If someone said they could save you a couple hundred dollars a year on your energy bills, you’d ask them how, right? It’s a no brainer. Thurston Energy is willing to tell you how to do just that.
Created in 2010 with federal stimulus money, Thurston Energy exists to help homeowners and businesses in Thurston County save both money and energy. But it goes beyond that. According to Annette Roth, Marketing and Outreach Manager for Thurston Energy, “Our mission is job creation through energy efficiency.”
“Putting contractors back to work is one of the things we focus on,” says Roth. When people call wanting an energy audit of their home or business, Thurston Energy serves as the clearing house for contractors able to perform that service.
“Our grant allows us to buy down the cost pretty significantly,” explains Roth. “Before we came along, the cost for one of these energy use evaluations on the residential side was about $450 to $500,” The cost through Thurston Energy? $195.
The city of Lacey has also received Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program funding for energy efficiency programs and has contracted with Thurston Energy to provide energy audits. “If you live in the city of Lacey you can currently get an energy evaluation for $95,” says Roth. If Lacey homeowners do upgrades on their homes, they may also qualify for a full refund of the audit.
Roth points out that due to the vast differences in commercial buildings, the pricing structure for a business energy evaluation is different, although Thurston Energy is still able to serve as a clearing house and buy down the price on those audits.
“Energy efficiency is a holistic thing,” says Roth. ” Things that you wouldn’t necessarily think of being related to energy efficiency do have a huge impact.”
During an energy audit a “Blower Door Test” is performed. It enables a computer to read air intake and outtake in all areas of the building. Infrared cameras are also used to measure temperature variations. Based upon that information, recommendations are made regarding air sealing (things like caulking around windows and doors) duct work and insulation.
“If your house is more efficient, if you have more insulation or if your ducts are properly sealed your HVAC system doesn’t have to work as hard to get heat into the house and to keep it there.”
The auditor will also look at things like lighting and water usage. “We take a look at all the systems in the house and how they work together,” explains Roth. “If you use high efficiency toilets or aerators on your shower heads, that means you’re not using as much water which means you don’t have to heat as much water which again relates to your energy costs.” The same is true of using high efficiency light bulbs.
All of these things are interwoven. They’re related to each other. “Not only do these improvements save you money … they also make your home a lot more comfortable, reducing cold drafts in the winter, and that hot upstairs in the summertime,” added Ramsey Zimmerman, Program Director. “And your indoor air quality is better if you seal the cracks and let your fresh air in through an open window, as opposed to filtering through your leaky attic or crawlspace.”
Following an energy audit, homeowners receive a report which explains the findings. More importantly, it provides recommendations for fixing problems. “Homeowners can do a lot of the upgrades themselves,” says Roth. But if they can’t Thurston Energy can help. “(We can) help connect them to local contractors who can provide those services for them. We can help them figure out tax rebates from the government, or if they need financing for upgrades we have green lenders that we work with.”
In 2010, $350,000 worth of grant funding translated to over $600,000 being pumped back into the local economy by those who chose to do upgrades and improvements to their homes and businesses based upon recommendations from Thurston Energy.
Best of all, for a small investment, homeowners may see a big return. And it’s not just lower utility bills. If a home will be going on the market in the near future, an audit and possible upgrades are a good investment since buyers increasingly list energy efficiency as a selling point. All of this is a bonus for being a good steward of our energy resources.
Discovering how a building uses energy and how a building wastes energy – that’s what Thurston Energy is all about. Says Roth, “Our goal is to help people figure out how to stop the waste and still make their houses comfortable and healthy.”
Learn more about Thurston Energy and what you can do to help save money and energy at:
http://www.thurstonenergy.org/
