For years, some staffers at the Elkins Public Library in Canterbury wore hats and gloves during the winter months to keep warm because the building was largely uninsulated and felt so chilly, but they plan to put away their outdoor gear this season following a recently completed weatherization project that will improve heating and reduce energy usage.
Unitil, a provider of electricity and natural gas to customers in New England, recently provided a $7,210 energy efficiency incentive to the town to help offset the cost of improvements that included the addition of insulation throughout the building, interior air sealing of a rear door and gaps around the trim of 34 windows, and the repair of holes in the ceiling.
The upgrades to the library at 9 Center Road were designed to reduce heat loss in the colder months and keep the building cooler during the summer, resulting in a more comfortable building year-round and lower energy demand.
"This was a much-needed project that will make Canterbury’s library energy efficient and noticeably more comfortable for the employees and patrons who utilize this vital community building,” Unitil External Affairs Director Alec O’Meara said. “These improvements will not only alleviate concerns about the heat loss during colder weather, but they should also lead to meaningful energy savings for the town. Energy efficiency incentives can provide significant financial benefit for projects like this and we’re pleased to have been able to offer the support the town needed to bring these upgrades to fruition.”
Library Director Rachel Baker said the energy efficiency incentive provided a significant savings for the town as the total project cost nearly $20,000. Unitil was able to offer the incentive through NHSaves – a collaboration of New Hampshire’s electric and natural gas utilities working together to provide customers with information, incentives, and support designed to save energy, reduce costs, and protect the environment statewide.
An energy audit was performed on the library in 2021 that noted the lack of insulation in the building, which was originally constructed in the early 1960s to serve as a fire station and highway garage. It was never meant to serve as a library, but in 2004 the building was renovated and became the new home for the Elkins Public Library during a time when several town buildings were refurbished and built.
Baker recalled many years of experiencing the bone-chilling conditions that prompted the town to make the building more energy efficient.
“I bought my team sweaters. We were wearing hats and fingerless gloves, and using space heaters. It was incredibly cold in here,” she said. “The minute they finished the work it sounded different, and it certainly felt different. This winter we’re really going to see a considerable difference.”
The improvements are expected to lower the library’s annual energy usage by an estimated 1,447 therms, which is equivalent to approximately 1,515 gallons of propane – the building’s current heat source. The reduction could lead to an estimated energy bill savings of $4,500 a year.
The library is also exploring options for replacing its heating system with a geothermal system or heat pumps, which are high-efficiency heating and cooling systems that use electricity to draw heat energy out of the environment to heat a building.
The weatherization work was done by Northeast Air Sealing of Concord.
For more information on energy efficiency incentives available through NHSaves, visit nhsaves.com/businesses-towns.
