Pointe residents feel the burn of overage charges

By Chris Frease
Guest Writer

Beginning last month, the residents of Pembroke Pointe began paying overage charges on all electricity bills that exceeded $100.            

Pembroke Pointe is owned by Kenney Properties and receives energy from Progress Energy of North Carolina, the only energy company available to this area.

Rita Jones, Community Manager of Pembroke Pointe, says there is a budget in place for electricity that residents go over.             If residents go over $100, the difference is distributed evenly among each roommate to pay.

Many residents do not like this new policy about energy and find it difficult to adjust, especially with having roommates on different schedules.                

The lease that all residents of Pointe sign states that if the electric bill for any apartment exceeds the allowance of ($30 for two bedrooms, and $25 for three/four bedrooms apartments) preoccupied month, the overage charge will then be split among the residents of that apartment.

The U.S. Department of Energy and Progress Energy has recommended a few things to help people save energy.             Thermostats should be set no higher than 72°F during the day and evening when people are in their homes.

Let food cool before putting it in the refrigerator so the refrigerator does not use any energy unnecessarily.           

Run the dishwasher only when it's fully loaded. If necessary, scrape dirty dishes and store them in the dishwasher until you have a full load.

To save money, use hot water only for very dirty clothes. Most clothes can be washed in either warm or cold water.            

It is best to refer to the washing instructions on the clothing labels or washing machine.

Use microwaves and toaster ovens for cooking food or warming up leftovers.            

They can save up to 30 percent of the energy required to cook or reheat food in a conventional oven.

Take showers instead of baths.  A shower can save up to four or five gallons of water compared to taking a bath.