PRESS RELEASE, April, 2017: The newly founded Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation Energy LLC just completed thermo-imaging 100,000 single family homes in the Pioneer Valley.
If you have noticed a strange vehicle with a camera on the roof driving slowly through the streets in the middle of the night, it wasn’t an invasion of some kind! The car, loaded with high-tech imaging devices, was measuring how much heat is being lost from the envelopes of our building stock. This kind of thermal imaging is a non-invasive way that respects privacy and reveals the spots where a home allows heat (or, in the summer, cool air) to escape.
This data will now be analyzed by sophisticated software developed at MIT. Starting in May, the foundation will collaborate with 10 valley towns to determine the best way to deliver 25000 reports to those homeowners, who have the greatest potential for energy savings. Along with a detailed thermal image of their home, they will receive information about financial incentives they are eligible for and contractors that can help them create a more comfortable, healthy and valuable home.
Wasting energy and rising utility bills are a growing concern for more and more people, as well as the Commonwealth as a whole. Harold Grinspoon, who is well known for his philanthropic work with schools, young entrepreneurs, and farmers in the area, wanted to help make a difference. He learned about a newly developed thermal imaging technology that can identify energy leaks very quickly and cost-effectively and decided to support the energy efficiency efforts in the valley’s towns.
“Energy Efficiency is a win-win-win proposition. It has no downsides. We have been unearthing fossil fuels and transporting them long distances only to waste too much of them in our homes unnecessarily. Thermal imaging is one way that we can target each home’s best spots for improvements. We want to educate and inspire people to use energy more efficiently, and help them find resources to make the necessary changes. Every month, through our utility bills, each of us pays into a fund that supports Massachusetts’ homeowners in improving their homes. So homeowners can claim incentives from that fund, stop losing money and precious energy, all while making their home more comfortable, healthy and valuable for their families. Last but not least, the earth benefits too.”
– Harold Grinspoon