On October 19, 2022

Time to button up your home

With heating fuel prices at their highest level in years and winter just around the corner, Button Up Vermont is getting the word out: The best time to weatherize your home is right now.

The annual Button Up Vermont campaign, supported by a partnership of energy services providers and clean energy champions, works each fall to raise awareness of the need to weatherize and helps connect Vermonters with tools and resources to save. From tips on air sealing and insulation to weighing the benefits of upgrades like energy efficient heat pumps, Button Up Vermont works to encourage Vermonters to make their homes more comfortable and affordable in winter.

“Buttoning up your home is one of the best ways to make your family more comfortable this winter, while lowering heating bills in a time of high fuel prices,” said Peter Walke, Managing Director of Efficiency Vermont.

“Weatherization investments you make now will help you be more resilient for years to come, as climate change brings more volatile weather, and likely volatile fossil fuel prices as well.”

Signs that you need to button up

If your home is losing heat, it’s likely you’ve noticed one or more of these common problems:

  • Drafts. If cool air leaks in while your heat is on, you can be sure that energy is being wasted.
  • Snow melt. Snow melting in some areas of your roof and not others can indicate that your attic is not properly sealed and insulated.
  • Icicles. They may look pretty, but icicles often indicate that heat is escaping through your roof.
  • Mold. Lack of insulation can cause moisture to rise and get trapped in the attic.

What you can do

Stopping heat loss increases comfort and saves money. Here’s what you can do:

  • Attend an event to learn about buttoning up.
  • Sign up for a free Virtual Home Energy Visit with an Efficiency Vermont expert.
  • VGS customers with high energy use may also qualify for a complementary energy audit.
  • Complete DIY projects to stop drafts and get $100 back.
  • Find a qualified contractor through Efficiency Vermont’s Efficiency Excellence Network.
  • Install an efficient heat pump system to save on fossil fuel, with discounts from your local utility.
  • Get started on a comprehensive weatherization project to air seal and insulate your home.

Efficiency Vermont and VGS are offering incentives to cover 75% off project costs — up to $5,000 — to offset the cost of a comprehensive weatherization project. Combined with 0% financing for qualified households, the monthly cost for many households could be as little as $50. DIY incentives are also available to Vermonters who aren’t ready to take on a comprehensive project but want to roll up their sleeves and make small improvements to increase comfort this winter.

Income-eligible families may also qualify for free whole-home weatherization service, through the state’s Weatherization Assistance Program.

Do you want to submit feedback to the editor?

Send Us An Email!

Related Posts

Two members, including chair, resign from the Commission on the Future of Public Education in Vermont

June 25, 2025
By Corey McDonald/VTDigger Two members of the Commission on the Future of Public Education in Vermont, including the commission’s chair, announced last week they would be resigning, saying they no longer believed their efforts would make any impact. Meagan Roy, the chair of the commission, and Nicole Mace, the former representative of the Vermont School Boards…

Vt plastic bag use dropped 91% following ban, researchers find

June 25, 2025
In the midst of 2020 Covid measures, another change took place in Vermont: A law went into effect banning businesses from offering plastic bags to customers, with paper bags only available for a fee. A 2023 analysis of a survey of hundreds of Vermonters found the law appeared to have worked. Plastic bag use in…

A Roadmap

June 25, 2025
The Vermont Legislature adjourned Monday evening, June 16, following the passage of H.454, the education reform plan. I call it a roadmap as the legislation lays out a list of changes that will take place over the next few years. And as various studies and reports come back in, there will also likely be adjustments,…

Vermont to get over $21 million in nationwide settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sacklers

June 25, 2025
Attorney General Charity Clark announced June 16 that all 55 attorneys general, representing all eligible states and U.S. territories, have agreed to sign on to a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family. This settlement was reached after the previous settlement was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court. It resolves…