These sheriffs hunt, eliminate energy wasters in homes
0 Comments | Palm Beach Post, Aug 30, 2010 | by SUSAN SALISBURY
When Salvatore Cavalieri arrives at a client’s house, he’s armed with a toolbox full of energy-saving devices he jokingly calls “toys.”
But as the self-styled “chief energy detective” of Energy Sheriffs, a company he founded eight months ago, the Wellington resident is serious about the business of saving people money on their electric and water bills. The leak-detecting thermal gun, the latest smart power strips and 4-watt LED bulbs are a few of the items the company uses or installs.
Cavalieri or one of his five employees don’t just detect the problems, which range from air leaks and wasted electricity to energy-inefficient lighting and thermostats that don’t work. They install items to improve energy efficiency during the visit.
The audit is free, and if people decide to have Energy Sheriffs make the changes, the typical fee for an average house is $200 to $300. If clients do not achieve at least 25 percent energy savings within three months, they receive a 100 percent refund, Cavalieri said.
“We inspect the property, then on the spot give them a solution that is affordable. Most other companies diagnose, but they don’t do the actual work,” Cavalieri said. “We are the first affordable stop people can go to before they spend big money, such as installing solar stuff.”
Cavalieri, 40, started Energy Sheriffs after the slowdown in the construction industry.
He had been CEO and president of Mijas Investment, a construction development and consulting company.
“I started hearing a lot of people complaining about their electric bill. Then I said to myself, ‘There’s got to be a better way to do it,’” Cavalieri said.
He had earned an MBA from Nova Southeastern University, and took courses in energy efficiency at the Florida Solar Energy Center in Cocoa and elsewhere.
He spread the word through friends, business associates and family, with those people becoming his first clients.
Steve McGill, a Pembroke Pines homeowner, said his average electric bill was $480. Energy Sheriffs made changes such as installing compact fluorescent light bulbs, putting the swimming pool pump on a timer that cut it from running 10 hours a day to four, installing new shower heads and more.
McGill’s electric bill dropped to $250 and his water bill decreased from around $105 a month to $75.
“It’s amazing what he finds. It’s like a menu. You pick what you want to do,” McGill said
energy saving light bulbs