Get an energy audit: An energy audit is a great place to start. An audit will assess how much energy your home consumes, pinpoint where it’s losing energy and evaluate what measures you can take to make your home more energy efficient.
A professional auditor uses a variety of equipment, such as blower doors, to measure the extent of leaks in the building envelope and to reveal hard-to-detect areas of air infiltration and missing insulation. To find an energy auditor in Maine, go to www.mainehousing.org/EnergyAuditServices.aspx.
Financing your energy efficient improvements: The Maine State Housing Authority offers a low-interest loan program called HELP (Home Energy Loan Program) to help homeowners reduce energy costs. Eligible homeowners can borrow from $2,800 up to $30,000 to cover the costs of energy audits, weatherization, insulation, windows, doors and Energy Star appliances. For more info, visit www.mainehousing.org.
There are also federal loan programs available for Energy Efficient Mortgages which cover energy improvements (weatherization, solar installations, etc.) in new or existing homes. The FHA, the VA and Energy Star all offer variations. For more information, ask your local lender or visit the consumer information section at www.resnet.us.
Maine solar rebates: If you’re thinking of harnessing some solar energy to heat and power your home, you should know that the state of Maine offers a solar rebate program for Maine residents installing solar electric and thermal systems (hot water and air). Although rebate funding for solar systems has been exhausted through the end of 2008, rebate monies will once again be available in January of 2009. So be sure to check the www.efficiencymaine.com (click on “renewable energy” and then “solar”) site often to find out how you can partake of next year’s incentives.
Federal tax credits: If Congress is able to move on current legislation for renewable energy technologies and efficiency upgrades this summer, there may soon be some helpful federal tax credits to ease the expense of efficiency upgrades. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 created several tax credits for energy-saving improvements for homes and businesses, including efficient furnaces, boilers, air conditioners, water heaters, insulation and window upgrades.
Those rebates expired at the end of 2007. Legislation to extend these tax credits through 2008 and beyond is currently stalled in Congress with a 50/50 chance of passing in some form this summer. If it does, it will also likely include an extension of the tax credit for residential solar systems and add a residential wind energy credit. If you are considering such upgrades, you can follow the progress at http://aceee.org/energy/national/taxkey.htm.
Heather Chandler is the publisher of the SunriseGuide, a locally-published resource guide and coupon book about healthy & eco-friendly living in Southern Maine. Online at www.thesunriseguide.com.