CHEYENNE, Wyo. – A sophisticated weatherization project at a Cheyenne home aimed at improving the building’s energy efficiency and reducing the homeowner’s winter heating bills got a visit from Gov. Dave
Freudenthal today. Local utility Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power provided the service to homeowner Betty Walters, contracting with Advanced Air Systems, Inc., a company that specializes in home energy audits.

Josh Story of Advanced Air Systems gave the Governor a tour of the residence and demonstrated how the company detects leaks inside the depressurized home using small puffs of smoke.

“It’s really impressive to see how much the air moves inside the house,” the Governor said. “It’s just not something you think about, and it’s amazing to see the air leaks coming in from outlets
and gaps in the door seals.”

Following the results of the audit, volunteers from Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power and the Wyoming Public Service Commission helped perform the work needed to make efficiency improvements on the house.

“Energy prices aren’t expected to be as high as we had feared earlier this year, but they will go up over time,” Freudenthal said. “I commend the volunteers from Cheyenne Light and the Public Service Commission for their work, and encourage all Wyoming residents to weatherize now before the cold weather sets in.”

The Governor said the audit was less intrusive than he had expected. The auditors used state-of-the-art instruments to detect inefficiencies in the home, rather than taking apart walls or opening up holes in order
to inspect the building.

Mark Stege, vice president of operations for Cheyenne Light, said he appreciated the Governor’s attention to the company’s third and final weatherization project this month.

“Gov. Freudenthal’s visit shows an obvious commitment by the state to encourage residents to reduce their energy consumption and costs by making their homes more energy efficient,” Stege said. “We are pleased to have the Governor visit our final weatherization project.”

During the energy audit today, homeowner Betty Walters sat in her living room and watched workers bustling in and out of her home.

Her son, Michael, said he appreciated the work being done on his mother’s house.

“It makes me feel good knowing that she’s going to be warmer this winter,” he said. “I won’t be worrying about her being cold in her home in order to save on her heating bill.”

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