Anchorage Daily News

Teri Hansen is tired of shivering in her own home.

"Each winter it gets colder and colder and the bills go higher and higher. And it's just not comfortable," she said. "It's actually cold. We wear sweaters, sweatshirts, bundle up, and our house is still about 66, 67 degrees. People come over and they are freezing."

And so when Hansen, who lives in South Anchorage with her husband and two teenage daughters, first heard about the state's Home Energy Rebate program three months ago, she decided to act fast to take advantage of the up to $10,000 giveaway. Like many people applying for the rebate, she feels lucky to have gotten in when she did. Thousands of others are still waiting to hear from the much-sought-after home energy raters, who have been besieged with requests for inspections.

Hansen also jumped on the opportunity because it was the first time she ever heard of such a large state rebate not based on income. "Usually we would never qualify," she said.

The Hansens make good money -- she works in human resources for a nonprofit and he is in management at a local bank -- but the expenses of repairing a home while one kid is in college and another on her way have been beyond their reach. They have needed a new furnace and new windows for years.

Hansen and her husband, Scott, have tried to make up for that need by being energy efficient. They change the filters on their furnace regularly. They use heavy-duty curtains to block the cold from the windows. Hansen even stuffs newspapers in the fireplace chimney for insulation.

Energy rater Chuck Renfro spent three hours inspecting the Hansen's 1980s home recently.

Creating a negative pressure, it was easy for him to determine where the drafts were strongest. Windows leaked cold air, the crawl space under the house sucked it in like a vacuum, and even electrical outlets blew it out.

"Holy moly!" Hansen said when she put her hand against a door frame that led to her crawl space. She was in awe of how much air was leaking in.

Her garage was so poorly insulated that Renfro determined she has probably been paying the same amount to heat it as she has been to heat her entire house.

In the end, the house got a low energy-efficiency rating, making Hansen a good candidate for the rebate.

She will have 18 months to make improvements but hopes to buy a new furnace before that. Preferably, before the below-freezing temperatures hit the city.

She doesn't want to go through another cold winter.

Find Megan Holland online at adn.com/contact/mholland or call 257-4343.

Tips to cut costs

How you can save money on energy:

• Caulk and seal air leaks between ceiling and attic and around the crawl space.

• Add insulation to attic, crawl space, basement walls.

• Install efficient shower heads, wrap water heater in insulation blanket, insulate hot-water pipes.

• Switch to fluorescent or LED lighting.

• Turn off heater in rarely used rooms

• Take shorter showers

• Use cold water for laundry

• Set hot water heater to 120 degrees

• Plug electronics into power strips, turn strip off when not using computer, etc.

Source: State of Alaska

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