ENERGYWORKS CELEBRATES ENERGY AWARENESS MONTH WITH FREE EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS AND INITIATIVES FOR THE REGION’S HOMEOWNERS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America (Free-Press-Release.com) October 5, 2011 -- Philadelphia, October 3, 2011 -- EnergyWorks, the Greater Philadelphia area’s one-stop resource for commercial and residential energy improvements, is celebrating Energy Awareness Month in October with free informational workshops and two initiatives designed to help property owners learn how to save money on their energy bills.

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ENERGYWORKS CELEBRATES ENERGY AWARENESS MONTH WITH FREE EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS AND INITIATIVES FOR THE REGION’S HOMEOWNERS

Welcome visit Our WebSite:

http://www.EnergyWorksNow.com

Free library workshops throughout October provide valuable DIY tips on how to conduct a preliminary home-energy assessment, winterize a house, make energy-efficiency improvements, and reduce carbon footprint, all of which can result in lower utility bills (see below for dates and times). The workshops, along with the recently introduced EnergyWorks Select Partnerships and EnergyWorks@Work initiatives, teach home and business owners to recognize causes of energy inefficiency and learn how to fix them. In a region where older structures comprise much of the housing stock, spider webs inside your home provide clues to the presence of drafts. Learning how to find and seal unwanted openings from the workshop experts will prove invaluable.

“With the Farmer’s Almanac predicting a wet, snowy winter, now is the time for people to make their homes warm and inviting for themselves, their families and their holiday guests. Our free public education programs show homeowners how just a few small, inexpensive steps can result in big savings on their utility bills,” said Andrew Rachlin, director of EnergyWorks.

With regional rates for utilities such as electricity and water skyrocketing – and predicted to rise even higher this winter – the more than 500 homeowners who have participated in EnergyWorks so far will benefit more than ever. Overall, customers who replace their sealing and insulation save an average of $765 per year on utility bills, with improvements paying for themselves in an average of five years and lasting a decade or more. Customers who make HVAC upgrades realize savings of $973 per year, with their new HVAC equipment paying for itself in approximately ten years and enjoying an even longer lifespan. EnergyWorks Select Partnerships and EnergyWorks@Work are designed to help connect property owners with these savings.

EnergyWorks Select Partnerships encourages civic and community groups such as neighborhood associations, churches and fraternal organizations that represent more than 50 homeowners to offer their members the ability to access EnergyWorks as a unified group. By joining together, participants can save time and secure contractors’ best prices and premium service on upgrades to make their homes more energy-efficient. Groups may also be able to negotiate a better price for the upgrades, and the homeowner who saves the most energy will receive their home energy assessment for free.

The Queen Village Neighborhood Association served as the pilot organization for EnergyWorks Select Partnerships. To date, 18 Queen Village homeowners have completed an energy assessment and moved on to have improvements done, including air sealing, insulation and HVAC system upgrades.

“I was getting electric bills of over $400 per month and I’d call the electric company and they’d blame the heat-pump people. I’d call the heat-pump people and they’d blame the electric company, and I wasn’t getting anywhere with anybody until I heard about EnergyWorks,” said Jean Barr, a Queen Village homeowner who realized savings and peace of mind after getting a new air handler installed on her heat pump. “When Jamie (Horan, EnergyWorks Building Analyst) came and suggested I change to gas because it was better, cleaner and cheaper, I said ok. The EnergyWorks experts worked so well together, I never knew they were here and the house is much more comfortable.”

EnergyWorks@Work gives homeowners one convenient place to get all the information they need about EnergyWorks: their workplace. Brown-bag lunch sessions bring together employees with expert staff from EnergyWorks to discuss home improvements that lead to a safer, more comfortable home environment and savings on utility bills of up to 20% or more. During the sessions, employees learn about rebates, tax credits, and financing options and can schedule an assessment on the spot. The free sessions last approximately one hour. EnergyWorks supplies all the materials needed to promote the event and brings energy-saving giveaways like LED light bulbs.

Delaware County resident Virginia Thompson replaced leaky French doors and added insulation to her 65-year-old house after learning about EnergyWorks through the EnergyWorks@Work program. In an article for The Swarthmorean, Thompson wrote, “Airflow through our house was reduced by 40%. In fact, our living room wall was so drafty that the insulation contractors were flabbergasted when the wall seemed to not be getting filled up with the insulation. Finally, five bags later, the wall was filled. The contractor said that we should be noticeably toastier this winter!”

Philadelphia Gas Works, The Academy of Natural Sciences, the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the City of Philadelphia are among the employers to have booked EnergyWorks@Work sessions.

“The EnergyWorks Select Partnerships and EnergyWorks@Work programs are already proving beneficial to home and business owners who’ve used them to tackle the intricacies of energy efficiency with experts who’ve helped guide them through the entire process,” added Rachlin. “These home and business owners, plus those who learn about EnergyWorks through our month’s worth of library workshops, will enjoy substantial savings on their utility bills over the long run. This is something we can all appreciate, especially given the recent economic downturn.”

The free library workshops take place at the following dates and times:

• Saturday, October 8th @11am-Noon
Montgomery County: Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 650 Skippack Pike, Blue Bell
• Saturday, October 15th @11am-Noon
Bucks County: Doylestown District Center Library, 150 South Pine Street, Doylestown
• Saturday, October 15th @11am-Noon
Philadelphia County: Chestnut Hill Branch Library, 8711 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia
• Saturday, October 22nd @11am-Noon
Delaware County: Haverford Township Free Library, 1601 Darby Road, Havertown
• Saturday, October 22nd @11am-Noon

Chester County: Easttown Library & Information Center, 720 First Avenue, Berwyn
• Saturday, October 29th @11am-Noon
Philadelphia County: Northeast Regional Library, 2228 Cottman Avenue, Philadelphia

To learn more about EnergyWorks’ programs, residential property owners may call (215) 609-1052 or visit www.energyworksnow.com

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EnergyWorks is a program of the Metropolitan Caucus, a coalition of County Council members and Commissioners from Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties and the Mayor of Philadelphia. EnergyWorks is supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Program.

More information can be found online at http://www.EnergyWorksNow.com

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