Augustana Lutheran Church Located in Chicago, Illinois 10,000-sq.ft. facility Annual Cash Savings: $1,200 Annual Energy savings: 13,720 kWh Payback period: 2.5 years Prevented 24,696 pounds of pollution Church Finds Energy Efficiency Profits Jim Schwab, a member of the Augustana Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois, displays an almost religious fervor when it comes to protecting the environment. So when he saw the opportunity to help his church reduce its energy use, he jumped at the chance. He organized a 4-week series for the church's congregation on environmental stewardship. "The first 3 weeks," he said, "we focused on broad philosophical concerns. In the fourth week, we focused on what specifically our church could do." The group discussed ways to help protect the environment, and quickly decided on trying to cut the church's energy use. Let There Be Light The next step was an energy audit. A professional engineer who was a member of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod environmental concerns working group volunteered his services to perform an energy audit on the Augustana Lutheran Church. Based on his recommendations, the church decided to upgrade its lighting. In the church's sanctuary, 45, 75-watt lamps were replaced with 13-watt compact fluorescent lamps. The old lamps had been placed in long black tubes that ran vertically up the sanctuary's walls. They were difficult to replace and burned so hot they melted the plastic in the tubes. To replace the lamps, an installer had to climb a 20-foot ladder. "The new lamps last about 10,000 hours," Schwab said, "compared to the 1,500 hours for the old lamps." Now the church has to undertake the difficult task of replacing the lamps far less often. The new lamps produce the same amount of light, burn cooler, last longer, and consume less energy. In the choir loft, the church replaced 50-watt lamps with highly efficient 13-watt compact fluorescents. "The choir was very pleased," Schwab said. "They could actually read their music now." Compact fluorescent lamps are made in a compact form specifically to replace incandescent lamps in traditional screw-in fixtures. Compact fluorescent technologies have improved recently, and the lamps currently available in the marketplace are brighter and have very good color rendition. Compact fluorescent lamps are as easy to install as incandescent lamps, and most major hardware stores sell them. Outside, the church removed the timers on five high-wattage halogen lamps and replaced them with photo sensors. The old timers did not self-correct for power outages, and often the lamps turned on and off at incorrect times. The new photo sensors turn the lamps on and off according to the amount of sunlight available. The church also replaced the old lamps in its exit signs with new, 8-watt lamps. Since most exit signs are required to remain on 24 hours a day, the savings really added up. "The total cost of the renovation was between $2,700 and $2,800," Schwab said, "but we are saving $1,200 per year on our utility bill. In 2 1/2 years this initial investment was paid back completely." Now that $1,200 per year can be invested in other projects. Spreading The Word When the congregation was deciding on financing options for the lighting upgrade, Schwab came up with an interesting scenario. Schwab, who is also a member of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod's environmental concerns working group, worked with synod and church leaders to set up a $5,000 revolving loan fund to help synod congregations like Augustana make lighting improvements to save energy. "Individual congregations can apply and use that money to pay for projects like the cost of the audit," Schwab said. "This gets them over the hump to do the renovations and then pay the money back to the fund as they realize savings." "In addition," Schwab said, "much of the labor to perform energy-efficiency upgrades can be found in the pews. Most congregations have enough talent to do these upgrades themselves, so you can save on labor costs. One benefit besides helping protect the environment and saving on energy costs is allowing members of the congregation to donate their expertise and labor. They can actively work for a good cause," Schwab said. Good Neighbors Like good neighbors, Schwab and the environmental concerns working group are showing other regional churches how they too can limit the pollution caused by the generation of electricity while saving on energy costs and freeing up money for church projects. Schwab's enlightened passion for the environment has helped to improve both lighting and financial conditions for local churches, while at the same time helping to conserve energy. "The total cost of the renovation was approximately $3,000, but we are saving $1,200 per year in our utility bill. In 2 1/2 years this initial investment was paid back completely." Jim Schwab Member Augustana Lutheran Church For more information about ENERGY STAR Congregations call toll-free 1-888-STAR YES