BELLEVUE – Puget Sound Energy is encouraging its more than 1.1 million electric customers to be even more energy conscious as temperatures jump into the 90s over the next few days.

PSE’s electric infrastructure is performing well, and its generating facilities have the capacity to meet the needs of its customers. While excessive heat puts extra demands on the power grid, the region uses more energy on cold winter days than during heat waves.

Over the years PSE has seen increasing use of power during the summertime as customers add some form of air conditioning in their homes. PSE estimated about 11 percent of residential electric customers currently have AC. Because of that growth, energy conservation is even more important today. PSE plans for peak customer usage by constantly monitoring the health of its system and investing in infrastructure projects to keep the system redundant and reliable.

PSE’s one-hour summer record for power usage was set back on July 27, 2009. As temperatures reached into the 100s, 3,430 megawatt-hours of electricity was used between 7-8 p.m. By comparison, PSE customers’ all-time, one-hour high for power usage was 4,906 MWh set on Dec. 15, 2008 during a major cold weather event.

Customers can take steps to save energy in the heat:

• Set the thermostat as high as comfortably possible. For those with central air or air conditioning, PSE recommends no lower than 75 degrees. That might seem on the warm side, but customers can save up to 5 percent on their electric bill by taking that simple step.

• Invest in a programmable thermostat that will automatically adjust the indoor temperature while occupants are away.

• Use fans to help circulate the air. Remember that ceiling fans cool people, not the room, so be sure to turn off the fan when not in the room.

• Make sure to close window blinds and curtains to block direct sunlight. In the evening, open windows for cross ventilation.

•  Switch out any conventional light bulbs with LED or compact fluorescent light bulbs, which produce 70 percent less heat.

• Run appliances such as dishwashers, clothes washers and dryers at night. A hot dishwasher sends heat throughout the house. Run only on full loads and use the ‘no heat’ option for the drying cycle.

• Consider cooking a later dinner or grilling outside to prevent any additional heat buildup.