Habitat Weatherization - Volunteer Sept 26

Welcome to the home of Henry and Bertha Buchanan! Last month volunteers from Habitat for Humanity and the Sierra Club arrived to weatherize their house. It's part of a plan to preserve affordable housing, while reducing the need for energy. And the Buchanans will save on their monthly power bills. At 7 a.m. this Saturday morning, the partnership will tackle two more houses in South Charlotte. Want to help?

This project is exciting because of how well the pieces fit together. Sierra Club's Charlotte Cool Cities focuses on environmental education. For this, a laboratory is needed, and it is provided by Habitat for Humanity’s Critical Home Repairs Division. Tim O'Neil, of Habitat, says the Division has focused on necessities for owner-occupied homes, such as roofs and floors, to make them safer and drier. Now they are adding weatherization, to help conserve energy and to help the owners save money.

In the photo at left, volunteers are repairing the furnace ductwork, usually a leading cause of energy loss. Before the work begins, Matthew Coapman, of Greenhome, is donating comprehensive home energy audits and teaching volunteers. Some very eager volunteers are students in the Sustainable Technology program, begun this fall by Central Piedmont Community College. Mark Helms, CPCC's Director of Service Learning, met with a class in Energy Efficiency recently to explain this project. The class of 27 students is divided into 4 teams; each team will participate in the weatherization of at least one home, the first one this weekend.

Besides helping our neighbors stay warmer this winter, all parties plan to extend this project outward. The Sierra Club plans to share this model program nationally. Helms wants to prepare packets, to hand out at conferences, on replicable design. The goals would be learning how to do energy audits and weatherizations, lowering carbon footprints, and helping people save their homes.

If you can't make it this month, you can join in continuing efforts on this project. For more information, please contact Eric Geppi or call (704) 343-0047.

Buchanan and Sarah Little, relaxing on the porch after a job well done.

All photos by Rob Singh-Latulipe, copyright 2009.