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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

Cash for Caulkers


Keeping your home warm, toasty, energy-efficient, cost-effective ways to heat the house, caulking windows, humidifiers, thermal underwear, layers of clothing, hats, socks, blankets, quilts, portable heaters, winter project... Staff illustration by Bridget Sawicki.
 (Staff illustration by Bridget Sawicki / The Spokesman-Review)
Keeping your home warm, toasty, energy-efficient, cost-effective ways to heat the house, caulking windows, humidifiers, thermal underwear, layers of clothing, hats, socks, blankets, quilts, portable heaters, winter project... Staff illustration by Bridget Sawicki. (Staff illustration by Bridget Sawicki / The Spokesman-Review)

Keeping your home warm, toasty, energy-efficient, cost-effective ways to heat the house, caulking windows...Staff illustration by Bridget Sawicki

From the federal stimulus to 'cash for caulkers,' home weatherization has never been hotter. But can it really save the environment and the economy?

Drafty doors, floors, walls and windows are slowly letting air out of the U.S. economy, as consumers pay rising prices to wrangle warmth that freely escapes and invades their homes. This HVAC crisis has been simmering for decades, but as Congress now struggles to cut U.S. energy costs, carbon emissions and unemployment all at once, the fight against outdoor climate change is increasingly focusing on indoor climate control.

President Obama made that clear earlier this month when he proposed his $6 billion Home Star program, aka "cash for caulkers," the latest in a string of federal efforts to both shrink the country's carbon footprint and revive its economy. Read more. Russ McLendon, Mother Nature Network

What steps have you taken to make your home more energy efficient?



Huckleberries Online

D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.