Save Energy

Programs and Projects

Home Energy Guide

The Home Energy Guide is a step-by-step resource to help Broomfield residents understand their home energy use, explore beneficial electrification options, and plan, purchase, and optimize electric upgrades, while taking advantage of rebates and incentives to improve comfort, health, and sustainability over time.

Switch Together Broomfield

In Spring 2024, CCOB launched Switch Together Broomfield in partnership with Solar United Neighbors (SUN).

The Switch Together Solar program allows more residents and small businesses to participate and ensures quality solar installation. By leveraging the power of group buying, Switch Solar Broomfield secures the best possible price for your solar installation through a competitive bidding process of solar installers.

The Switch Together Heat Pump program offers residents a group-buy opportunity for high-efficiency electric heat pumps. If you want lower utility bills, improved home comfort and a more sustainable home, this program is a great option.

Home Energy Assessments

Whether you rent or own your home, Xcel Energy's Home Energy Squad® program is the perfect way to begin your journey toward lower energy bills and a more comfortable, more efficient home. For a limited quantity Broomfield residents who are electricity and/or natural gas customers of Xcel Energy can receive a FREE Home Energy Squad® Plus visit (regularly $150)! Energy-saving equipment and services (valued at $600) are provided during a Plus visit at zero cost and no contract obligation to you!

Home Energy Efficiency Webinars

In coordination with Xcel Energy’s Partners in Energy team,  Broomfield hosted free “30 Tips in 30 Minutes” webinars for both homeowners and renters interested in learning how to boost their home’s energy efficiency at little to no cost for the Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer seasons Attendees learned about DIY tips and tricks to save money and energy in every room of the home. The webinar recordings can be found by using the link above.

Partners in Energy

The City and County of Broomfield (CCOB) is currently a participating city in Xcel Energy’s Partners in Energy program. CCOB utilizes Partners in Energy to assist with educating residents and businesses on how to make energy efficiency upgrades and how to take advantage of available incentives.

Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency is an important tool in reducing GHG emissions because it reduces the overall amount of energy needed to power homes and businesses. Energy can include electricity, but it also includes natural gas and other fuels needed to power equipment and appliances like water heaters and stoves. In addition to GHG reduction, energy efficiency has economic, utility, and resilience benefits. 

Energy efficiency can be achieved through behavioral changes and physical equipment upgrades. Behavioral changes include turning off lights in empty rooms and unplugging electronics when not in use (as these items still consume a small amount of energy even when not being used). Physical equipment, such as a programmable thermostat and efficient appliances, can help residents and businesses lower their energy consumption. Rebates and incentives are often available for energy efficient appliances. These types of retrofits may have a higher upfront cost but prove to have the most long-term savings and are often needed as replacements. 

Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is any energy source that can be replenished over a human lifetime. The two most common renewable energy sources in Colorado are wind and solar. Other forms of renewable energy include geothermal, water (hydropower and tidal power). Wind and solar are intermittent, and typically produce electricity about half of the time and cannot be dispatched on command. Energy storage can help mitigate energy demand. Battery storage is a growing form of energy storage. 

Consumers can purchase renewable energy certificates (RECs) to certify that their energy usage is generated by renewable energy sources. This method encourages the development of renewable energy systems due to proven market demand and revenue generated from RECs. The most successful implementation of RECs is a mixture of purchasing RECs and direct investment in clean energy technologies.

Electrification

Electrification refers to the process of replacing technologies that use fossil fuels with those that use electricity as a source of energy instead. The terms “building electrification'', “beneficial electrification,” and “building decarbonization” all describe shifting the source of energy used for heating and cooling in a building from fossil fuels to electricity. 

As the grid becomes “greener” the benefits of electrification capitalize on a cleaner grid. According to Xcel Energy’s Carbon Reduction Plan, Xcel Energy plans to reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2030 (compared to 2005 levels) and provide customers with electricity from 80% renewable sources. The goal of electrification is for all buildings to be powered by solar, wind, and other sources of zero-carbon electricity.