In March 2011, with funds from Federal stimulus dollars for home energy retrofits, the Community Development Department announced registration for our Do-it-Yourself Energy Efficiency Class.This program was  a great opportunity to see our popular earthquake retrofit education program branch out into a new and exciting field of energy efficiency.

Owners of San Leandro homes were offered a free test that showed how their home was performing – energy leakage from ducts, ceilings and walls were pinpointed with state-of-the-art equipment by our own Building staff, all trained as Home Energy Rating System (HERS) raters.  The homeowners who then carried out improvements and achieved a 15% percent improvement on building envelope leakage, as tested by the City of San Leandro Building Division staff, were granted up to $400 upon submittal of an application and required documentation.

Unfortunately, funding for this program ended in August 2012.  If you are a homeowner and interested in making energy efficiency improvements to your home, the Division of Building & Safety invites you to view the following brochures, which may be helpful to your project:

·         Energy Star:  Do-It-Yourself Guide 2008

·         Energy Star:  Seal & Insulate Brochure

·         What you should know before hiring a contractor 


Should you have any questions about Energy Efficiency Improvements, please feel free to contact Keith Weiner, Supervising Building Inspector