How to participate
Call (855) 398-6200
Visit www.duke-energy.com. Click on “Appliance Program.”
The program is only open to Duke Energy customers.
Duke Energy is partnering with JACO Environmental to recycle older refrigerators and freezers, and in return, area residents can earn $30 by scheduling to have the items picked up.
Duke Energy customers can recycle as many as two units per year, and the only requirements are the units must be between 10 and 30 cubic feet in size, cleaned out and in working condition, according to JACO Environmental Program Manager Justin Rainer.
Duke has partnered with JACO in several other states, such as Indiana, in which it has utilities, but this is the first time the program is being offered to its Ohio customers, Rainer said.
“We partner with multiple utility groups to help them meet reduction goals mandated by the state,” Rainer said.
JACO Environmental is one of the nation’s largest appliance recyclers. JACO works with utility companies in 26 states and recycles more than 400,000 appliances each year.
Rainer said the program will help residents save money and energy by removing older, inefficient appliances from the power grid. By switching to energy efficient appliances, residents can use less energy and save money.
“A lot of people just have these sitting in their garage with nothing in them and they don’t realize how much it is costing them,” Rainer said. “Pulling one of these units out of a home is equivalent to taking two cars off the road a year.”
“The great thing is people will be able to save up to $150 in energy usage per unit per year,” he said. “It’s been very successful so far with over 20,000 units recycled in Ohio through other utility companies.”
Once an item arrives at a JACO recycling center, it is totally deconstructed with 95 percent of the appliance to be recycled. What can’t be recycled is disposed of in an environmentally responsible manner, Rainer said.
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