Piedmont Natural Gas is advising customers in the Southeast to prepare for colder weather expected next week by adopting energy-saving measures and exploring available assistance programs.
The company recommends several steps to reduce energy use without sacrificing comfort. These include setting thermostats to the lowest comfortable level, using smart or programmable thermostats, and taking advantage of sunlight during the day while closing drapes at night. Regularly changing air filters, setting water heaters to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, sealing cracks and openings in the home, ensuring ducts are properly sealed, and considering additional insulation are also suggested ways to save on heating costs.
Piedmont offers tools such as online gas usage history tracking, an Energy Advisor tool that assesses home efficiency based on personalized data, and calculators for estimating annual costs of water heating, cooking, and clothes drying. A video explaining factors affecting natural gas bills is available on Piedmont’s website.
For those seeking predictable monthly payments, Piedmont provides a free Equal Payment Plan (EPP) program. According to the company: “Piedmont’s free EPP program helps customers manage their budgets by leveling out a customer’s natural gas bills, allowing them to pay a predictable, equal monthly amount to help avoid billing surprises. Piedmont determines this payment by adding up a customer’s annual natural gas usage and then dividing it into the same payment amount each month.”
Financial assistance is also available through programs like Share the Warmth—which supports families with utility bills regardless of energy source—and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Customers can find information about these and other aid options at piedmontng.com/AssistancePrograms or piedmontng.com/WinterBills.
Piedmont Natural Gas serves over 1.2 million customers across North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee as a subsidiary of Duke Energy.
For more details about Piedmont Natural Gas or its services visit piedmontng.com.
Media contact: Jason Wheatley
Media line: 877.348.3612
jason.wheatley@duke-energy.com
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