How to prepare for the Heatwave and Rotating Power Outages on the West Coast

[Helen]

A record heatwave has enveloped in California, as well as parts of Oregon and Washington state, and I wanted to take a moment to share some information about potential outages in California and using Square in the event of a power outage. 

In California, PG&E has announced they may implement rotating power outages this week. The grid operator CAISO (California Independent System Operator) will determine if an outage is necessary. To see if your home or business is in an area that may experience a rotating outage, head over to the PG&E website pge.com/rotatingoutages. 

Here are some ways you can continue to accept payments with Square even if you find yourself in one of the potential rotating outage zones, or if you’re looking for ways to reduce your energy consumption: 

• Keep card payments flowing by enabling Offline Mode. Learn more here: Process Payments with Offline Mode. Note: It’s not possible to use Offline Mode with the Contactless and Chip Card reader.

• The Contactless and Chip Reader, Square Stand, and Square Terminal can all last a business day without needing to be connected to a power source. Ensure you're getting the most out of your battery life by following these best practices: Charging and Battery Questions.

• Depending on your accessory setup, the cash drawer, printer, and bar code scanner may not work during a power outage. As a backup, you can still send Digital Receipts. In addition, you may want to keep a cash drawer key handy with one of your employees in the event that they need to make change. If you need a replacement key, locate the key code on the lock of your cash drawer, then contact the manufacturer: APG or StarMicronics.

• Review these tips to save energy during warm weather and general tips on how to reduce electricity use at a business. If you have a smart thermostat you may be able to take advantage of “rush hour” rewards where you can automatically reduce energy consumption during peak hours, and earn rewards from your energy provider in return.

• For more general information on preparing for emergencies, have a look at this post: Small Business Emergency & Natural Disaster Preparedness.

We've shared this information in the following groups: Square Local Pacific and Square Local SF and the Bay Area. You can find and join your Square Local Group today to share updates and resources from your city or state area.

We hope you’re safe and well. If you have any energy saving tips or best practices please reply below to share with the Community.

[pessosices]

Thanks @Helen for these great tips that can definitely apply to everyone around the country too! 

We had our heatwave last month and tons of folks around here were out of power - I'll definitely use these to think about what to do for us in the future!

Good luck all you West Coast people!

[Helen]

Thanks @pessosices! If you find any other resources or tips that we can share here let us know. One other tip that I found is to 'turn down' the brightness of your TV screen or monitor. I turned the brightness of my computer monitor down and I hardly noticed the difference! 

[aarontw]

For any sellers in CA seeking relief programs, there is a roundup here: https://www.calfund.org/norcal-wildfire-relief/

[Helen]

Wanted to also share this article from 7x7 with information about how to support people in Northern California, specifically 'what and where to donate, how you can volunteer, and other ways to help'. We hope everyone is safe.