- Lower Your Water Temperature
- Window Quilts Save Energy/Increase Comfort
- BUTTON UP! Vermont Home Energy Savings Workshops
- VPT Program on “Heating Your Home" 10/23, 8PM
- Renewable Energy Alternatives to Vermont Yankee
- Vermont Clean Energy Development Fund
- New Upper Valley Bicyclists’ List Serve
- SERG Home Performance Service
- SERG Energy Alliance
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LOWER YOUR WATER TEMPERATURE
Hot water accounts for about 10% of the average residential fuel use. Heat loss is greater the higher your temperature is set. Reducing your tank temperature will reduce its heat loss while it is sitting around waiting for you to use it and it will prevent scalding. Vermont recently changed its regulations allowing you to lower your water temperature to 120$FB from 140$FB. Do it today!
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WINDOW QUILTS SAVE ENERGY/INCREASE COMFORT
Window quilts can help keep you warmer in the winter by cutting down on drafts and blocking radiant heat loss. To do this, the quilting fabric includes a radiant barrier, like mylar and insulated batting. The quilts must also be sealed at the edges to prevent warm moist air inside the home from getting behind the quilts, which would allow convective heat loss and moisture build up and icing on the windows. This is sometimes done by a running the quilt through a track or incorporating magnets at the edges of the quilt and on the window trim.
While delivering a Button Up presentation in Bradford recently, I learned about a business there, New Creations, that sells window quilts. Owner, Peggy Lydem, also sells the materials to make your own and teaches classes in how to make them. The 2-hour class costs $25 and will get you an instruction book and 20% discount on materials. To register call 802-222-4066 and tell Peggy you learned about her from SERG.
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BUTTON UP VERMONT HOME ENERGY SAVINGS WORKSHOPSA series of 9 free 2-hour workshops will take place throughout the Upper Valley in the next month, with dozens more happening throughout Vermont.
The workshops will teach you how to save energy in your homes, provide information on the greatest energy saving opportunities, finding and sealing air leaks, energy efficient actions that you can take now, health and safety concerns related to tightening your home, and where to find technical and financial resources to get started. Come and learn about the fundamentals of how buildings lose energy and do-it-yourself opportunities for saving energy, including behavioral changes and low-cost weatherization measures.
The workshops are being organized by your town energy committees and are a first step to learn how to be most effective in reducing energy use and costs. The workshops are an information packed 2-hours and will start right at the times listed below. Doors open early to pick up educational resources and enjoy refreshments.
Upper Valley Button Up Dates:
- 10/23 -St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 749 Hartford Ave., White River Junction, 6:30pm
- 10/28 - Hanover, Howe Library, Mayer Room, 7pm (SERG)
- 10/28 - Woodstock Town Hall, 6:30pm
- 10/30 - Lyme Center, Academy Building, 7pm (SERG)
- 11/1 - Thetford Hill Congregational Church, 10am (SERG)
- 11/5 - Hartland, Damon Hall, 6pm
- 11/6 - Strafford (with Sharon), United Church of Strafford (on the Green), 7pm
- 11/8 - Lebanon Public Library, 10am (SERG)
- 11/12 - Norwich, Montshire Museum, 7pm (SERG)
To find out more about these workshops, contact SERG at 802-785-4126,
SERG -at- valley.net (replace -at- with @ to email) or www.SERG-info.org. To get information on Button Up and the entire list of Vermont workshops, go to:
http://www.efficiencyvermont.com/pages/Residential/Home_Heating/button_up_vermont/
Button Up Vermont was produced by Central Vermont Community Action Council, in partnership with the Vermont Energy and Climate Action Network (VECAN) and Efficiency Vermont. Funding is provided by the Vermont Agency of Human Services. SERG helped create the workshop and received additional support from Ledyard National Bank and GroSolar, to help make this presentation available in Hanover, Lyme and Lebanon, as well as Norwich.
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VPT PROGRAM ON "HEATING YOUR HOME" 10/23, 8PM
Vermont Public Television's Public Square program this month offers practical advice to homeowners looking to maximize their home's heating efficiency and minimize their winter fuel bills. SERG's Bob Walker will be one of the guest panelists.
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RENEWABLE ENERGY ALTERNATIVES TO VERMONT YANKEE
Monday, October 27, 7:00 pm
Thetford Center Community Building, Rte. 113 in Thetford Center
Co-sponsored by the Norwich and Thetford Energy Committees
This presentation by the Vermont Public Interest Research Group covers the big picture of energy in Vermont, the potential for a clean and green future, and some background on Vermont Yankee. Come discuss your thoughts and concerns on a renewable energy future for Vermont.
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VERMONT CLEAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT FUND
The Vermont Clean Energy Development Fund's loan and municipal technical assistance programs are now accepting applications. Municipal technical assistance grants are available for amounts up to $5,000 each for municipalities, public schools, and state colleges to take the first step towards developing renewable energy projects. The loan program interest rate has been lowered to 2% and the cap raised to $1,000,000.
Applications and information on all programs are available at:
http://publicservice.vermont.gov/energy/ee_cleanenergyfund.html
For more information, contact CEDF Manager Anne Margolis through the
VT Dept. of Public Service at 802-828-4017, 802-828-2342 or anne.margolis -at-
state.vt.us (replace -at- with @ to email)
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NEW UPPER VALLEY BIKERS LIST SERVE
Just in time to kick off the winter commuting season, an email discussion list called uvChainGrease has been created for bicycle commuters in the Upper Valley.
Check out the list info page:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/uvchaingrease
All interested can sign up by sending a blank email to:
uvchaingrease-subscribe - at- lists.riseup.net (replace -at- with @
to send email)
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SERG HOME PERFORMANCE SERVICE
SERG Home Performance with Energy Star service takes a whole house systems approach toward improving the health, comfort, safety and energy efficiency of your home. Our certified contractors will conduct a blower door test, efficiency and back draft tests of your combustion equipment, and a thorough physical examination. We will then prepare a report for you, listing cost-effective measures you can take to improve you home and cut your energy usage.
For more information and to run a quick calculation to see how efficiently your home is heating, visit
http://www.serg-info.org/energy-assessment
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SERG ENERGY ALLIANCE
Supporter contributing $50 or more to SERG can get discounts on renewable and energy-saving goods & services. Save hundreds of dollars on new woodstoves, solar hot water and electric systems and more.
See complete list of dealers and discounts at:
http://www.serg-info.org/energy-alliance
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Bob Walker
Sustainable Energy Resource Group
SERG -at- valley.net (to send email, replace -at- with @)
www.serg-info.org
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