HIGH-ENERGY ADVICE IN-HOME EFFICIENCY ASSESSED.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

GLENDALE - The key to cutting residential utility bills isn't eliminating the one big energy-waster, but rather, taking a series of small measures that have cumulative impact, experts say.

So under the city's SmartHome Energy and Water Audits Program, city conservation specialists Josh Gould and Avo Avedis Atnalian are taking their wisdom to local residents' homes. Their goal is to provide free custom-tailored conservation advice to 3,600 homes in three years.

``Customers seem to be receiving it very well,'' said Ned Bassin, marketing coordinator for Glendale Water & Power. ``We also have people calling their neighbors and friends and telling them about the program. I think that speaks very highly of what people are finding.''

The pair comes to a home at the owner's request and checks the air conditioning, insulation, appliance temperature settings, water flow rates at sinks and showers, and landscape irrigation. They also administer a blower door test to measure air leakage, which makes cooling and heating a house expensive.

Based on the audit results, they provide conservation advice and information on the city's rebate programs for buying energy-efficient appliances.

``We are not the conservation police. We will not tell you what to do. We just give you recommendations,'' said Gould.

Atnalian and Gould recently spent about 90 minutes at the three-story home of Steve Hearn, who read about the program in a GWP newsletter included with his utility bill.

``However we could save some money, it seems like a good thing to take advantage of,'' said Hearn, whose current bimonthly bill runs between $400 and $600. ``It's a free thing to have someone come out who knows what they are doing.''

While Atnalian sat down with Hearn to complete a 97-question lifestyle survey that gauges everything from pool heating to shower habits, Gould checked the kitchen water faucets to make sure the flow rate is appropriate. He also measured the temperature settings in the refrigerator and wrapped the water heater with insulation material.

Meanwhile, Atnalian tested for leakage in toilets and installed toilet dams in the water tanks to reduce usage.

``It seems like it's covering a lot of the elements of our house,'' said Hearn, who was impressed by the thoroughness of the auditors.

Aside from audits, Gould and Atnalian provide homeowners with free installation of energy-saving light bulbs, water heater wraps, shower heads and faucet heads, when needed.

Following their visit, they will send the homeowners a computerized breakdown of their energy and water usage, illustrated with color charts. The report, which could run more than a dozen pages, will also reiterate to the homeowners conservation recommendations discussed during the audits.

The city is providing the audits through a $1.2 million contract with Xenergy. The funding for the program comes from a special charge local residents pay on their utility bills. Consumers are charged 2.85 percent of their electric bills to fund conservation programs.

To learn more about the audit program or to schedule an appointment, call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Energy conservation specialist Avo Avedis Atnalian checks water flow in a bathroom as part of an in-home audit.

(2 -- ran in Glen/Bur edition only) Josh Gould demonstrates an air blower used to assess air leakage during an in-home energy audit.

Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer