ALEXANDRIA, Va. – More than 100 volunteers gathered Saturday to help nearly 100 low-income families, veterans and the elderly get their homes ready for the winter.

Rebuilding Together Alexandria and Washington Gas teamed up for Energize Alexandria at the Arlandria Chirilagua Housing Cooperative just off Mount Vernon Avenue.

“One-day blitz winterization, and they’ll be saving on their utility bills tomorrow,” says Katherine Medina, Executive Director of Rebuilding Together Alexandria.

Volunteers were replacing incandescent light bulbs with CFLs, adding weather stripping around doors and windows, installing low-flow aerators, insulation and caulking air gaps.

“Not only will they be keeping the warm air during the winter, they’ll be keeping the cool air in during the summer,” says Medina.

She adds that these are small things that almost any home owner can do. Those small things can add, cutting utility bills by up to 30 percent.

“It doesn’t take a whole lot of skill, but the savings are great,” she says.

Medina says the volunteers help get things done quickly and helps people who need to spend most of their salary on food and health care.

WTOP’s Max Smith contributed to this report. Follow WTOP on Twitter.

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