Energy retrofits may get a boost from something called the Home Energy Score. Under the plan, a home energy audit would score a home on a scale of 1 to 10 and provide the homeowner with a list of recommended energy improvements and the associated cost savings estimates.
The plan is currently in a pilot phase with 10 testing locations throughout the country, including United Cooperative Services, a Cleburne, Texas, utility with an existing home energy audit program that completed nearly 2,000 assessments in 2010. In 2011, UCS plans to score more than 250 homes using the Home Energy Score tool. “I think energy usage is going to be a huge selling point going forward,” says Marty Haught, senior vice president, Communications & Public Relations. “We wanted to ... make sure our members are equipped to deal with high energy costs in the future.” UCS analysis has found that households completing an energy audit used 100 kilowatts less, on average, than the co-op’s overall membership.
Based on findings from the pilots, the Department of Energy will refi ne the program and plans to launch Home Energy Score nationally in late 2011.
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