WILMINGTON, DE – October 25, 2010 – (RealEstateRama) — The SEU’s Energize Delaware officially launched an online Home Energy Makeover Facebook contest today, which will award a home energy audit (worth $400) and up to $5,000 in home energy efficiency improvements. One winner from each Delaware County (Sussex, Kent and New Castle) will take home this opportunity… just in time for winter. Winners will enjoy lower energy bills and a more comfortable, healthier home for years to come.
The contest is designed to draw attention to the SEU Energize Delaware’s whole-house energy savings program – Home Performance with ENERGYSTAR®, which offers up to $8,250 in rebates for efficiency upgrades like heating and cooling systems and windows, insulating roofs and crawlspaces, and sealing leaks and drafts.
“This contest is a creative way to spread the word about how Delawareans can save energy and money, while creating high-quality local construction jobs,” said Delaware Gov. Jack Markell. “Social media has proven to be a great way to raise awareness and engage with the community.”
“Delawareans can significantly reduce their energy bills through home energy efficiency improvements and the Home Performance Program can help them do so,” said DNREC Secretary Collin O’Mara. “Using social media is another way we can spread the word to as many Delawareans as possible about a program that will not only save them money, but will also help strengthen our economy, create local construction jobs and improve our natural environment.”
How to Enter
Starting October 18 and running through November 15, the Energize Delaware website http://www.energizedelaware.org will be taking entries from Delaware homeowners. Entering is easy. Using the online entry form:
1. Submit one photo of you and/or your family in a setting that features your house. Entrants must be the homeowner with a Delaware address.
2. Tell why your house is a good candidate for a home energy makeover. Just a few short sentences.
3. List the amount of your average monthly utility bill over the last year.
After you submit your entry, it will be posted to the contest website. Tell your friends to vote for you. There are two rounds of voting to narrow the field and focus on homes that offer the biggest opportunities to save.
Why Enter – “The Prize!”
Winners will receive a free home energy audit energy audit and customized upgrades that match each home’s energy needs, such as adding insulation, a more efficient water heater, a new door and other efficiency improvements.
Delawareans will get to follow the winners on the Energize Delaware YouTube channel as the winning homes receive a free home energy audit, which uses diagnostic tools to pinpoint leaks and other sources of energy waste unique to each home. Based on the audit, homeowners receive a customized path to energy savings.
The Countdown to Victory
To provide more opportunities to spotlight Delaware homes and select houses that offer the most potential for savings, the contest will unfold in phases with two rounds of public online voting to narrow the field and select winners:
- Submission and initial voting period October 18-November 15, 2010
- Finalists narrowed for final public voting period November 16-November 29, 2010
- Winners selected announced on or about, December 1, 2010
You can also mail your photo and description of your home energy makeover need to SEU Energize Delaware Home Energy Makeover Contest, 5301 Limestone Road, Suite 222, Wilmington, DE 19808 and Energize Delaware can post your entry for you.
Judging Criteria
Winners will be selected based on the following weighted criteria:
- Opportunity to achieve significant savings on energy and utility bills through energy efficiency solutions provided in the Energize Delaware Home Performance with ENERGYSTAR program. Entries must offer the opportunity to save at least 20 percent on monthly energy bills. (50 percent of overall score)
- Creativity (10 percent of overall score)
- Overall presentation (10 percent of overall score)
- Popular vote (30 percent of overall score)
In the event of a tie, the entrant whose submission received the highest score in the “opportunity to save” category will be deemed the winner.
The contest and advertising campaign running this month features the SEU Energize Delaware Red Knot mascot “SEU” (pronounced Sue). “SEU” is a shorebird on a budget. The Red Knot flies 9,000 miles on a single fuel stop in Delaware. This feat of energy efficiency is a model for Delawareans who want to save energy and money and makes “SEU” an apt spokesbird.
SEU and Energize Delaware
The Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility’s (SEU) Energize Delaware is a unique non-profit created by the state of Delaware to provide a one-stop resource for energy solutions that save money, create jobs, and improve the environment. The initiative’s full complement of energy-saving solutions include: efficient lighting, comprehensive home and business energy makeovers, rebates for new homes built to high energy standards, and performance contracting to cut energy waste in schools and government buildings.
