Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) sponsors an educational campaign each year during Electrical Safety Month. This year’s theme is “Electrical Safety for All Ages.” Children younger than 14 and people 65 and older are at the greatest risk, ESFI says.

Parents of young children should take steps to minimize electrical risks in the home, including:

• Don’t overburden an electrical outlet or extension cord by putting too many plugs into it as this can lead to a fire. In fact, electrical failures cause 43,900 home fires each year, resulting in 438 deaths, 1,430 injuries and $1.47 billion in property damage, according to ESFI.
• Keep electrical cords neatly tucked away out of sight as much as possible, so children aren’t tempted to play with them or trip on them.
• Place safety caps on unused outlets to prevent children from pushing foreign objects into open outlet and risking electrocution.
• If your children are old enough, teach them to unplug cords by grasping the base of the plug rather than the cord itself. Let them know to always ask for adult help if they need to do anything related to electricity.
• Teach kids to avoid power lines and to never play on, around or near fenced electrical installations.

Seniors often live in older homes that may be prone to more electrical problems than newer structures. ESFI recommends seniors to:

• Have their home’s electrical system inspected by a qualified professional if the house is 40 years or older, has recently undergone a major renovation, or they’ve added new appliances in the past 10 years.
• Replace older circuit breakers with arc fault circuit interrupters and use ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI)-protected outlets wherever electricity is near water. Common installations include the kitchen or bathroom.
• Regularly inspect electrical cords, outlets, switches and appliances for signs of fraying or other damage that could lead to a fire.

You can find a wealth of safety and educational information on the ESFI website in honor of National Electrical Safety Month. What changes will you make in your home this month to keep your family safe?

With bright LED screens and the “constant-on” culture of today’s busy workforce, batteries for mobile devices are still lagging behind in durability and longevity. Many cell phone batteries take a good hour or two to charge but only last for a few hours of full use time.

That’s until Prieto came along. The company intends to commercialize a highly efficient, quick-charge and long-lasting battery that can be used to power smartphones, tablets, electric vehicles, e-bikes and scooters.

Traditionally, batteries are made with a two-dimensional surface that limits the flow of energy to just one direction at a constant speed, resulting in long charging times, quicker energy drain and the need to replace batteries more often. These batteries are layered with a cathode, liquid electrolyte and an anode.

In Prieto’s battery, the cathode and anode are combined in three-dimensional foam, allowing energy to flow at any speed and in any direction.  This 3D movement helps slow the diffusion of lithium-ions, keeping the device charged for a longer period of time. With just a five minute charge, the Prieto battery is road-worthy for up to 10 hours.

Plus, the three-dimensional cathode and anode foam in the Prieto battery utilize a solid state electrolyte that serves as both an electronic insulator and lithium-ion conductor, thus eliminating the need for the highly-flammable and toxic liquid electrolyte found in conventional batteries.

How do you see this new technology being of use in the modern world of 24/7 connectivity? What device would you want to see this battery power first?

The movement started in the UK back in 2009, but has found its way into American offices, too. The week aims to make workers around the world more aware that by making small changes to their work habits, they can positively impact the environment. Greener offices are also good for business, as improved energy efficiency and recycling habits can save companies money on utility and waste disposal costs.

Around the world, offices will observe the week in a variety of ways – from educational seminars and interactive digital tools to fun activities and incentives for going green. Generally, offices will pursue a special theme for each day of Green Office Week, such as focusing on reducing energy consumption on Monday, transportation on Tuesday and waste reduction on Wednesday.

It’s easy for your office or small business to participate in Green Office Week. Pinterest has a variety of downloads available to help participants.

Here are some ideas inspired by “Green Offices for Dummies,” a free e-book Avery put together in conjunction with the first Green Office Week:

Reducing Energy Use

• It’s May and spring has arrived in many areas of the country. Take advantage of the nice weather to turn down the A/C and open windows for natural ventilation and cooling.
• Turn off PCs when they’re not in use – especially overnight and on weekends.
• Have an office that heats up in the spring and summer when the sun comes out? Install and use blinds to reduce the sun’s warming effect.

Minimizing Waste

• Before ordering more supplies, get everyone in the office to pool what they already have. Redistribute as needed and only order more of supplies that are running low in everyone’s storage cabinet.
• Encourage everyone to use both sides of copy paper and reuse scraps for note-taking.
• If your office doesn’t already have a recycling program, get one started. Be sure to provide recycling bins in common areas such as lunch rooms and copier rooms.

Smarter, Friendlier Commuting

• Minimize the number of trips running errands. Encourage co-workers to pool their resources by having just one person make a single trip to cover everyone’s errands. This will minimize gas consumption and vehicle emissions.
• Organize a carpool for staff who live near each other.
• Use phone and video conferencing tools to reduce travel costs, including airfare, mileage and the greenhouse gases associated with them.

 Surveys in both the U.K. and the U.S. show that workers want to be greener. With some creativity and a positive attitude, you can encourage greener practices in your own work place. What are some ways your office is already green? How will you celebrate Green Office Week?

Here are some energy-efficient, green gift ideas for Mother’s Day:

• A tablet computer – That old laptop she’s been holding on to is not only energy-inefficient, it’s probably heavy and hard to tote around. Upgrade her to a tablet. Tablets use over 80% less power than a full-size laptop, have longer battery life and are much easier to fit into mom’s busy lifestyle.
• Energy-sipping small appliances – Is mom still wrestling with a clunky, hefty old vacuum? Or a hair-dryer that sounds like a jumbo jet and uses just about as much power to operate? Head over to EnergyStar.gov for a list of energy-efficient small appliances.
• Handbags made from recycled materials – Mom can always use another purse, but instead of shelling out big bucks for a designer-label handbag, why not give her one that’s unique, eye-catching and keeps trash out of landfills? A quick online search turns up a range of stylish purses made from a surprising variety of recycled materials including candy wrappers, rice sacks and magazines.
• A smarter charger – Mom probably has a lot of devices that need charging, from iPhones® and iPods® to digital cameras. If the device uses a USB-style charging cord, chances are it will work with the Solio Bolt Solar Charger. It’s a great way to keep devices charged using clean, free solar power.
• Your time – While taking time out of your day to spend time with mom may be eco-friendly, it probably says more than any gift you could buy. Make her dinner, work with her in the garden, or simply sit down and have a good heart-to-heart conversation!

Will you be celebrating Mother’s day this weekend and if you’re a mom, what gift would you most want to receive?

We created TXU Energy Aid^SM more than 30 years ago to help Texans through financial hardship. The program has since grown to become the largest bill-payment assistance program among electricity providers across the country. We truly care about the communities where we live, and we want to make a real impact. We are honored that civic leaders and our social service partners believe the program is making a difference in their communities, as well.

Through this important program, we work with local service organizations to help customers in need. To date, we’ve provided more than $78 million to assist more than 435,000 valued customers with temporary assistance on their electricity bill.

Using contributions from TXU Energy employees and our generous customers, about 80 social service agencies across Texas assist families right in your community. In addition to customer and employee donations, TXU Energy has committed $5 million annually to TXU Energy Aid^SM since 2008. Those dollars are used to match contributions $5 to $1, and all of that money is used for bill-payment assistance in the communities from which the donations came.

You can help us reach more people in need by extending a helping hand today. It’s easy – all you have to do is:

• Check the box on the front of your TXU Energy bill and mail it back with your payment, or
• Email energyaid@txu.com and let us know you’d like to donate. Be sure to include your name, address, daytime phone number, electricity account number and the amount you desire as a recurring monthly or a one-time donation in the email.

Help us touch the lives of those in need by contributing to TXU Energy Aid^SM today. Together we have the power to change lives.

* To help maintain a steady temperature throughout the building and help her thermostat work more efficiently, Yvonne had three ceiling fans installed down the middle of her salon to circulate the air.

* After surveying her salon, she identified certain areas where fluorescent lighting wasn’t necessary, and she kept those lights turned off.

* To help her Heating, Cooling and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system work at maximum efficiency, Yvonne made sure to keep her air filters clean and checked them regularly at the beginning of each month.  She also had a HVAC professional inspect, clean and recharge the unit.

* In an effort to block the hot afternoon sun from overheating her tanning rooms, she covered the windows with fun posters which also doubled as marketing materials.

All of these simple energy-saving techniques were executed in just two days and only cost Yvonne about $200 to implement. While these projects were small, they showed immediate results and resulted in a $200 drop on her next energy bill.

TXU Energy provides small businesses with effective, easy-to-implement ideas that can save you energy and money. Find energy savings solutions for your small business and trim your bottom line. TXU Energy has several tips for your business that can help you save money on your next energy bill.

Who would’ve thought that having a few extra people in your home can impact your electricity bill? But when you think about all the extra lights you put on to create that ambience in your home, the number of times your fridge door is opened and closed as you toil in the kitchen, the amount of cleaning and vacuuming you’re doing before the event, or how long the TV or video game console needs to run to keep the kids occupied — it all adds up to more costs on your electricity bill at the end of the month.

Not to fear though. We’ve got some quick and easy ways to help you save on your next big party.

• Food is a major component to any party. Instead of putting your oven on a constant cycle where it loses heat each time it’s opened, prepare a savory meal in a slow cooker — some slow cookers use no more energy than a light bulb.
• Use your microwave or toaster oven to reheat appetizers. You could cut energy use by up to 66 percent compared to a conventional oven.
• Have a pot-luck meal. Ask your guests to each bring a dish to cut down on your energy costs as well as your own cooking time.
• Opening and closing the fridge door can cause temperatures inside to rise 10-20 degrees and its compressor to work harder. Instead of having your guests go straight to the fridge to refresh their drinks, use a separate cooler packed with ice for easy access.
• The winter months are hard on your heating system. As guests come in and out, make sure the doors are fully closed to avoid warm air leaking out. You can even add a spring on the back of the door to make sure they self-close when not being propped open.
• Use a ceiling fan to circulate the air in your house and make it more comfortable for your guests. Make sure the blades are turned the right way to push heat down towards the ground.
• Entertain with the newer equipment. New LCD, LED and even 3D TVs use less than half the amount of energy than old tubular style TVs.
• Switch out old incandescent light bulbs with new energy efficient CFLs. Choose CFLs in the warmer color range to get the same ambience at a fraction of the electricity cost.
• It costs money to heat the water used to clean dishes. Turn off taps when you’re not using them and fill the dishwasher to capacity before running a load. Also, set your dishwasher to air-dry instead of heat dry to save electricity.

TXU Energy has plenty of energy saving tips to implement throughout your home — even after your party is over. What are some other ways you try to limit the energy output from hosting a large group of people in your home? Share your solutions below in the comments.

We’ve done exactly that — in fact, more than 180,000 trees across Texas since 2002 — through our Committed to Community Growth program in partnership with Texas Trees Foundation.

Working alongside Texas Trees Foundation, we’ve built and maintained the TXU Energy Urban Tree Farm and Education Center at Richland College in Dallas. It’sthe largest nonprofit urban tree farm in the nation. There, we raise a variety of trees to grow in the unique soil and climate conditions of Texas. The tree farm features state-of-the-art production and irrigation technology with the capacity to produce more than 7,000 10-gallon trees per planting season.

Once the trees are ready to be transplanted to their final destination, the Trees for Texas program helps move our trees into communities throughout Texas, beautifying public spaces and properties stewarded by neighborhood associations, churches, schools, municipalities and nonprofit organizations. Each 10-gallon tree provides shade, beauty, a habitat for wildlife, flood mitigation, protection against soil erosion, and cleaner, healthier air for everyone.

By planting a tree, we continue to put down roots that help communities become more sustainable, leaving a legacy for future generations while creating healthy and beautiful communities that make a difference today. You can learn more about our program and how you can volunteer to help plant trees in your neighborhood here.

From credit card companies and grocery stores, to gas stations and travel bookings, many companies want to give you some cash back for spending your money with them. If it’s a service that you’re going to use any way, then getting cash back for doing so is even better!

That’s why we created TXU Energy Cash Rewards.

With TXU Energy Cash Rewards plans, you can get up to 36 months of service at a low, fixed rate. Plus, a percentage of the money you pay for your electricity goes back in your wallet once a year as a Visa® prepaid card to spend however you like.

What’s more, with select plans, the longer you stay with the plan, the more you’ll get back. Rewards start at 3 percent and grow to 5 percent by the end of a 36-month term. Learn more about our cash back electricity plans on txu.com.

TXU Energy has paid customers more than $136 million in cash back rewards in the past six years. Why not get on board and start enjoying a little payback too?

The Bullitt Center project revolutionizes the way buildings are designed. Constructed and operated with long-term environmental improvements in mind, it expands the implementation of renewable energy and the latest in green, sustainable technologies.

Here are some interesting facts about the six-story, 50,000-square-foot Bullitt Center building:

• 100% of onsite energy is produced from sunlight.
• All of the water in the building is harvested from rainwater and filtered through an in-house water treatment system, making it safe for consumption.
• The water cistern in the building’s basement holds 56,000 gallons of water, giving the building’s occupants enough water to sustain a 100 day drought.
• Natural sunlight fills the office spaces which reduces artificial lighting needs.
• Indoor composting toilets naturally eliminate human waste.
• Heating and cooling throughout the building is produced using closed loop heat pumps, mining the geothermal energy 400 feet beneath the building.
• A wood-framed structure supports the Bullitt Center’s design, made entirely from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified wood.
• The building’s motorized windows automatically open and shut for natural ventilation.

While the Bullitt Center may be the first of its kind to go to such lengths to achieve sustainability, small-scale versions of their technology can be translated for individual homes and businesses. Common examples of this include solar panel leases and compost solutions that will help sustain our environment for generations to come. 

 At TXU Energy, we strive to implement similar strategies in our own business. Some of the efforts that have helped our headquarters building achieve LEED certification include:

• Lighting motion sensors throughout the building.
• Energy-efficient lighting, new and retrofitted.
• Air temperature and humidity monitoring.
• Recycling centers.
• Installing LED fixtures in parking garages.

Learn more about how TXU Energy is making great strides towards sustainability.