What could you do with an extra $2,000 to make your home more energy efficient, more comfortable and maybe even safer?
Stevie Morrison and Garrett Hutson will soon get a $2,000 check from ReEnergize Garfield County, the GCE program that offers financial aid to income-qualified residents to undertake energy- and money-saving measures. The funding enabled them to tackle an urgent project in their home, and it gave them the flexibility to do it their own way.
Avid climbers, the couple had been living out of an Airstream trailer for a couple of years, working remotely and climbing every chance they got, when they decided to settle in Rifle this past spring. Why Rifle? Rifle Mountain Park is a world-renowned rock climbing destination.
Learn more about the ReEnergize program here. The program's 2024 funding is fully committed, but you are encouraged to apply now to get on the waiting list for 2025.
Under a tight budget, they bought a small one-bedroom house beside Rifle Creek. Because it’s located in a floodplain, the building sits aboveground on concrete pillars, making it look like a beach house. That means air circulates freely under the building and the underside of the floor must be insulated. They quickly discovered that the patchwork of drywall panels keeping the insulation in place was failing.
“We knew we had to do something down there because it was just falling apart,” says Stevie. Insects were even coming up through the floorboards.
Meanwhile, Stevie and Garrett were finding summer nights in Rifle hotter than they were used to (they’d previously lived in Summit County). They talked to a contractor about cooling, who suggested they call Garfield Clean Energy, and that’s how they learned about ReEnergize. They applied and qualified, based on their household income being less than 150% of the Area Median Income.
The first thing that all ReEnergize recipients get is a free home energy assessment. Consisting of a professional home inspection with specialized testing equipment, the assessment reveals exactly how the home is using – and losing – energy. It can also flag certain potential safety hazards such as poor ventilation or mildew.
Stevie and Garrett’s assessment didn’t find any major problems, but it confirmed what they already knew about the insulation under the floor. The old insulation actually met code, so they could have simply replaced the panels holding it in place for maybe a thousand dollars. But ReEnergize offered the chance to do better.
After doing research and getting advice, they decided on removing the old insulation and replacing it with spray foam. Given the home’s above-ground exposure, sprayed polyurethane foam was a good fit because it acts as an all-in-one air, vapor, water and insect barrier. In addition, it makes supporting panels unnecessary and its insulation value is much better than code.
“My instinct is you want the bottom as tight as possible,” says Garrett. “It’s comforting to know bugs can’t get in, so that’s a relief!”
The downside? Spray foam is quite a bit more expensive than conventional fiberglass insulation. But thanks to ReEnergize funding, Garrett estimates that the net cost was about the same as if they’d simply shored up the old insulation.
This winter, Garrett and Stevie will enjoy a more comfortable home and lower energy bills as a result of the improved insulation. As for cooling, they’re considering a mini-split heat pump system, which provides both cooling in summer and heating in winter.
Stevie says the ReEnergize program worked well for them and she’d recommend it to others. “Everyone was really easy to work with,” from the energy coaches at Garfield Clean Energy to the home energy assessment specialist from the Northwest Colorado Council of Governments, which partners with GCE on ReEnergize.
She adds that she and Garrett were pleased to find that the community they’d chosen to settle in offers such a program. And speaking for the ReEnergize program, we were happy to help. Welcome to the neighborhood!