GREENSBORO — While LaDonna Alston plugged a new programmable thermostat into the wall, Travon Garrett donned a blue jumpsuit and headed into a crawl space on Charles Harshaw Drive.By the end of the day, the two-person crew from Enpulse Energy Conservation had provided homeowner Andrea Bullard with ways to cut her energy costs.
The energy audit was one of 50 that will be performed by the company using 2009 federal stimulus money.
The stimulus bill, signed by President Barack Obama in February 2009, has brought $38.4 million into the Greensboro area.
For the $23.2 million that went directly to the city, the equivalent of about 451/2 full-time jobs have been created so far, according to the city of Greensboro.
That includes the three new full-time employees that Enpulse hired for its energy-efficiency project.The $104,000 project began earlier this summer. The goal has been to show homeowners and renters how to save money and energy by changing their habits.
The crews have found things such as air conditioners running while the windows are open.
“The good thing about behavior is it doesn’t cost anything to change,” said Derrick Giles, president and senior energy manager of Enpulse. “Every house we leave, we hope to leave them something to think about.”
The crews install programmable thermostats and up to 20 compact fluorescent light bulbs — two easy, inexpensive and proven ways to lower utility bills.
The crews also check the condition of the homes and appliances, looking for defects or areas for improvement.
In one home, Giles said, crews found that the heating and air-conditioning system was in such poor shape that the homeowner was paying more than $600 a month in utility bills.
To qualify for the program, homeowners or renters had to earn below the median household income for Greensboro.
The program targets low-income communities, where research shows households spend a higher percentage of income on utilities.It’s those communities that may be the last to learn about the positive effect of energy efficiency and sustainability, Giles said.
“In the big picture, we want to create more of a cultural awareness,” Giles said.
After the last homes are audited, which could happen in the next few weeks, Enpulse will continue to track residents’ progress by reviewing their energy bills.
“The post-audits are where we are going to find the most information,” said Michael Blair, grant planner for the city of Greensboro.
“We are going to get real data back in what kind of cost savings and real house savings we get.”
That information will be provided to Carnegie Mellon University and N.C. A&T for research.
The energy audit program will be the first of many like it because the city was awarded a $5 million Department of Energy grant to support similar efforts.
Job training and other activities funded with that money will start later this year.
Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert@news-record.com.
This article reprint comes courtesy of the News & Record.
