December 29, 2010
Austin Energy Offers $200 Winter Bonus for Efficiency Upgrades

Austin Energy is offering an additional $200 in rebates from January 1 through March 15, 2011 to customers who are replacing their air conditioner and make all of the energy-efficiency improvements to their home recommended through an energy assessment. Winter is often the best time to buy new cooling and heating (HVAC) units and make energy efficiency improvements due to slower demand and competitive prices.

With the winter bonus, the rebates from Austin Energy total up to $1,550. Add in up to $300 in rebates from Texas Gas Service, and a federal tax credit up to $500 and customers may be eligible for up to $2,350 in incentives with this special offer.

The rebates are available on improvements that include a new air conditioner or energy-efficient heat pump, attic insulation, caulking around plumbing under sinks, weather stripping around entry doors, duct sealing, and solar screens. Special incentives also are available through Texas Gas Service on the replacement of gas furnaces. Customers who make whole house efficiency improvements often see their energy bills reduced by up to 40%.

“This bonus offer emphasizes the tremendous economy of results from whole house efficiency improvements,” said Karl Rábago, Vice President, Distributed Energy Services. “Studies show a typical older home is wasting up to 30% of the energy it uses, nearly all of which can be cost effectively addressed and assisted through our program.”

More than 3,000 Austin Energy residential customers this past year made all the recommended improvements to their home by participating in the Austin Energy Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® program. They will save 5.8 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually (power sufficient for about 500 homes) and reduce their bills by more than half a million dollars a year.

Participating in the program is easy. Simply contact any of the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR participating companies listed on Austin Energy’s Web site and ask for a free energy analysis. The company chosen will perform the analysis of the home and provide the customer with a list of recommended improvements and the rebates the customer is eligible to receive from both Austin Energy and Texas Gas Service. Austin Energy will review the recommendations before authorizing approval of the rebated work and also will inspect the work when completed.

Austin Energy’s Home Performance program has won a national award from the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency for six years in a row and is considered a nationwide model for utilities.