Remember the ice storms of a couple of winters back? You would have given anything for a toasty warm house.

As temperatures in the Piedmonts latest heat wave approached triple digits, residents just wanted to keep cool.

Either way, customers turn to Duke Energy for answers. During those crippling winter storms, Duke, as the states major electricity provider, worked around the clock to get people back on line. But to avoid outages on sweltering August days, the solution is cutting back on usage.

As scorching temperatures moved eastward across the nation last week, thousands were left sweating as overloaded power grids failed. Though excessive summer heat can be just as life threatening as winters chill, no heat-related deaths were reported here.

Soaring temperatures call for conservation and common sense. When the mercury rises, set the thermostat on at least 78 degrees. Duke says for each degree cooled below 78, cooling costs can rise as much as 10 percent. Gov. Mike Easley says 80 degrees is fine in state offices. Thats sound advice even when the weather cools a bit.

But cutting back does more than lower electric bills. It also means the lights stay on and air conditioners hum during the unprecedented demand.

Other suggestions from Duke Energy worth considering: Use fans. Circulating air __ even warm __ is more comfortable than still air.

Avoid using appliances like washers, dryers and dishwashers until after 8 p.m. Turn off lights when possible, draw drapes to reduce heat buildup and avoid preparing hot meals.

At work, turn off computers before leaving. The sleep mode saves electricity. Go paperless. Copy machines and printers are big energy wasters.

Could it be we end up longing for August when the January forecast is for a half-inch of ice on power lines?