Owens to offer home energy efficiency workshops

Brady Bancroft, left, and Joe Peschel of Owens Community College are to present free energy efficiency workshops in North and East Toledo. Participants at the events will get a free energy saver kit.

The Blade/Jeremy Wadsworth
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Brady Bancroft, left, and Joe Peschel of Owens Community College are to present free energy efficiency workshops in North and East Toledo. Participants at the events will get a free energy saver kit.

Owens Community College will use a state grant to pay for home energy efficiency workshops in North and East Toledo. The first two will be in the Chester J. Zablocki Senior Center, 3014 Lagrange St., from 5 to 9 p.m. Oct. 16 and 18. The classes will be held during the same hours Oct. 23 and 25 at the East Toledo Family Center, 1020 Varland Ave.

The $4,314 grant is from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and is to enhance home energy efficiency through education, said Joe Peschel, Owens’ programmer in work-force and community services. To register for the free classes call 567-661-7357 or 1-800-GO-OWENS, Ext. 7357.

“The important thing is to make people aware that they can save money and energy in their homes,” Mr. Peschel said.

The workshops, “Upgrading Your Home’s Energy Efficiency,” will cover the basics. Participants will get a free kit that includes a caulk gun and tube of caulk, heat-shrinking window film, and weather stripping.  “We’ll start with things that stop air infiltration,” Mr. Peschel said. “We’ll also talk about furnaces and the importance of filter changes.”

Other subjects will include lighting, and the energy-saving qualities of compact fluorescent lights and light emitting diodes, energy audits, and duct sealing, he said. 

Terry Glazer, chief executive officer of United North, North Toledo’s neighborhood development agency, said the instruction would be useful in his community, where the housing stock is old.

“We’ve built some new homes, but the overwhelming majority of our homes are 80 years old on average,” he said.

Kim Partin, executive director of the family center, said many  older  homes in East Toledo need tightening up as well. “This will help our residents keep their utility costs at a minimum. We’re putting the word out. We’re hoping to have full classes,” she said.