Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognized Michigan’s Superior Watershed Partnership (SWP) for innovation in providing Home Energy Scores throughout the Upper Peninsula (UP). SWP, a nonprofit organization focused on improving the environment and living conditions in the Great Lakes and its communities, is one of almost 30 partners using DOE’s Home Energy Score™ to estimate a home’s total energy use and recommend affordable improvements. The Home Energy Score allows consumers to compare energy use in homes, like a miles-per-gallon efficiency rating for a car. Using a scale of 1 – 10 (least to most efficient), the Home Energy Score provides a current rating and a customized report with options for improving the Home Energy Score.
SWP provides Home Energy Scores to communities and uses the tool’s recommendations to help families find resources to make their homes more energy efficient. Since 2019, SWP has provided more than 700 Home Energy Scores, sharing its services free of charge to low-income clients to support them through energy crises and help them work towards energy security. SWP also offers households energy assistance, financial and energy education, weatherization services, utility referrals, and energy efficiency improvements to the home valued at up to $1,000 per year. On average, SWP provides $600 per household in weatherization services, prioritizing insulation and air sealing.
SWP serves low-income households who may not have sufficient insulation for the UP’s harsh winters and rely on deliverable fuels to heat their homes. Scoring a home is the first step towards energy improvements that can improve a family’s quality of life, but homes in the UP face unique challenges to implementing efficiency upgrades.
The remote nature of the UP means that many of the households require significant travel from SWP’s Assessors. It can take up to a full day for an Assessor to drive to a single home. With a territory of more than 30,000 square miles, SWP’s Assessors have exemplified dedication to improving home efficiency across the UP.
The age and diversity of the housing stock also poses challenges for efficiency improvements. Many homes are more than 130 years old and have received multiple additions and modifications over the years. Some are referred to as “piece homes” – manufactured homes with additions built on, making them difficult to score.
The DOE Home Energy Score Team is planning to release a newer version of the Scoring Tool that incorporates manufactured housing, which will provide more accurate Scores for existing manufactured homes.
Read more about Home Energy Score and find a partner in your area today. Email the Home Energy Score team at homeenergyscore@ee.doe.gov to get involved.