NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The Utilities Commission has introduced new electric rebates for fiscal 2011, marking the fourth consecutive year the utility has offered electric rebates.
“It’s good to see that available again to our customers, to be able to have that energy efficiency for them and the opportunity to be able to help them in their homes,” Utilities Commission Chairman Walter Allen said.
New this year, the commission has included a rebate for the installation of window solar screens for residential electric customers. The rebate is a credit of $2 per square foot of eligible windows (those facing west, south and east), up to $375, on the customer’s utility account.
The commission also decided at its Monday meeting to include a rebate for window solar screens this year because of their relatively low cost and numerous benefits, Public Information Manager Ellen Fisher said. “Our energy auditor Stan DiBello has been recommending solar screens for years. It only makes sense to include them in our rebate program.”
Solar screens can block up to 90 percent of the sun's heat coming through windows.
"Unlike interior window treatments like drapes and blinds that block the sun's heat after it has entered the home, solar screens absorb and disperse the sun's heat and glare before it even reaches the window," Fisher said. "Solar screens can be installed on the outside of almost any window, sometimes using the frames of existing insect screens."
Unlike some other window treatments, solar screens work whether the windows are open or closed and can be removed in winter to let the sun shine in. If kept in place during the winter, the screen's fabric has the advantage of reducing wind chill across the window's surface, thereby reducing heat loss. Additional benefits include reduced fading of carpets, fabrics and other materials and insect protection when the windows are open.
The commission's window solar screen rebate is in addition to two other residential electric rebates for added insulation and duct leak repair, Fisher said.
The municipal utility also has a commercial rebate for the installation of LED EXIT signs. All rebate forms and regulations are available online at www.ucnsb.org.
FAST FACTS
- The Utilities Commission, City of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, is one of Florida’s 34 municipal electric utilities.
- The Utility also provides water, wastewater, reuse and internet service to approximately 25,000 customers in the greater New Smyrna Beach area.
- The Utilities Commission is a non-taxing, political subdivision of the State of Florida and is funded solely through utility revenues.