Learn how to measure your electricity use

Have you ever wondered how much electricity your appliances use? Have you heard that your appliances use electricity even when they are turned off? Have you ever wondered what you could learn from an energy assessment of your home?

On Thursday, Feb. 9, the Yolo County Library will sponsor a free public workshop to demonstrate easy-to-use watt meters. Anyone can learn how to measure energy use of their own household appliances and how to borrow a watt meter from their library.

The workshop also will include presentations from Yolo Energy Watch, Energy Upgrade California and PG&E about residential energy efficiency programs. Davis Mayor Joe Krovoza will discuss his experience with a recent energy assessment in his own home.

The event will run from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Club Room at the Veterans’ Memorial Center, 203 E. 14th St.

Sponsored by the Yolo County Library, the event will feature a hands-on workshop conducted by members of Yolo Energy Watch’s Young Energy Leaders, a new internship program in Yolo County for top high school students.

The interns will discuss residential household electricity use  and demonstrate how to use watt-meters to measure the power consumed by appliances and devices such as TVs, microwaves and laptops.

Participants will learn how to use the watt meters, how to calculate actual energy consumption, and how it all adds up on their PG&E bill.

Watt meters donated by Yolo Energy Watch may be borrowed from the Stephens Branch Library, 315 E. 14th St., to take home and use to measure household appliances and electronic devices.

Members of Young Energy Leaders undergo training in energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions and other sustainability issues to prepare them for collaborative projects with other community-based organizations in Yolo County.

By participating in the Energy Program Youth Corps through their high schools, interns have become vocal advocates in their communities for changing behavior to reduce energy consumption and invest in energy efficient technologies.

The program also will include representatives from PG&E and Energy Upgrade California who will discuss home energy programs for renters and homeowners and a variety of incentives.

Lewis Kimble got motivated to take advantage of Energy Upgrade California rebates and incentives after seeing a successful project completed by his partner, Sharla Cheney, in her Davis condominium.

Last summer, condensation from Cheney’s old heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system soaked her ceiling and leaked through the duct work onto the wood floors of her house. She acted fast and took advantage of rebates and incentives available through Energy Upgrade California.

Cheney started with an energy assessment, which showed sources of energy loss and leaks. That led to an energy upgrade to address the problems in October.

Cheney chose Brower Mechanical to install new attic insulation, high-efficiency windows, a sliding door, an HVAC system and whole house fan. She discovered that an unexpected benefit of the improvements is the increased livability of the home. The double-paned windows and sliding door keep the interior much quieter than before. The whole house fan allows her to take advantage of cooler summertime evenings by exhausting warm air from the condo with the push of a button.

In terms of energy savings, the results have been dramatic, Cheney says. Heating bills during the very cold months of last year would hover around $200, and now they are down near $90. Kimble adds that Cheney also has the perk of knowing she has made changes that positively impact the environment.

Fortunately, all Yolo County homeowners have the opportunity to get low-cost home energy assessments for prioritizing energy improvements and access to rebates to help offset costs of upgrades.

The EnergyUpgradeCA.org web portal guides homeowners to programs and incentives specifically offered in their county. Yolo County residents have the opportunity to learn about Energy Upgrade California, plus PG&E’s variety of residential programs for renters and homeowners of all income levels.

Workshops are planned throughout the county, at:

* 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9, at the Veterans’ Memorial Center, 203 E. 14th St. in Davis;

* 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, at the Woodland Public Library, 250 First St. in Woodland; and

* 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 23, at the Turner Library, 1212 Merkley Ave. in West Sacramento.

For more information, contact Jenifer Segar at jenifer.segar@valleyvision.org.

Short URL: http://www.davisenterprise.com/?p=132642

Posted by Special to The Enterprise on Feb 1 2012.
Last Login:
Filed under Agriculture + Environment, Central Davis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry