisely and lower their electric bills.  Last year, they collectively paid rebates of over $195,000 to their residential customers who invested in energy-efficient equipment.

Click here for a summary of this year’s residential rebate programs.  Want to get in on the action and save energy and money this year?  It's easy!  Rebate forms are available online – simply click here and select your utility. 

Starting this year, we have added rebates for standard-capacity ENERGY STAR® certified heat pump clothes dryers.  Heat pump clothes dryers use up to 50% less energy than standard electric dryers – helping you save on your utility bills!  Learn more about these efficient clothes dryers from the experts at This Old House.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provides additional incentives to help make it more affordable for families to make energy efficient upgrades to their homes and save money on their electric bills.  Qualified customers may be eligible for federal rebates and tax credits on heat pumps, heat pump clothes dryers, heat pump water heaters, and more.  Visit whitehouse.gov/cleanenergy for more information. 

Helping customers use energy wisely is a win-win.  Reducing energy consumption saves you money and helps make our member communities a little greener by reducing generation emissions. 

Gifts That Do a World of Good

The hottest gifts this season are in electronics and home entertainment.  But the best gifts are also good for the environment.  ENERGY STAR® certified home electronics go beyond the latest features and functions to deliver great energy efficiency.   

ENERGY STAR certified TVs offer the most popular features and technologies – Smart TV functionality, Ultra High Definition, large screens, LED backlighting – and they're 25% more energy efficient than standard models.

An ENERGY STAR certified tablet uses 10 times less power to stream movies or video than a game console, 7 times less power than streaming to a TV, and 4 times less than streaming to a laptop.

So look for the ENERGY STAR label when buying home electronics this holiday season. Your loved ones will appreciate it!

Click here and select your utility for more ways to save energy and money.

Is Your Home Full of Energy Vampires?

According to ENERGY STAR®, the average household spends $100 per year on vampire power in their home.  Vampire power is the electricity consumed by electronic devices while they are switched off or in standby mode.

Our guide can help you find the “vampires” in your home.  A few simple changes like making sure you unplug the charger once your phone and tablet are both fully charged is a step in the right direction.

Also, shop for products that have earned the ENERGY STAR.  They use less standby power than conventional models.  Plus, you’ll get rebates on your purchase of qualifying ENERGY STAR products through our rebate programs.

Don’t let Vampire Power take a bite out of your electric bill!  

Discounted LED Bulbs Available for a Limited Time

Be Bright this fall!  Through December 31 (November 30 for Rochester retailers), while supplies last, residential electric customers of SMMPA member utilities are eligible for reduced pricing on ENERGY STAR® qualified LED light bulbs at participating retailers for as little as $0.25 each!

ENERGY STAR-labeled LEDs use 80% less energy and last up to 25 times longer than incandescent light bulbs - but less watts doesn’t mean less light!  LEDs produce bright light for less cost because they use less electricity and last longer than incandescent and compact fluorescent bulbs - saving time and money on replacements.

By replacing the five most used bulbs in your home with energy-efficient LEDs, you can save about $40 in energy costs during the first year alone. LEDs also produce less heat than traditional bulbs - improving safety. 

While these financial savings are a big draw, LEDs also offer environmental benefits to help make our community a little greener.

Remember, supplies are limited, so get your discounted LEDs before they sell out! Discounted LEDs purchased during this promotion are not eligible for our LED rebate program.