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Beating Your Meter

By now, you've probably heard  that your electricity bill will be going up just like gas, groceries and Powhite Parkway tolls.

Dominion Virginia Power , like many other companies nowadays, is struggling to keep up with increased fuel costs. Earlier this month, the State Corporation Commission approved a new fuel rate for Dominion that will increase an average residential bill by more than 18 percent, starting tomorrow.

That means the bill you get at the end of the month will be about $16 higher, according to Dominion.

But the move didn't come without restrictions, such as that the increase is dependent on the accuracy of forecasted fuel prices.

Though unrelated to the power increase, five protestors took aim at Dominion this morning after the state Air Pollution Control Board gave the company permission to build a $1.8 billion coal-fired power plant in Wise County.

Early this morning, four people intertwined their arms and buried their hands in a 55-gallon drum of cement and sat on the footbridge from Tredegar Street, near Dominion's offices, to Belle Isle. A fifth person was suspended from a rope attached to that drum of cement, and was hanging over the James River, according to news reports.

All five were arrested by Richmond police about 9:30 a.m. The protesters are members of Blue Ridge Earth First .

But for those of wanting to save money before the bill comes, Dominion offers numerous tips , including:

* raise your thermostat to 78 degrees. This is the number one way to conserve energy;

*when you are away from home for more than eight hours, raise the thermostat setting and you can expect to see a 1 percent savings for each degree of setback. This will reduce the amount of energy used to cool your home while you're away;

*keep shades closed when the air conditioner is on. Sunny windows account for 40 percent of unwanted heat and can make your air conditioner work two to three times harder;

*run appliances with large energy use late in the evening. Use the dishwasher and clothes washer late in the evening. When used during the day, these appliances produce additional heat, causing your air conditioner to work harder; and

*use cold water to wash dishes and clothes. This will save on water heating costs.

But if you want to get specific information for how to lower your energy consumption, check out Dominion's Home Energy Calculator .