Evaluating the impact of the Michigan RCS home energy audit program

A comprehensive evaluation was conducted of the Michigan Residential Conservation Service (RCS) home energy audit program. Using a combination of telephone interviews and utility company fuel consumption records, the impact of the RCS program was assessed. Results indicated that participants rated the service very positively and also subsequently performed more energy conservation actions than a randomly selected comparison group, with low and moderate cost actions appearing to be most affected. Convergence among three alternative methods of analyzing fuel consumption impacts indicated a net energy savings of approx. 3% of heating fuel use of audit participants.