HOT SPRINGS, AR (News release) - The Arkansas Energy Office, a division of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, will host a Weatherization Day event on Thursday, October 30, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Hot Springs Farmers Market, 121 Orange Street, to showcase the benefits of the Arkansas Weatherization Program.

The event is free and open to the public. The Arkansas Weatherization Program utilizes advanced diagnostic technology, including a computerized energy audit, to determine the energy-efficiency needs of a house or mobile home, investing up to $6,902 to weather strip or replace doors and windows; caulk and seal cracks and holes; insulate walls, ceilings and attics; repair or replace heating and cooling systems; vent space heaters; retrofit furnaces; replace energy-inefficient refrigerators and electric water heaters; install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and low-flow shower heads; and make other improvements to reduce air filtration.

Arkansass Weatherization Assistance Program is a great tool for individuals and families looking for cost-effective and manageable ways to make their homes more comfortable in extreme weather conditions, said J.D. Lowery, director of the Arkansas Energy Office. I encourage everyone interested in keeping warm this winter to come out and learn more about the Weatherization program along with basic tips anyone can implement to save money and conserve energy.

The Weatherization Assistance Program, established by the U.S. Department of Energy in 1976, is the nation's largest residential energy efficiency program. Its mission is to reduce energy costs for low income families, particularly for the elderly, people with disabilities and children by improving the energy efficiency of their homes while ensuring health and safety.

Since the inception of the program, more than $165 million has gone toward making 78,000 Arkansas homes more energy efficient, safe and healthy.

A study done by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock showed that more than 3,800 recipients in the past three years reduced their use of electricity an average of 1,562 kilowatt hours and of natural gas 106,000 cubic feet, generating a combined annual savings of more than $2.4 million.

The program is free for those who meet the following annual income guidelines:

Weatherization Day, celebrated in Arkansas since 2000, is part of the Weatherization Assistance Program conference, being held October 27-30 at Clarion on the Lake in Hot Springs. The conference targets agencies involved in residential energy efficiency. The emphasis is on quality performance. Four speakers - Rick Karg, Robert Scott, Rhett Eldridge and Bill Eckman - have been brought in to provide key information on new weatherization technologies.

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Weatherization Day Event Oct. 30 in Hot Springs

StatePoint

Preparing your home for colder weather can help ensure your family stays warm and safe, as well as save you money on energy-related costs and potential damage to your homes structure.

I recommend homeowners do a thorough home inspection at least every five years, said Tom Capuano, a franchisee of Pillar To Post Home Inspectors, North Americas largest home inspection franchise.

The experts at Pillar To Post recommend homeowners take the following steps to cover their bases.

Doors and Windows

If you can feel cool air coming through the bottom of the door, replace the weather stripping and door sweeps to save about one-third of your average annual heating and cooling costs. Next, caulk drafty windows and replace old single-pane windows with thicker, more modern versions. Install storm windows and insulate walls and attics.

Chimney and Flue

Annual inspections of the chimney and flue minimize the threat of chimney fires. Additionally, add a chimney cap to keep out moisture and ensure your chimney has an appropriate liner to separate system emissions from the homes structure. Inspect and maintain chimney flashing.

Outdoor Areas

Ensure gutters and downspouts are flowing freely. Clogs can cause water to make contact with the foundation walls of your home and creep under your roofing.

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Tis the season to change seasons

By LOUISE RONALD Palladium-Item

CAMBRIDGE CITY, Ind. (AP) - Got a quarter?

Check your pocket, wallet, coin purse or that jar by the door where you put your loose change.

If you have a state commemorative quarter marked with a "D," that coin passed through a furnace created in Cambridge City, the Palladium-Item reported (http://pinews.co/1sqme8W).

Rogers Engineering & Manufacturing at 112 S. Center St. builds industrial furnaces for basically any product that requires heating during the manufacturing process - from glassware to auto radiators to garden tools.

And coins.

Coins need to be annealed - heated and cooled to prevent brittleness.

Rogers' furnaces are annealing coins at the U.S. Mint in Denver, where the quarters are made, and also at the San Francisco mint, which produces clad and silver proof coin sets.

The U.S. Mint just awarded Rogers a contract to design, manufacture and install a second annealing furnace at its San Francisco facility.

"To get this thing designed and built, it takes about 30 weeks," said Bill Rogers, company founder and president.

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Eastern Indiana company provides US Mint furnace

Old town hall improvements By LORI WINCE Saturday October 25, 2014 8:01 PM

Pataskala City Council members disagree on what to do with a $200,000 grant from a recent state capital bill that could be used to install public restrooms and an elevator in the old town hall building at 430 S. Main St.

The Pataskala Division of Police is based on the first floor and basement and the Sterling Theater is on the second floor of the 97-year-old building, which is owned by the city.

City Council learned Oct. 20 the grant requires the city to match 50 cents for every dollar of the grant, or $100,000.

City Administrator Benjamin King said construction costs are estimated at $250,000, which doesn't include design and bidding for the project.

He said the city could use the value of the building, $100,000, as part of the match but that would not be enough to cover the project cost.

King said the state would accept the value of the building as the match if the city showed the valuation from the Licking County Auditor's Office.

However, he said, the match could not be used to pay bills to contractors. The city would need enough money from the grant to pay those bills and even more if the estimate exceeded the match.

City Councilman Bryan Lenzo said Pataskala already has paid to install a new roof on the building, secure the foundation, repair windows and improve the heating-and-cooling system.

Lenzo said at some point City Council needs to re-evaluate the use of the building because it might not be cost effective to keep the police department there.

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City Council weighs cost of using grant money

Houses made in a factory are a cheap and energy-efficient way for poorer Americans to become homeownersplus, these days, the mass-produced units can be pretty spiffy.

La Citta Vita/Flickr

Youve seen it before: a house, on a truck, on a highway, slowing down traffic with its yellow OVERSIZED LOAD sign, its tan vinyl siding nearly screaming Trailer Park!

The snobs among us may judge these pre-fab homes as shoddily built, cheap eyesores in a country thats increasingly eschewing the suburbs for walkable urban areas.

But pre-fabricated homes just might be part of the solution to America's affordable housing crisis.

Home prices are continuing to rise, even as incomes on the lower-end of the scale remain flat, putting home ownership out of reach for many Americans. In some cities, thats led to renters flooding the markets, which in turns drives rental prices up. Homeownership in the U.S. was 65 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, down from 69 percent in 2005, according to the Census Bureau (PDF).

Families who can't afford homes often find that the apartments available to them are tiny, expensive, and old. Manufactured homes, affordable-housing advocates say, are spacious in comparison.

The manufactured home is probably the most cost-effective way to provide quality affordable housing, said Donna M. Blaze, the CEO of the Affordable Housing Alliance, which helped provide manufactured homes for Sandy refugees. Most of our new units are light years ahead of the apartments for rent in todays market.

The average sales price for a manufactured home in 2013 was $64,000, according to the Census Bureau, while the average sales price for a single-family home was $324,000. The single-family site-built home includes the land, though, while owners of manufactured homes often have to still grapple with landlords and leasing issues. But the structure itself is nevertheless significantly cheaper: New manufactured homes cost around $43 per square foot; site-built homes cost $93 per square foot.

"In many areas, working class families are priced out of the market to buy homes," said said Stacey Epperson, the president and CEO of NextStep, which connects the manufactured home industry with affordable housing groups. "But for us, homeownership is still part of the American dream."

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The Case for Trailer Parks

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -

Appalachian Power is proposing ways for its Virginia customers to reduce energy usage and demand.

The utility on Friday filed a request with the State Corporation Commission seeking approval for four residential programs and two for commercial and industrial customers.

Customers could see a one-half of a percent increase on their bills.

Appalachian Power expects the programs to save the equivalent of the total annual average usage of 3,000 homes.

The residential programs would provide home assessments and incentives for long-term energy reduction; provide free pickup and cash incentives for removing second refrigerators or freezers from the power grid; give incentives if new manufactured housing is built to efficiency standards; and offer retail rebates and markdowns for high-efficiency lighting and appliances.

A financial incentive for commercial and industrial users would tie to specific results from installing high-efficiency lighting and heating and cooling equipment. Another would provide rebates for certain larger energy conservation projects.

Appalachian Power has about 500,000 Virginia customers.

Here is the news release from Appalachian Power:

Appalachian Power has proposed six new programs that will help its Virginia customers reduce energy usage and demand. The company today filed a request with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) seeking approval for the portfolio of programs that will benefit residential and commercial and industrial (C&I) customers.

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Appalachian Power proposes efficiency programs, possible bill increase

Source: Watsco.

As the winter months approach, homeowners across the country are looking at the prospects of high heating costs once again, and many are looking at possible ways to cut their utility bills. Those are exactly the drivers of demand that Watsco is looking for, as it takes responsibility for getting systems from suppliers like United Technologies 'Carrier division and the local repair and installation companies that put in and maintain HVAC systems in homes across the country. As trends like the move from heating oil to natural gas in many areas of the country have taken hold, Watsco has been able to capitalize on increased demand for more efficient heating and cooling systems. Yet some investors were nervous about Watsco's prospects for its third-quarter results, given a relatively cool summer season. Let's take a closer look at how Watsco did last quarter.

Racking up records at Watsco Watsco touted a number of record results for its third quarter, as the company enjoyed solid gains in its most important metrics. Revenue climbed by 5% to a record $1.135 billion, helping to drive earnings per share up 18% to $1.56, also a record. The most important driver of those positive results was margin expansion and cost containment, as Watsco saw gross profit margins rise by three-tenths of a percentage point and operating margins climb by half a percentage point. Overhead costs fell to record low levels, and operating profits jumped 10% to record levels of $105 million.

Source: Watsco.

Looking at Watsco's various business units, the company produced solid growth in most of its key segments. Revenue from HVAC equipment, which makes up about two-thirds of overall sales, climbed 7%, with residential equipment in particular seeing 8% growth as Watsco captured a greater portion of the overall market. In particular, Watsco saw continued efforts from homeowners seeking to take advantage of incentives for high-efficiency residential heating and cooling systems, as the company reported double-digit percentage growth in the high-efficiency area. Commercial refrigeration sales gained 14%, leading the company's segments. Only the Other HVAC Products category reported flat results compared to last year's levels.

Also helping to drive Watsco's results higher was its increased ownership interest in its joint venture with Carrier. With the company having partnered up with the United Technologies division in 2009, Watsco has generated considerable success from the venture, and Watsco decided to spend $88 million to raise its stake in the venture from 70% to 80%.

What's coming next for Watsco? In light of its success, Watsco said that it expects to see earnings per share for the full 2014 year come in between $4.20 and $4.40. That would represent growth of between 14% and 20%, and it's consistent with the $4.26 per share consensus among investors.

Source: Watsco.

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Watsco Stays Hot Despite the Summer's Cool Weather

UNM energy engineers at the Physical Plant Department were recognized by the New Mexico Association of Energy Engineers with two prestigious awards for decades of achievements in increasing energy efficiency on campus.

The PPDs Engineering and Energy Services division won the Corporate Energy Management award for outstanding accomplishments in developing, organizing, managing and implementing their corporate energy management program, according to the NMAEE website.

And Donald Swick, University facilities engineer, was honored with Energy Engineer of the Year award for his lifetime achievements.

The award is given to an individual for outstanding accomplishments in promoting the practices, principles and procedures of energy engineering, the website said.

Swick said his individual award is based on his work in energy conservation for the past 40 years at various locations around the state. Most of his work at UNM has involved upgrading the infrastructures of some of UNMs oldest facilities, such as Northrop and Regener Halls, he said.

Each of those projects was a total upgrade of building controls, improvements to the heating and cooling systems and reduced wattage to lighting systems, Swick said. Typically, we saw in the range of 35- to 45-percent savings in each of those projects.

The true honor is having the opportunity to work with a talented group of engineers at the PPD, he said.

Not only are we looking at projects that involve improving the performance within buildings, we have developed a group of technicians that have the training and the skills to install, operate and maintain these new digital control systems, Swick said.

David Penasa, facilities engineer-electrical, said he has been involved with the PPD for 11 years. He and his fellow engineers have been working hard to reduce UNMs energy dependence and to be recognized for (their) work is extremely gratifying, he said.

The fact that we can save on the order of more than a million dollars a year in utility costs by implementing these energy conservation projects, I think, is pretty impressive, Penasa said.

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Physical plant receives awards

Rooftop wind turbines in Queens and Brooklyn Rooftop wind turbines in Queens and Brooklyn

Updated: Friday, October 17 2014 10:31 PM EDT2014-10-18 02:31:41 GMT

A different approach to energy efficiency is surging in New York City. At the Pearson Court Square in Long Island City, three sleek-looking wind turbines are perched on the roof. The turbines convert kinetic energy from the wind into electrical power. Wind in New York City doesn't just blow north or south. It swirls all over the place.

A different approach to energy efficiency is surging in New York City. At the Pearson Court Square in Long Island City, three sleek-looking wind turbines are perched on the roof. The turbines convert kinetic energy from the wind into electrical power. Wind in New York City doesn't just blow north or south. It swirls all over the place.

Updated: Friday, October 17 2014 8:29 PM EDT2014-10-18 00:29:06 GMT

No number of flawless fall afternoons can erase our memories of the winter that we added "polar vortex" to our daily vocabulary. This spiral of cold air sits atop the North Pole. During last winter, it dropped down to blanket part of the United States.

No number of flawless fall afternoons can erase our memories of the winter that we added "polar vortex" to our daily vocabulary. This spiral of cold air sits atop the North Pole. During last winter, it dropped down to blanket part of the United States.

Updated: Friday, October 17 2014 6:49 PM EDT2014-10-17 22:49:09 GMT

Walk into the Grobs' home on Saint Mark's Avenue in Brooklyn and there's no question it's modern and energy efficient. The couple wanted to design a home with an open floor plan and be as environmentally responsible as possible. Green amenities are everywhere. The nearly $2 million 5,500-square-foot building cost six figures to renovate, but you can make your home more energy and cost efficient for a lot less.

Walk into the Grobs' home on Saint Mark's Avenue in Brooklyn and there's no question it's modern and energy efficient. The couple wanted to design a home with an open floor plan and be as environmentally responsible as possible. Green amenities are everywhere. The nearly $2 million 5,500-square-foot building cost six figures to renovate, but you can make your home more energy and cost efficient for a lot less.

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Energy efficiency at home saves you big money

Here are a few guidelines for preparing a house and yard for Winter. More detailed lists of what to inspect before snow and ice arrive can be found online or by consulting home stores in the region.

Roof With binoculars or a good zoom lens, look for damaged, worn or loose shingles, gaps in flashing, or damaged mortar or flashing around the chimney. Check the seals on roof vents and install a chimney cap to reduce fire hazards. Re-secure antennas and satellite dishes, if the hardware is loose.

Heating/Cooling System Change out furnace filters, clean and vacuum ducts, vents, baseboard heaters and cold-air returns to reduce winter illnesses. The National Association of Home Builders, NAHB, recommends maintaining your furnace, fireplace, boiler, water heater, space heater and wood-burning stove by having your heating system serviced every year by a certified technician, (see: http://www.acca.org). And while youre at it, check smoke and fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, update batteries and change heating and air conditioning filters regularly.

Consider having a low or no-cost, programmable thermostat installed. Set it at 70 degrees Fahrenheit when youre home and awake and at 62 degrees or less when youre away or asleep to help achieve maximum energy savings.

Remove window air conditioners or cover them to reduce drafts and heat loss.

Fireplace Make sure the flue, damper and chimney are in good repair and functioning properly. Have the fireplace cleaned to remove animal debris and bird nests. This is the time to order firewood, if you have a wood stove or fireplace, but remember not to stack it against the house. If your fireplace is gas and not wood, make sure the inset is working correctly.

Wood work Inspect for wood rot, termites, trapped moisture, wear or peeling paint and missing trim.

Pipes & Plumbing Shut off exterior faucets at the indoor shutoff valve and use insulating tape to wrap pipes in rooms without wall insulation.

Doors & Windows Change out screendoors for glass or solid storm doors and weatherstrip doors and windows. Kiplingers maintenance advice is to caulk or weatherstrip around windows or doors where daylight of more than a nickels width is visible. To reduce unwanted rodent traffic, install doorsweeps at the base of exterior doors. When weatherizing isnt practical--on an interior doorbuy or sew a draft dodger to stop air flow across the threshold.

Foundation Inspect foundation materials for moisture resistance, look for worn areas or shifts in alignment on supporting beams or posts, note any changes from the previous year that may require closer scrutiny from a carpenter, mason or engineer.

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At Home Living: A fall maintenance checklist