PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Drake Rice, Director of Member Services, 405/340-5047
Contact Your Municipal Electric Utility For A FREE Residential Energy Audit
The Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) has teamed up with your city electric system to offer FREE residential energy audits to residential customers served by your municipal electric system. This comprehensive FREE energy audit, which includes a blower door test, would normally cost the homeowner approximately $350 plus travel expenses.
Frederick Mayor Eddie Whitworth can attest to the value of a residential energy audit. “We found some issues with our house after the energy audit had been conducted. The main item was not enough insulation, which definitely made an impact on our heating and cooling costs. We also needed to have more caulking around our windows.”
He continued, “Another item noticed during the energy audit was our gas water heater was not vented properly, which could have led to carbon monoxide poisoning. By fixing these items, we have been able to keep our utility costs down.”
An energy audit takes approximately two hours of the homeowner’s time. The auditor measures the home, doors and windows and inputs this information into the energy audit software. Also included in the audit is a check of the ceiling insulation, the condition of the windows and the water heater temperature.
An estimate of the energy efficiency of the old heating and air conditioning system also is determined to compare the savings that could be achieved with the installation of a geothermal heat pump (GHP) system. Through your utility’s participation in the Oklahoma Comfort Program (OCP) and the WISE Rebate Program, a homeowner can receive rebates up to $1,800 per ton for installing a GHP.
OCP uses funds from the Stimulus State Energy Program (SSEP), as administered by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, to provide energy audits and rebates for geothermal heat pump systems. OMPA administers the project with assistance from the Geothermal Resources Council. ClimateMaster Inc., a large Oklahoma-based manufacturer of GHP equipment, provides in-kind contributions to the project in the form of staff time, training for the public and professionals involved in the installation of GHPs, program promotion and other benefits.
When considered with other current incentives for GHP installations, GHP systems have never been so attractive. First, OCP will provide customers with rebates of up to $1,000 per ton for qualifying GHP installations, below 5.5 tons. For systems 5.5 tons or larger, special approval is required. Second, in participating cities, this rebate will be in addition to the current OMPA WISE Rebate of $800 per ton for qualifying GHP installations. The objective of the WISE rebate program is to assist participating member cities in encouraging residential customers and subdivision homebuilders to purchase and install energy-efficient heating and cooling systems, including GHP systems. And third, a Federal Tax Credit of 30 percent of the system cost (with no upper limit) is available to residential customers for qualifying GHP installations.
All of the information collected during the energy audit goes into the audit software to determine what steps the homeowner needs to take to improve the efficiency of the home, which will save money in electricity costs.
At the end of the audit, a blower door test is performed to find air leaks in the home. While the test is being performed, customers can actually feel the air leaks they have under window seals, door seals, outlets and other areas of the home. When the test is completed, customers are provided with a detailed report that gives them an Estimated Natural Infiltration Rate (ENIR). The ENIR lets customers know how tight or loose their home actually is.
To arrange for the free residential energy audit, contact your local utility representative about scheduling a convenient time for a FREE residential energy audit.
OMPA is a state governmental agency created by the legislature to serve cities and towns that own and operate their electrical distribution systems and is governed by the members. The Authority presently serves 38 municipally owned electric systems in Oklahoma.
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