Once again, Greening Oakland Homes is partnering with Energy Upgrade California in Alameda County and the City of Oakland in a Home-Energy Forum. If you are considering retrofitting your home and are looking for ways to make it easy and affordable, this seminar is a must as your first step!
Learn about real Rebates and Incentives, and talk to the experts.
Energy Upgrade California is a one-stop-shop for home improvement projects that will save you money, lower your energy use, and make your home healthier and more comfortable. Homeowners can get up to $4,000 back in rebates when you make your home more energy efficient, and there are local contractors who are trained and ready to do the work today. You can also get a $300 rebate on a comprehensive energy assessment through February 2012.
A new program called Energize for the Prize also donates money to local schools when you get an energy upgrade! Learn how it works and get your school on the list at here.
Please join us for a homeowner information event in Oakland where you can learn about these incredible opportunities, meet Participating Contractors, and have all your questions answered. This event is free.
In Oakland, we’re extraordinarily lucky to have a tool lending library when doing home improvements or green retrofits in particular. When you need any kind of tool, you just stop by 52nd and Telegraph to pick one up.
Usually the Temescal Tool Lending Library staff is ready to assist you. And now they welcome a little advice and counsel as well, at their very-first “Oakland Tool Library Friends” gathering this weekend.
What: Oakland Tool Library Friends Meeting When: Saturday, June 12th, 1pm – 2pm Where: Tool Lending Library Lawn, 5205 Telegraph Ave (map) Cost: No cost, for Oakland, Piedmont and Emeryville residents
Yes, interested Oaklanders can help the tool library. This inaugural gathering will take place on the lawn outside the Temescal Tool Lending Library, starting at 1pm. Their agenda is to agree upon a list of group goals, all to support this unique resource.
From our interactions with the librarians, we know this library wants to share knowledge as well as tools. They are considering all kinds of training classes based on the needs of patrons. We love them!
So take a quick hour and stop by the back of the library. Food will be provided, to lure interested tool borrowers and library supporters. While the meeting’s scheduled for an hour, it’s fine if some of you want to stay longer.
Today we were privileged to meet the inaugural Green Academy students at Oakland Tech. These mostly sophomore students are getting introduced to thinking about ways they might decrease Oakland’s carbon footprint – and achieve our city’s long-term climate action plan.
Under the guidance of their teacher, Dr. Deirdre Snyder, they have been focused on energy-saving opportunities at home, in local businesses, on the streets and throughout our city.
In this project, shown above, students were starting to consider alternative sources of energy as well as practical ways to reduce energy consumption. Check out the solar panels on the roof, and the bike lane on the city street. These recommendations are very sweet from 16 year olds!
We’re excited that high schoolers are studying greener options, as this bodes well for all Oaklanders. At the upcoming Temescal Street Fair, this Sunday, these Oakland Tech students will also volunteer at the Green Zone – on Temescal Ave and 48th Street.
The adults need all the help they can get, and the teens will be there to assist with sign-ins, answering visitor questions, and even discussing their projects. When it comes to improving energy consumption in Oakland, Greening Oakland Homes welcomes the next generation with open arms.
This Sunday, June 6th, we would like to invite everyone to stop by the Temescal Street Fair and look for our Green Zone – which Greening Oakland Homes has planned between Telegraph and 48th Street in Oakland. Look up and you should be able to see the zone signs.
There’s supposed to be a huge crowd, and we look forward to spending time with everyone visiting the zone. You’ll find green-minded people ready to discuss your home’s conservation opportunities.
Save on your energy bill and enjoy a healthier home! Come to a special seminar, on Saturday, May 8th, to learn about home energy auditing, with expert Building Solutions.
What: Getting Started – Home Energy Conservation When: Saturday, May 8th, 11am – 12pm Where: Temescal Tool Lending Library, 5205 Telegraph Ave (map) Cost: No cost, it’s free to all comers
Get the prescription for “green” ways to improve your home’s energy efficiency and comfort from Building Solutions’ staff. Learn how a home energy audit works, what the most cost-effective solutions are – and how you can get started. This is an educational hour worth your time, and definitely not a sales pitch!
It’s conveniently taking place at Oakland’s Temescal Library which has a lending tool library. So after the seminar, perhaps you will be inspired to check out a few tools and begin tinkering at home as well.
P.S. Greening Oakland Homes will also present a Green Zone at the upcoming Temescal Street Fair, on June 6th. An array of suppliers will be on hand to share water and energy conservation techniques, so please put this event on your calendar too.
We’re hearing from plenty of Oaklanders, especially with all the green-type events happening this month. Greening Oakland Homes will participate at the Earth Expo tomorrow, downtown, along with nearly a hundred dynamic green exhibitors. Stop by during your lunch break!
This year’s Earth Day festivities feel a bit more diverse to us, as Oakland aims to make progress on all Urban Environmental Accord actions. Recently the City Council had a special meeting to consider energy reduction goals, including transportation and home energy consumption targets.
When you bring up greening initiatives these days, we think it’s about individual accountability too. Neighbors naturally bring up retrofits they might do to reduce their carbon footprints and save dollars – which aren’t mutually exclusive goals.
There seems to be increased interest in “doing something” this summer, and Greening Oakland Homes intends to provide a helpful hand. We’re now developing a new green presence at the Temescal Street Fair on June 6th, and expect to coordinate resources and suppliers for Oaklanders there.
Anyway, we hope to see you in person soon. In the meantime, please reach us with your questions and ideas at greeningoak@gmail.com.
Kermit was wrong, according to Oakland North’s Melanie Mason. With smaller steps in conserving energy and water consumption, it’s kind of easy being green – and not an all-or-nothing proposition.
Take a look at this great video report about the Greening Oakland Homes Fair last Saturday, where attendees and vendors considered making improvements to neighborhood homes. The fair consisted of exhibits, lectures and time to learn about what could and should be done.
“I think the real green thing is to work with what you have,” declared Wooden Window President Bill Esser, a vendor exhibiting at the Fair. “I think it’s accessible,” agreed Rockridge resident Jean Follette, adding “you can do small projects and not have to do your entire house.”
Our Oakland reported that “one of the main [fair] takeaways is that it pays to look at the process in 3 stages: better sealing of the building and ducts, then correctly sizing HVAC and appliances, and then consider things like solar panels.”
Greening Oakland Homes aims to “educate neighbors about home energy and water conservation, so they are no longer mysterious or difficult to do,” explained Laura Anderson, director of the group, to the Montclarion. “And we want to promote green-building practices, which can be a challenge for homeowners to tackle on their own.”
Right now, Greening Oakland Homes consists of fifteen active volunteers including a physicist, an engineer, and a couple of contractors. “The idea is create something that lives, and serves as a resource for different neighborhoods,” Director Anderson told Oakbook.
“The fair was aimed at average homeowners here in Oakland,” said Our Oakland’s Gene Anderson. “I’ve been following green building for 5+ years as part of the work for the addition I built and remodel…but I learned some things, too.”
Spring is coming, heralding new beginnings by bringing fresh new growth all around. What better time to put a green spin on your home improvement projects? Check out the Greening Oakland Homes Fair at Oakland on Saturday!
Find out how green building and re-modeling can benefit you, the environment, and save you money too! You’ll meet many friendly experts and vendors who can answer your questions about what you can do, talk to like-minded people, and win cool prizes. And, there will be table where your financing questions will be answered too.
When? March 6, 2010 / Saturday, between 11am – 3pm
Where? 1650 Mountain Blvd, Oakland
Our Greening Oakland Homes Fair is coming up this Saturday, March 6th! And some of our vendors are offering some great gifts and discounts. It’s important to save a little money on your home energy conservation efforts, right?
Everyone who comes to the free fair, taking place at 1650 Mountain Blvd, will be able to sign up and enter a drawing for these freebies:
For Oaklanders who attend the fair, vendors will be ready to share their knowledge in an unpressured environment. But they will be ready with substantial discounts on their goods and services, too.
Energy audits are a recommended first step, and Building Solutions will offer a 20% discount to anyone who signs up for an audit this Saturday. In addition, Ashby Lumber will give out 10% off coupons during this fair, which are good for all purchases.
Hey, this kind of financing sounds good to us.
Global goes very local here in Oakland—on this non-profit website—where homeowners can link to get the information and resources to help you start greening your home now. Learn practical approaches to small and large greening projects-and find local, state and federal programs that help pay for them!
Local green certified contractors from sustainable floorers to landscapers can be found in these pages. You’d be surprised to learn that greening can be as easy as choosing the right window treatments. And that energy efficiency goes far beyond solar.
Sometimes it just takes a little know how.
From Home Energy Audit info (did you know there’s currently a program giving $200 rebates for these high-tech individualized building performance tests?) to cost saving solutions you might not have heard of, we continue to add practical information to this site. And update it as our wealth of knowledge grows.
In fact, before you even start, you can find out what works and what doesn’t work from others who’ve successfully completed greening projects from start to finish. Check out our blog.
Once again, Greening Oakland Homes is partnering with Energy Upgrade California in Alameda County and the City of Oakland in a Home-Energy Forum. If you are considering retrofitting your home and are looking for ways to make it easy and affordable, this seminar is a must as your first step! 
Global goes very local here in Oakland—on this non-profit website—where homeowners can link to get the information and resources to help you start greening your home now. Learn practical approaches to small and large greening projects-and find local, state and federal programs that help pay for them!