'Green' Training Offered for Home Energy Efficiency

Building professionals, architects, engineers and contractors can benefit from a series of residential energy education classes being offered starting in June.

The classes will provide local building industry professionals with the latest building science for cost-effective energy, and water retrofit home remodeling strategies to help homeowners save money. Training is also available to prepare participants to become a certified energy rater in Florida.

Upcoming classes accepting registration include:

Remodel Green and Profit from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 14, Sarasota County Extension Green Building Conference Room, Twin Lakes Park, 6700 Clark Road, Sarasota. This class for building professionals will teach cost-effective measures for determining energy- and water-efficient retrofits when remodeling. Using solar energy and building weatherization techniques for efficiency savings also will be discussed. The program offers eight hours of continuing education.

"Remodeling an existing home requires an understanding of the relationship between building science, indoor environmental quality and cost effectiveness of the selected remodeling measures to achieve energy and water efficiencies," said Craig Miller, the class instructor from the University of Florida's Program for Resource Efficient Communities. "This workshop will provide the tools to evaluate which measures can provide the most cost-effective means to reduce energy and water use and improve the health and safety of the building occupants."

Residential Energy Rater classes in June, September and December. The Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) provides the training and testing necessary to prepare participants to become certified residential energy raters in Florida. Sarasota County is offering reduced class registration fees to Sarasota County residents to attend energy rater training at FSEC in Cocoa, Florida.

For more information, call the Sarasota County Call Center at 941-861-5000.