KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — As the temperatures drop, people tend to turn up the heat. The TVA has some tips for how you can ease the demand for power and soften the impact on your wallet.

To begin with, the TVA shared that you can bring down the cost by turning down your thermostat as little as one degree. It can save you around 3% on your power bill. In addition, opening your window shades during the day will let the sun help warm your home and at night closing the shades helps provide extra insulation keeping the heat in.

“The more important thing is that individuals be aware that cold weather provides a lot of additional hazards whether you’re at home and especially if your driving so safety still needs to be top of mind no matter what you do,” said Jim Hopson with TVA.

Hopson adds that he is confident in the ability of TVA and local power companies to handle the demand as the weather gets colder.