Rochester Public Utilities | Blog

Archive for March, 2019

RPU March 26th Board Meeting moved to April 2nd

Friday, March 22nd, 2019

Rochester Public Utilities (RPU) March 26th Board Meeting has been rescheduled to April 2nd. The meeting date has been rescheduled to ensure that a quorum of board members would be available.

The April 2nd Board Meeting will be held in the RPU Board Room at 4pm at the RPU Service Center.

Contact RPU Communications Coordinator Tony Benson (tbenson@rpu.org) for questions regarding the RPU Board Meeting date change.

About Rochester Public Utilities

As the municipal utility of Rochester, Minn., for more than 110 years, RPU provides high-quality and reliable electricity to over 54,000 customers.  Water customers number more than 40,000.  RPU continually investigates innovative technologies to help customers realize the best value from the services they receive.  Current initiatives include photovoltaic offerings, wind energy, energy and water efficient equipment, and electric vehicle charging.

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Tuesday, March 19th, 2019

What icicles might be telling you

Tuesday, March 5th, 2019

Icicles…beautiful, dangerous, and a sign of an inefficient building.

With February’s snow, just a brief drive around Rochester will reveal some really awe inspiring icicles. As amazing as they are, as the temperatures warm up, they can be dangerous if not deadly. They create falling hazards some icicles reaching weights of bowling balls and others of several concrete blocks. Please be aware of these dangers as your children are playing outside and you are walking around.

An icicle is formed by the melting and refreezing of snow on the roof.  Warm air from the house leaks to the underside of the roof melting the snow.  When the liquid water reaches the eaves and gutters, outside temperatures refreeze the water into ice, creating ice dams and icicles. The ice dams can cause damage to both the inside and outside of your home through the sheer weight and water infiltration as many will find out as we creep into spring.

Not only are they dangerous and damaging, but they are a sign of an inefficient building as well.  All of that heat used to melt the snow is coming from your building. This can be prevented with the right amount of insulation and air sealing. Getting an energy audit and contacting an insulation expert are the best ways to avoid problems in the future.