Weatherization Open Houses!

Stay Tuned for the NEXT WEATHERIZATION OPEN HOUSE

Contact (401) 383-7441 or julian@ejlri.org to volunteer

Make Your Home Energy Efficient!

Making our homes energy efficient can save us money on our utility bills, keep us warmer in the winter, and cut down our use of fossil fuels that lead to global climate change.  So what are we waiting for!?

The Environmental Justice League of Rhode Island and the Apeiron Institute Green Pathways Program are launching a series of Weatherization Open Houses right here in Providence.  Modeled after the Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, communities across the U.S. are pioneering community-based solutions to climate change and reducing our nation’s dependence on dirty sources of energy like coal, oil, and gas.  All of us have a role to play in reducing the amount of energy we consume, and now’s the time to take action together!

Learn more about Capital Good Fund’s Green Credit-Builder Loan for programmable thermostats, open to qualifying homeowners and tenants starting in February 2010.

What’s a Weatherization Open House?

Weatherization Open Houses will bring neighbors in Providence together to help individual families weatherize their house, and then we’ll have a big party.

At the open house, volunteers will break off into teams to learn and work on different tasks, such as sealing air leaks, installing insulation, and changing light bulbs to energy-efficient CFL bulbs. Through hands-on work, all participants will learn new skills to take back to their own homes in order to save energy and money.

Thanks to Jim Amspacher for the photos of our first open house back on October 31, 2009!

Open House volunteers installed rigid insulation in the basement ceiling. The basement and attic are the two biggest energy wasters in the house--this work will make a huge difference!

Open House volunteers work on weatherstripping a doorframe. Volunteers came from across the community including from Brown University, English for Action, YouthBuild, and Amos House.

Steve Mecca from EcoWise Systems donated water-conserving showerheads and faucet aerators for the open house. And he helped out with the work too!

Do I need to know anything about weatherization to participate?

No, people of all skill levels are welcome.  Professional weatherization contractors and skilled volunteers will lead basic trainings for new volunteers.

How can I get my house weatherized?

Let us know!  We’ll be keeping a list of people who want their houses weatherized.  Everyone whose house is chosen will be expected to participate on the day of their open house and help weatherize at least two other people’s houses.  There are three ways to get your house on the list:

1. Pay for all or part of the materials costs yourself
2. Enroll with the Capital Good Fund to receive a low-interest loan between $300-$500 to purchase materials for an open house and pay it back in small installments over an agreed-upon timeframe (Learn more about CGF’s new Green Credit-Builder Loan for programmable thermostats too)
3. Our coalition will be able to pay for the cost of 10 pen houses starting in the summer of 2010

Where do I sign up?

Contact Julian at 383-7441 or julian@ejlri.org if you want to volunteer, put your house on the list to get weatherized, or make a donation to help keep these open houses going.

Audrey Schulman from HEET in Cambridge explains how to put Q-Lon on a doorframe to volunteers.

Workers from RISE Engineering installed blown-in cellulose insulation in the attic--meaning great cost savings for the homeowners! Many thanks to RISE and National Grid for this fantastic donation!