Chilling discovery: Residents have energy audit done of home
By Richard Conn
Bruce Torrey walked out of a house on Chase Avenue with a clipboard full of suggestions - like improving the home's insulation and sealing off air leaks.
Torrey and Chris Mazzola, with Building Diagnostics in Sandwich, had just performed an inspection or energy audit at the home of Alyssa Freden.
While the recommendations made could be costly in the beginning - the energy saving methods should, Torrey said, result in savings on future energy bills.
The Fredens were just one of six local homeowners who signed up to have their homes tested Friday as part of a collaborative effort between the Waltham Recycling Department, Newton Green Decade Coalition, local activists and Eric Olson, a professor of ecology Brandeis University.
Under the program, homeowners who signed up for the program paid $200 for the inspections - about half of the normal cost. Freden was eager to sign up for the testing.
"We had really high energy costs last winter and we were looking for ways to decrease those costs," Freden said.
Torrey and Mazzola performed a blower door test to check for air leaks and used an infrared camera to scan the home for areas where insulation is missing or ineffective.
Torrey said "by far the number one problem" that cuts energy efficiency in most homes is air leaks. If those aren't fixed, adding insulation won't always help the problem.
"Adding insulation isn't always the first best bet," he said.
The Fredens' home was the first to be inspected as part of the program. Mayor Jeannette McCarthy and Ward 9 Councilor Robert Logan, who suggested the energy inspections last year as part of Waltham's joining the Cities for Climate Protection Campaign, were on hand for the inspection.
Eileen Zubrowski, coordinator for the Recycling Department, said the Newton Green Decade Coalition agreed to extend its services to bring the inspection program to Waltham after it was suggested by Olson.
Other Waltham residents can still sign up for the audits at a reduced rate.
"There'll be another round in November and December," Zubrowski said. "We're still seeking people."
Zubrowski said the goal of the program is also to follow up with the homeowners who took part in the audit and find out if they implemented the energy saving methods in their homes.
For more information or to find out how to sign up for an inspection, call the Waltham Recycling Department at 781-314-3391 or e-mail Michele Davis of the Green Decade Coalition at reuserecycle@rcn.com.
Richard Conn can be contacted at 781-398-8004 or rconn@cnc.com.
