Going green can save money

By Alyssa Sunkin / The Citizen

Monday, April 7, 2008 12:16 PM EDT

AURELIUS - Mary Ann Finn has made it a point to have her Auburn home energy efficient.
Jill Connor / The Citizen
Adam Shepard, the department supervisor and millwork specialist for Home Depot, explains that insulating your home can save money and energy at the annual Home Expo on Sunday afternoon at the Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES.
She has added insulation, changed the siding, installed a new furnace, and turned her attention to more energy efficient appliances to be both environmentally friendly as well as save a few dollars.

On Sunday, Finn strolled through the Home Expo 2008 at the Board of Cooperative Educational Services Regional Education Center to see if there were any other opportunities to be energy efficient, as well as see the new BOCES building up close.

“I think it's something we aren't always exposed to as much as we ought to be,” she said as she perused the energy efficient windows display from Comfort Windows in Syracuse.

Sponsored by the Cayuga County Chamber of Commerce, Home Expo 2008 reflected the increasing awareness of green technology and energy efficiency by offering to many a passerby information on everything from efficient windows and insulation to solar energy and wind power.

“People are interested in saving energy and saving money,” said Rich Daniels, sales associate for Comfort. “It's like people buying economy cars to save on gas. It's the same kind of thing.”

Daniels said nearly all the people they spoke to over the weekend-long event expressed interest in the low-emissivity coatings on the Energy Star-qualified windows they manufacture and sell.

Nearly all of the informational materials on solar energy offered at the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County's booth at the expo were taken by Sunday, said Christina Selvek, a small business development education for CCE. She spent the weekend answering questions on solar and geothermal energy as well as wind power.

“I think people are really looking into energy efficiency to improve the health of their homes or just to save the environment,” she said. “With gas prices continuing to rise and increased awareness on the finite resources, people are looking for alternative and renewable energy sources.”

Environmentally-friendly practices for homeowners has been a strengthening theme of the Home Expo over the last several years, committee chairman John Nicandri said, and this year is no different.

“Just by having the show here at BOCES supports that theme,” he said.

The facility, located on West Genesee Street Road, is 42 percent more efficient than standard code. The building - built to be environmentally friendly - is equipped with geotherms to heat and cool the building. It is also certified with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or alyssa.sunkin@lee.net

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