Lorain-Medina Rural Electric Cooperative offers a wide range of products and services to fit your individual needs. Click on the listed links below and browse through our various programs, products and services. If you have questions about any of the products or services that Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers, please contact the member services department by lmrememberservices@fesco-oh.org or by calling 1-800-222-LMRE / 440-647-2133.
Programs and rebates are available only to Lorain-Medina Rural Electric Cooperative members.
Programs
Over the past 20 years, the percentage of homes with air conditioning has nearly doubled for Ohio's electric cooperatives. This means more electricity is needed during summer, which can create times of high energy demand. Electric cooperatives must provide enough electricity for these times. But at what cost?
The Cool Returns program helps control energy demand and future energy prices - but only if you participate.
What is Cool Returns?
This energy management program allows members to help reduce energy use when demand for energy is at its highest, generally on extremely hot and humid summer days.
Brief, periodic cycling of the central air conditioning system can reduce the demand for electricity during this time. And that can help keep your energy costs down.
How does it work?
When you sign up for the Cool Returns program, LMRE installs (at no cost to you) a special switch on your central air conditioner, air source heat pump or ground source heat pump.
This does not control your thermostat or harm your cooling system. It simply cycles the compressor of your cooling unit for brief periods of time. Cool air continues to circulate through your home. Cycling periods are so brief that current program participants rarely experience a change in comfort.
Members will receive a $100 credit on their electric bill for installing a Cool Returns switch. After the switch has been in service for two years, a $6 per month credit will be applied to the member's bill in June, July, August and September.
Enrollment in this program is available by contacting the cooperative at 440-647-2133/1-800-222-LMRE (5673)
Some high efficiency units may not be eligible. Contact the cooperative to find out if your unit is eligible for this program.
EnviroWatts® is a program that gives members the power to make a difference by supporting the production of renewable energy. This program is voluntary for all members.
How does the EnviroWatts program work?
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric is one of several cooperatives in Ohio to offer the EnviroWatts program to its members. Members can choose to support this program by contributing $2 per 100 kWh block of renewable energy credits.
The EnviroWatts program does not deliver renewable power directly to participants' homes; rather, it is generated and delivered directly to the Ohio power grid.
Click here to view the Ohio electric cooperatives renewable energy portfolio.
A geothermal heating and cooling system is the most advanced and most efficient year round residential comfort combination available. Geothermal heat pumps use the natural heat stored underground to provide heating, cooling and even hot water heating in your home.
Just a few feet underground is a free, clean and endless renewable source of heat. The earth works like a solar battery, absorbing nearly half of the sun's energy. The soil underground stays relatively constant at 50-plus degrees year-round.
Rebates and Rate Incentives Offered
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers a rebate and ongoing rate incentive to members who have a geothermal system installed.
- Residential applications only
- $800 rebate for newly-installed geothermal equipped with electric resistance auxiliary heat, $400 for an upgrade
- $400 rebate for geothermal equipped with fossil-fuel auxiliary heat
- 1-cent per kilowatt-hour discount applied after 1,000 kWhs is consumed each month; discount not to exceed $100 in a 12-month period per account (rate effective for geothermal systems installed after January 2013)
- 50 percent line extension cost refund, not to exceed $500, if contribution-in-aid of construction costs (a portion of the cost for line extension construction) are incurred for new service construction
- Must be ENERGY STAR qualified at the time of installation
- Closed Loop: 17.1 EER; 3.6 COP
- Open Loop: 21.1 EER; 4.1 COP
- Maximum two rebates per residential member-consumer home
- Maximum $1,000 total rebates for non-residential member-consumer facility
Equipment Qualifications
- Each geothermal contractor must adhere to all program qualifications for the installation of the geothermal system in order for the member to receive their rebate and rate discount.
- An inspection by the cooperative's energy services advisor must be conducted before the member will be issued their rebate and rate discount.
- The cooperative MUST be notified by the installing contractor when the geothermal system is completed and up and running.
Load Management Control
- Member must participate in the cooperative's Cool Returns air conditioning load control program. Members will receive a one-time $100 credit off their electric bill for the installation of the summer air conditioning load control switch. Then beginning two years after the installation, the member will receive a $6 credit off their electric bill for the months of June, July, August and September. The switch, when activated, will automatically cycle the compressor off for 8 to 12 minutes out of every 30 minutes during summer peak demand times on extremely hot days. The switch is programmed so the compressor will never be off more than 12 minutes continuously each half hour. During these cycles, the air handler continues to circulate air throughout the home.
A heat pump is an ideal energy-efficient heating and cooling system designed to provide year round comfort in your home. In the winter, the heat pump provides warm, comfortable heat. In the summer, it becomes a central air conditioner, automatically extracting heat from inside your home and pumping it outdoors.
A heat pump's outdoor unit contains the compressor and a heat exchanger, called a coil. The indoor unit contains another coil, a fan that blows air through the ductwork, grill and electric heating element. The outdoor and indoor units are connected to copper tubes that move a gas refrigerant between the indoor and outdoor units. This refrigerant has the ability to absorb heat from the air, even at very low temperatures.
In the winter, the outdoor coil extracts heat from the outdoor air. The gas refrigerant carries the heat to the indoor unit. Circulating indoor air picks up the heat and carries it throughout the home.
In the summer, the heat pump simply reverses the flow of refrigerant. The indoor coil extracts heat from the home's air. The gas refrigerant carries the heat to the outdoor unit. The outdoor coil transfers the heat outdoors.
Ductless Heat Pump
A ductless heating and cooling system, or ductless heat pump, is a great solution for inefficient and uncomfortable baseboard, ceiling cable and wall heaters and can reduce the cost of heating a home by up to 50 percent.
Installation is easy and does not require expensive and invasive ductwork. A ductless system can provide comfortable temperatures to a home year-round.
Qualifications
The heat pump or ductless system must meet ENERGY STAR requirements at the time of the installation. Documentation that the equipment is ENERGY STAR rated must be supplied to the cooperative before the equipment is installed. A member must notify the cooperative after the installation is completed and schedule an inspection by the cooperative's energy services advisor.
Rebate
- $400 rebate per condenser for a new whole-home air source heat pump or mini-split ductless heat pump system
- Member must participate in the cooperative's Cool Returns air conditioning load control program. Members will receive a one-time $100 credit off their electric bill for the installation of the summer air conditioning load control switch. Then beginning two years after the installation, the member will receive a $6 credit off their bill for the months of June, July, August and September. The switch, when activated, will automatically cycle the compressor off for 8 to 12 minutes every 30 minutes during summer peak demand.
- Maximum 2 rebates per residential member-consumer home.
- Maximum $1,000 total rebate for non-residential member-consumer facility
- 15.0 SEER or greater
Home energy assessments are the most efficient and cost-effective method to help homeowners determine where their homes are losing energy and money. Contact Lorain-Medina Rural Electric and have one of our energy services advisors conduct a home energy assessment on your home.
An energy assessment may consist of a blower door test and walk-through visual inspection of your home. The blower door is a powerful fan that mounts inside the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air from the home and identifies cracks and openings throughout the home. Eliminating excessive air infiltration leads to lower energy bills and improved comfort.
Following the energy assessment our energy services advisors will provide recommendations for energy-efficiency improvements and educational materials.
Benefits of an energy audit
- Assessments identify potential energy-saving measures in the home and encourages members to take action to correct issues found during the assessment.
- Recommended energy-efficiency improvements can provide substantial savings to members.
Contact the cooperative at 440-647-2133 / 1-800-222-LMRE (5673) to schedule an appointment.
Wind and solar have been the fastest growing renewable energy source over the past decade. With continually evolving technology, many are wondering if wind and solar power could be used as power in their own homes.
Before choosing a renewable energy source for your home or business, you should consider reducing your energy consumption by making your home or business more energy efficient. Reducing your energy consumption will significantly lower your utility bills and reduce the size of the home-based renewable energy system you need.
Renewable energy systems involve a significant initial investment. The length of the payback period depends greatly on the systems that you choose and the resources that you have available to you on your site. There are a number of important questions that should be considered before installing a system on your property dealing with the location, cost of the unit and the interconnection of the equipment to the grid.
More information can be obtained about renewable energy systems contact the cooperative by calling 440-647-2133 / 1-800-222-LMRE, by e-mail or by visiting the helpful links provided below.
Renewable Energy Project Analysis Spreadsheet
Green Energy Ohio
Ohio Rural Electric Cooperatives Renewable Energy Facts
OurSolar Program
Ask Your Energy Advisor - Renewable Energy
Water Heater Rebate Program
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers rebates for the installation of a qualified electric water heater. Rebate amounts vary depending on the type of water heater installation and range from $125 to $500.
Requirements for Rebate
- Must be a minimum 50-gallon tank
- Must install a load control switch on the electric elements
- Electric storage water heater must be greater than 91% EF
- Electric water heater must be greater than 50 gallon
- Heat Pump water heater must be less than 55 gallons
- On-demand water heaters are not applicable
- Maximum 2 rebates per residential member-consumer home
- Maximum $500 total rebate for non-residential member-consumer facility
- Load control switch installation required for 5 years
Rebate Discount
The cooperative will deduct $1.50 each month off your electric bill for installing the load control switch.
Rebates
- New construction, lifetime warranty - $500
- New construction, all other warranties - $250
- Conversion from natural gas, propane or fuel oil water heater, lifetime warranty - $500
- Conversion from natural gas, propane or fuel oil water heater, all other warranties - $250
- Replacement of electric water heater, lifetime warranty - $250
- Replacement of electric water heater, all other warranties -$125
- Heat Pump Water Heater - $400
Rebates
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers a $100 rebate
for new ENERGY STAR rated refrigerators and freezers
and a $25 rebate for ENERGY STAR rated clothes washers.
To receive the rebate:
- Member must show proof of purchase
- Member must show proof of disposal/recycling of the old appliance
- Maximum of two rebates per home
- Units must be Energy Star rated
Eligible Items:
- New ENERGY STAR refrigerators sized 10-30 cubic feet are eligible.
- New ENERGY STAR stand-alone freezers 10-30 cubic feet are eligible.
- The building must be a residence, no commercial or industrial buildings, and must receive their electric from Lorain-Medina Rural Electric.
- A maximum of two ENERGY STAR refrigerator and/or two stand-alone freezer per current program year.
The purpose of this program is to encourage members to upgrade to more efficient appliances and properly dispose of less efficient units.
Did you know...A new ENERGY STAR rated appliance will save up to 20 percent of the cost to operate than the old appliance.
For more information regarding this rebate program please contact the cooperative at 1-800-222-LMRE / 440-647-2133.
Insulation
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers a rebate for insulation of up to $800, but no more than 50 percent of the cost of installation.
To be eligible for the rebate members must meet the following requirements:
- R-16 for exterior walls
- R-38 for attics
- R-10 for exterior basement walls
- R-10 for crawl spaces with 6-mil poly and/or R-6 for ducts
- Installation must be done by a professional insulation contractor
- Requires copy of detailed contractor invoice for reimbursement
Installation must be pre-approved and a final inspection by the energy services advisor is required.
The rebate is for electrically heated residential homes. Not applicable for new construction or room additions. Cannot be combined with non-cooperative utility rebates.
Air Sealing
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers a rebate for air sealing of up to $400, not no more than 50 percent of the cost of installation.
To be eligible for the rebate members must meeting the following ENERGY STAR guidelines:
- Blower door test achieving <4,000 CFM50 for air sealing
- Duct blast test achieving <12 CFM25 per 100 square feet of duct sealing
- Requires copy of detailed contractor invoice for reimbursement
Installation must be pre-approved and a final inspection by the energy services advisor.
A rebate is for electrically heated residential homes. Not applicable for new construction or room additions. Cannot be combined with non-cooperative utility rebates.
Lorain-Medina Rural Electric offers a $25 rebate to members for each digital thermostat installed to control electric resistant baseboards or ceiling cable heat systems. After installation, the thermostats must be inspected by the cooperative's energy services advisor before the rebate can be awarded.
Central air conditioners are eligible for rebates if they meet certain criteria.
To receive the rebate:
- Member must show proof of purchase
- Member must show proof of disposal/recycling of the old appliance (if applicable)
- Central air conditioner must be new
- Energy Star rated
- 16.0 SEER or greater
- Only applicable for residential consumer-members
- Maximum 2 rebates per home
- $150 rebate for central air conditioning unit
Electric vehicle chargers are eligible for $250 in rebates if they meet certain criteria.
To receive the rebate:
- Member must show proof of purchase.
- Must be installed in accordance with requirements and laws.
- Max of two charging port rebates per residential member home.
- Max of six charging port rebates per non-residential commercial building or facility.
- Limited number of rebates available.
- First-come first-served basis as funds are available or program is discontinued.
Click here to see the rebate flyer for more details.