Town Energy Committee
Minutes of meeting February 9, 2009
7:04 p.m. in kitchen of Town Offices
Members present: Dan Wolaver, Diane Boilard, Candi Fowler, Roger Lessard
Minutes of January 26, 2009 meeting were approved as corrected: “Diane and Roger meet” replaced with “Diane and Roger met.”
The consensus was that our committee can’t do more for the Library until they do an IR imaging audit.
The consensus was that next building on our agenda should be the Highway Dept. building. Suggestions:
- vehicles using biofuel (Earth-friendly but probably not a cost saving)?
- hybrid vehicles, including snowplows?
- reduce building heat loss with insulation, air curtain, airlock?
Candi will contact Duffy to set up coordination. Roger will find out about energy-efficient vehicles used by the VT highway department.
The consensus was that we be prepared to answer questions about the TEC’s activities at the Town Meeting. Our committee’s report is attached. We may be able to show benefits from the energy-saving measures in the Town Offices Building: sliding door, plastic sheets on windows, and shutting down the second floor. Diane will find the oil usage for last winter and this winter, and Dan will find the degree-days for last winter and this winter. That should make a meaningful comparison possible.
Dan will contact Aaron Harris to see when he is available to meet.
Adjourned: 8:00 p.m.
Next meeting: Monday, February 23.
Submitted by
Dan H. Wolaver, chairman
Town Energy Committee Report
January 2009
The Board of Selectmen formed the Town Energy Committee (TEC) in December, 2007 to recommend ways to reduce the Town’s energy usage. The committee consists of Dan Wolaver (chair), Diane Boilard, Candi Fowler, Aaron Harris, and Roger Lessard. The first priority was the Town Offices Building, which had been using about $10,000 in fuel oil per year. The TEC has completed a plan to change the heating system and improve the insulation of the building. It consists of five steps:
- Shut down the second floor until it is insulated. Move activities to Selectmen’s Room or the Library
- Have preliminary thermal imaging and air-loss study done of the building. Install a door at the bottom of the stairs to the second floor. Repair the old windows, using caulking, plastic sheets inside, and fixing broken glass. Have insulation blown into the walls and use fiberglass batting or blown-in insulation in the ceiling of the second floor. Do a final thermal imaging and air-loss study to assure the insulation was blown in properly, and to determine the required boiler size.
- Change the first-floor heating from steam to forced hot water. Install a reset control to sense the outdoor temperature and optimize the boiler temperature for best efficiency.
- Replace the oil boiler with a wood-pellet boiler. Install an outdoor silo to store bulk-purchased wood pellets (reducing the price of the wood pellets).
- Replace old single-glazed windows with double-glazed while maintaining the historic appearance.
These steps are to be phased in, the earlier ones providing the greatest savings for the investment. Depending on current fuel costs, the steps are estimated to cut heating costs by at least 50% and as much as 75%.
The plan has been submitted to the BOS for their consideration. Step 1 has been implemented. Parts of Step 2 have been implemented—the thermal imaging and air-loss study, installation of a door at the bottom of the stairs to the second floor, and plastic sheeting over seven windows in the first floor. Other steps may be implemented or modified, depending on BOS decisions.
The TEC plans to look next at the Town Library for ways to help reduce its energy usage.
| 
