How much can you save on energy costs? A new report from Efficiency Vermont tells you.

Burlington Free Press

A new analysis by Efficiency Vermont shows just how much Vermonters spend on energy, and explains how much they can save by replacing inefficient appliances, weatherizing their homes and ditching their gas-powered vehicles for electric ones.

The 2023 Energy Burden Report found that one out of every $10 Vermonters spend goes to energy, with the biggest chunk of that − 45% − spent on transportation. Another 35% goes to heating homes, and the final 20% is spent on electricity.

The average Vermont household spends more than $7,000 on energy each year, which breaks down, according to the percentages, to more than $3,200 annually on transportation fuels, more than $2,400 annually on "thermal energy" to heat homes, and about $1,400 annually for electricity.

A net-zero home in Warren completed in 2020 relies on its energy efficient design for warmth. The building, designed by Waitsfield-based Maclay Architects, received an award for excellence from the American Institute of Architects.

An appendix on page 23 of the report includes a table that runs the numbers on reducing the energy costs for a household of median income, living in a baseline Vermont home. The median income in a household with two earners in Vermont is $86,394, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, while the median price of a home is $310,000, according to the Vermont Housing Finance Agency.

Start with weatherization, and maybe an electric car

The biggest lifetime savings on energy costs comes from "comprehensive weatherization" of your home, according to the report, saving you $11,680 overall at a rate of $467 annually. Switching from a gas-powered vehicle to a new electric vehicle will save you $835 annually, for a total of $6,683 in lifetime savings.

A Nissan Leaf, an electric vehicle, at a charging station on Main Street in Burlington in 2013. Switching to an electric car can save more than $6,500 over the lifetime of the car, compared to a gas-powered car, according to a new report from Efficiency Vermont.

More:Next phase of South Burlington development will be all electric, fossil fuel-free homes

Here are a few more actions you can take and the savings in energy costs that will result:

Replace an oil water heater with a heat pump water heater: $449 in annual savings; $5,832 in lifetime savings
Replace a standard electric water heater with a heat pump water heater: $299 in annual savings; $3,884 in lifetime savings
Replace an inefficient fossil fuel furnace/boiler with a high efficiency fossil fuel furnace/boiler: $190 in annual savings; $4,268 in lifetime savings
Replace a pre-1993 refrigerator with a high efficiency refrigerator: $138 in annual savings; $2,343 in lifetime savings
Install a multi-zone heat pump in a home heated by fossil fuels: $560 in annual savings; $8,402 in lifetime savings

Efficiency Vermont was created by the state of Vermont in 1999 as the nation's first energy efficiency utility, and works with various partners to help Vermont transition to more affordable, low-carbon energy use through education and incentives.

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosi@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.