Posts Tagged ‘home energy audit’

How a Home Energy Audit Can Benefit You

March 25th, 2011

Getting a home energy audit done on your home lets you know where you stand in the scheme of conservation and your immediate impact on our environment. How else are you going to know if your windows leak like a sieve or if you have enough insulation to maximize your heating efficiency?

Home energy audits take a scientific approach to see how your home holds heat and air (or not). Energy audit professionals will measure your home’s air loss using a vacuum to pressurize your home and take measurements. This will tell them where you are losing most of your air in your home. This means they can tell you where your heating and cooling dollars are going and if they are efficient or not.

Are my windows efficient or do they need to be replaced?

Your home’s age is a primary factor in how efficient your windows are at keeping conditioned air in your home. Even windows that were made 35 years ago are less efficient than newer ones because the technology wasn’t available yet. This means your windows could be leaking air around the frame, panes and cracks. Those are dollars literally going out the windows! Your home audit specialist will be able to help you determine whether or not installing replacement windows makes sense for your home.

Does my home have enough insulation?

When homes are built, they start as one large building and are carved out by contractors who add electrical work, piping, dry wall and other elements to it. This creates voids or spaces throughout the entire home through which air flows continuously. The voids can be filled with appropriate R-value insulation to combat this air flow problem. If your house seems to quickly lose the heated and cooled air that gets pumped in, there may not be enough insulation in your house.

Unlike today, if your home was built more than 30 years ago, oil was dirt cheap. This meant that home builders didn’t need to think about insulation much because they knew that people would just turn up the thermostat to get their home to a comfortable temperature.

Plus, as building codes focus more on energy efficiency, the building regulations call for more insulation (or R-value which stands for “resistance to heat”) than in the past. The result is millions of homes with insufficient insulation to keep hot and cold air inside the home from going outside. This means you could be paying hundreds of extra dollars a year because your home builder didn’t need to put enough insulation in your home back then!

Efficient HVAC equipment

Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) makes each building comfortable to be in. The heaters, furnaces, water heaters and air conditioners do the work when we tell the thermometer how hot or cold we want a room to be. To get the maximum benefit from these tools, it’s important to make sure the equipment runs as efficiently as possible. A responsible HVAC technician will make sure equipment is set up right and efficiently when it is installed. If your furnace, air conditioner or heater is really old, the best alternative may be to replace it. Professionals can also make modifications and upgrades to older equipment to be sure you get the maximum out of each machine. This will increase the efficiency of your home and save you money each year to come.

These are just a few quick, ways a home energy audit can benefit you and your wallet. You can have a home energy audit done on your home. It’s quick and easy to do.

Why Professional Contractors Love Do it Yourself Home Energy Audits

March 10th, 2011

When I first released my Professional Home Energy Audit kit, I was expecting a backlash from the energy companies auditing services, as well as from professional contractors. After all, the main point of the kit is to teach homeowners how to do their own energy audits independently of the energy company, or contractor. Surely, this cuts into business and leads to less money.

And in troubling economic times, any loss of money is certainly not a very good omen.

But I recently found out that local contractors are indeed embracing the idea more, citing that it actually isn’t the drag on profits I was initially thinking.

Here’s whats happening – as more and more homeowners are doing their own energy audits, and thus reducing energy bills on their own, they are running across more serious energy repairs that are needed that they simply can not do on their own. Thus, they call the contracting companies to give estimates on repairs.

One contractor told me, “If more people did energy audits on their own, we would surely receive more calls about window and door replacement.”

The fact is many homeowners are reluctant to call on a professional home energy auditor for several reasons. First, they do not want a stranger coming into their home and doing an inspection. Second, there’s the price tag. Most companies charge a few hundred dollars for this service, in addition to the cost of any repairs. Money clearly talks. So these people who may need the repairs are hesitant to call on any contractor for the repairs.

Doing an energy audit at home calms the homeowner, and lets them see the need for such repairs. The same contractor, who wished to remain anonymous, went on to say, “Its one thing to tell someone they need an expensive new window or insulation or whatever, and even after you present them with proof they are still wary. But if they see, or experience the need first hand, and discover it themselves, then my job becomes ten times easier.”

“The problem is still that many people don’t know how to properly do an energy audit. If an audit is done correctly, it will find most of the energy problems in their house. If done wrong, or if it is rushed or inaccurate, they may be fooled into thinking everything is fine – when it isn’t.”

The Professional Home Energy Kit addresses that problem head on, giving homeowners the opportunity to do their own, professional quality energy audit.

Home Energy Efficiency Through Water Conservation

March 5th, 2011

Maybe the effects of water conservation hadn’t exactly influenced you until you lived on your own, away from the parents and you had to pay for your hot water. Perhaps the magnitude of saving water was a bit diluted until you had children. Regardless of when or how, water conservation has become a pretty high priority for most homeowners. Here are some great ways to use the least amount of water for those everyday tasks, without limiting your home’s livability and enjoyment.

Before making any huge investments or repairs, schedule a home energy audit. It’s one of the most efficient ways to make the changes that will work and last. ENERGY STAR has provided a great list of the top ways to save on water usage. Let’s investigate how a Connecticut home energy audit could lead to even greater savings and more efficient water conservation.

Repair Leaks

Do you remember the frustration that arose whenever your air mattress deflated in the middle of the night, or your snow tube was sounding and looking like a whoopee cushion when you were all decked-out and ready to go sledding?

Leaks are no fun to deal with; in fact they’re pretty upsetting. Fortunately for the kids, or adults young at heart, the above scenarios are easily fixed with some patches or a replacement, but when an appliance leaks it’s a far bigger problem.

You could check your toilets, faucets, sprinklers, clothes washers, dish washers, and sprinkler systems for leaks– but then what?

If you had a home energy audit then an expert will be able to conduct tests to establish what areas of your home are wasting energy and costing you money. Then some experts, who have the knowledge, experience, and resources, will actually make the repairs.

Buy the Right Toilet

Toilets don’t have to be leaking to be costing you tons of money. A toilet could be working just fine and be gobbling tons of energy. We all know that looks can be deceiving. By having an energy expert examine your CT home, he/she will take each inspection far deeper than we might.

Did you know that your toilet from the 90s should be replaced by a new energy efficient toilet? ENERGY STAR estimates that a family of four could save 14,000 to 25,000 gallons of water each year!

Use Energy Efficient Clothes Washers/ Dish Washers

No one likes a water hog! If your clothes washer is from the 90s or before, then it’s time for an energy appliance update. Most of the washers recommended by ENERGY STAR actually use four times less energy than those manufactured before or during the 90s, and can save you $135 a year on energy costs. These energy efficient clothes washers save families 1/3 on the pertinent energy costs and 1/2 on their water costs. This water savings produces enough money to pay for a matching dryer or fill three swimming pools!

As for the dishwashing hog, with an energy efficient dishwasher you can save enough water each week to do three extra loads of laundry by simply using an energy efficient washer to replace your dishwasher if its 11 years old or older. You’ll also save about $40 each year just because of this change!

Prepare the Most Efficient Landscape & Maintenance

By choosing plants for your landscape that coincide with Connecticut’s climate, you’re making one of the wisest water conservation decisions available! This will allow for plants to grow in their “natural” conditions, so you don’t have to worry about using large amounts of excess water to maintain the plants.

You can also check your watering system to make sure it doesn’t water after rain has fallen or if the soil is still moist.

Selling Your Home For a Profit? Think Home Energy!

February 1st, 2011

The housing market is packed full with a lot of homes right now. It’s still a buyers market. The big, small, ready to move in and fixer uppers, and all within your price range as a home buyer. So how do you decide which one to choose as your next home, as a buyer? And if you are a seller, how should you make your home more attractive to potential buyers that your house is selected as the next home of the buyer, among a multitude of other options?

Of course, there are the traditional methods of leaving all the lights on, and cleaning up the site, remove clutter, reduce the furniture count, etc. But from an energy perspective, how do you really make your home more attractive? One of the bonus guides in the professional version of the Home Energy Audit Kit is the Energy Homebuyer checklist, which outlines several important areas of a house to look at in terms of energy consumption and energy loss. As a seller, your job is to ensure that all elements of this list are available for any potential buyer to see. In other words, you should use the list too!

One of the easy things you can do is to highlight the effectiveness or energy efficiency of your appliances, or equipment left at home after you move. The big ones most look for are the furnace, hot water heater and air conditioning units (central air), in addition to fridges and stoves/ovens. Everyone of these has a number of energy labels on them (at least in North America) that shows how much energy the unit uses, and compares it with the most efficient and least efficient model tested in a government laboratory.

Do not worry if the unit isn’t a high efficiency (HE) unit, or if not at the top of the measurement scale. While it is important to note, what most people do not understand about these stickers is that it all depends on the buyer’s usage. The new owners of this house will not use the device in the same way the seller does. So their costs are different.

Also, make it a point to respond to any energy information when asked. The most common question is “What is the average electricity bill in January? Or July?”. Or perhaps they will ask for the heating bill, or natural gas bill. Here’s a nifty trick. When people ask for an average or an example of the bill, tell them the budget payment, if known…and be sure to mention the payment type as being budget. A budget payment is the weighted average cost of energy in a period of usually 6-10 months. Most people understand this. It has the added advantage of the smoothing out the peaks and valleys of your usage and costs, so to speak, so you do not have to reveal your electric payment one month was $300 – because when averaged out, you only really paid $126 per month. And what sounds better than a buyer with a limited budget? An electricity bill of $ 300 or a constant, budget-friendly cost of $ 126?

Do not volunteer this information unless asked directly, or if there are appliances that can be a concern for potential buyers. For example, most people are very wary of old furnaces and air conditioners, but what almost no one notices is the insulation is more important than a new HE (high efficiency) oven, furnace, or unit in most cases. However, buyers can not be sold on this house, because the oven, furnace or other appliance is old. You may be able to ease their minds by telling them that budget heat or natural gas payment is average, and give them the budget amount.

There are, of course, many many many more areas of opportunity to help sell your home for more and actually make a profit for yourself. I recommend you check the Energy homebuyer checklist as part of the Professional Home Energy Audit Kit for more tips and of course, follow them!

Let’s Talk Home Energy Savings & The Benefits of Renewable Resources

January 30th, 2011

Sparks, flashes and dollar signs: they’re in an electrician’s mind, and within your home’s walls. Imagine energy that originates from nature. Imagine the benefit of having sunlight — and geothermal heat — within your very own home.

That’s exactly what you can have after a local Montana energy expert has performed a home energy audit on your home. Have you heard of renewable resources?

These resources are provided by nature and are renewed or replenished as often as they’re being used. It’s a circular process of give and take. It’s reciprocal. It’s natural. It can save you money.

Let’s focus on the benefit of one specific option available for utilizing renewable energy resources in your home.

Geothermal Heat Pumps

If your home struggles to find a comfortable temperature during any season, and you’ve grown weary paying for expensive heating and cooling solutions, a geothermal heat pump may be the answer. A geothermal heat pump will remove the heat from your home in the summer and dispense it into the earth — while transferring the cool air from the ground into your home in the summer.

By purchasing a geothermal heat pump, you will finally find comfort in your home throughout the year. Whether it’s an extremely hot west coast summer or a subzero Montana winter, a geothermal heat pump never fails to meet a homeowner’s requirement.

While regular heat pumps utilize the outside air for its heat consumption, a geothermal heat pump depends upon a much more stable heat source — the earth.

How is the earth’s temperature more stable than the air?

However, if you were to dig about a shallow hole, then the temperature varies between 45 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit over the course of the year. However, if you were to dig more deeply into the earth, you’d discover that at this depth, the earth’s temperature remains consistent year-round.

Even at the depth of six feet below the surface, the temperature is far more temperate and cooler than many of the temperatures homeowner’s experience across the United States.

To better understand this principle, think of a basement, or even a cave. If you’ve ever been in a basement before, you most likely remember the distinct difference in temperature from the moment you opened the door to the basement. Or perhaps you’ve visited a local cave exhibit and found the environment quite cool and comfortable. The common link is that both are below the surface, impenetrable to the outside air.

However, while the underground temperatures are cooler than summer air, the underground temperatures are also warmer than winter air. Convenient, huh? Sounds vaguely like the conditions homeowners are seeking yet never finding for their own home.

Thus, we have the underlying point behind the benevolence of a geothermal heat pump!

Geothermal heat pumps:

• use 70% renewable energy from the ground
• lower your home energy costs by 30-40%
• require little to no maintenance
• are recommended by more than 95% of users

If you have been waiting for the “but” statement, or the “catch”, then you’ll have to keep on waiting. There are no real downsides to purchasing a geothermal pump because the energy being used is renewable and cost effective. Although a geothermal heat pump could potentially have a high installation fee, it does more than pays for itself, which no other heat pump can claim.

How Your Home Benefits From a Home Energy Audit

January 25th, 2011

Why go through an audit? Are multiple fixes really necessary? Yes, and you can’t imagine your savings until you see the numbers a month later!

Do you know what happens to a body when its immune system no longer detects viruses, bacteria, and other foreign antigens? It gets sick, and in severe cases, it dies.

What does this have to do with your home and saving money on your next energy bill? Well, every home needs an immune system, or something that does the job that the immune system does for our bodies. Your house needs a home energy audit!

Your Home is a System!

One thing leads to another. That’s how everything seems to work. There’s certainly no exception when your home’s experiencing some issues with energy efficiency.

If you thought that a home energy contractor would be able to simply upgrade your windows and free your home of all energy illness, you’d be sadly mistaken. Our homes are similar to our bodies — most things are connected each other.

When one system within your home is struggling, another system will quickly pick up the slack. This means that it expels an amount of energy far surpassing the norm.

Creating a Healthy, Energy Efficient Home

Your home energy problems may not be fixed in a single shot. What’s great about an energy audit is that it will identify any problem areas and endeavor to find an immediate remedy.

A leak that’s found in your home’s duct system will force your heating and cooling systems to overwork. In doing so, energy and money are wasted.

According to some energy experts, there are about twelve crucial areas in a home that can cost a homeowner a lot of money if conditions are not up to par.

Let’s take a quick look at seven of these heavy hitters.

Air Sealing: Your pocket will feel heavy resistance when your home has not been appropriately sealed. Through a home energy audit your energy professional will inspect your home’s sealing efficiency, suggest ways to fill in the cracks and holes, and make any other necessary repairs. Remember, electricians and plumbers can’t help but leave some openings, which happen to cost you more money than you’d expect.

Insulation: If the insulation in your home does not meet the R-value recommended for your location, you could stand to save hundreds of dollars a year with an inexpensive upgrade.

Radiant Barrier: Your attic could be costing you a lot of money. Similar to your car on a hot summer day, your attic can heat up pretty fast. Once your attic heats up, you can expect the temperature in the rest of your home to be similarly rising. Just as there are ways to counter the heat in your car, your home energy expert can explain ways to regulate your attic’s temperature.

Ductwork: Many homes have ductwork that distributes conditioned air throughout your home. In some cases, these ducts leak, and the conditioned air escapes before it’s dispersed through your home. This is quite a problem, and only a certified energy consultant can help.

HVAC: An HVAC system can easily be insufficient when dirt clogs the system. However, by scheduling two cleanings each year, your energy expert can keep your HVAC system up to speed.

Water Heater: A home’s water heater can take up a lot of space and can fool you into thinking it’s doing a great job when it’s far behind industry standards. Your home energy audit will show your water heater’s performance and which water heater is best for your home.

Lighting: The moment a light switch is turned on, you can begin to waste plenty of money. Although there are various kinds of lights out on the market, an energy professional can provide energy saving tips and point out the best lights for each individual need.

Samantha Walton currently works as a web content writer for home improvement sites. She’s a college graduate with a B.A. in communication and a concentration in public relations. She’s aspiring to one day further her education with a seminary degree. Her experience ranges from internships in marketing and public relations, content writing for local television broadcasts, to writing and editing newsletters, fliers, and other content for her local church.

How to Do a Basic Home Energy Audit

January 15th, 2011

An energy audit, when done correctly, is the best way to consistently save money on your bills, no matter how big or small your house is, or where you live. In fact, when it is done correctly, it will save you money. This is because audits answer the big question that is often times very difficult to answer – how does my home use energy?

So, without further adieu, let me present you with a very simple 3 step inspection. All you need is a pen and several pieces of paper.

Draw a line the paper into three columns, lengthwise. In the first column, write “appliance”, in the second, “daily usage”, and in third write “power rating”.

You’re all ready. Now, go to each room, one by one.

1. In the room, write down everything that uses energy. Anything that is plugged into the wall should be noted. Anything that uses propane or natural gas should be noted. Write down the appliance name in the appliance column, and the average time, in hours, the appliance is used daily. Then with each appliance, write the rating (in watts or btu) in the third column.

PRO TIP: Start with the obvious, light bulbs and traditional appliances, then move on to all your other appliances or devices. Include appliances or electronics that are usually plugged in, but may not be at the moment.

PRO TIP: You can find the power rating or consumption by looking at the tag found underneath or near the power cord of appliances. If you can’t find the rating, get the model number and look it up online.

Repeat for every room of the house.

2. Sit down with your completed audit sheets, and pour over the data. Make a fourth column, if you have room, and multiply the hours used by the energy rating. This figure represents the energy usage per day for each device or appliance. Some things might really jump out at you at this point, you can clearly see where a lot of energy is being used, and possibly wasted!

3. This is the most important step. Now that you have the raw data of where your energy is going, its time to do something with it.  Formulate an energy saving plan by identifying areas where too much energy is used, or wasted. Plan to reduce or eliminate energy waste. For example, you might find that lights are on in a particular room for 4 hours a night, but someone is rarely in the room. Easy – put the lights on a timer or cut the lighting usage when no one is in the room. One thing I think you’ll find, especially if you are online a lot, is computer usage can get very expensive. Cut computer usage, if this is the case, or use a laptop which uses far less energy.

Once you do this, you are guaranteed to save money through an energy audit, because:

  • you’ll know exactly where all your energy goes, and might be wasted
  • any change, no matter how small, is targeted specifically at a certain area or problem
  • energy audits are repeatable, so you can do them over and over again
  • they are adaptable to any house, or even apartment

Hope this helps save you money on your bills!

Home Energy Audits Are Guaranteed to Save You Money

January 10th, 2011

Did you know that a home energy audit, if it is done correctly, is 100% effective? There is absolutely no other money saving product on the market that can ever make that claim.

So, how is that the audits are so effective? The answer lies in its simplicity and adaptability. A home energy audit is relatively simple to do, yet is very powerful. It can identify the problems, even hidden ones, with ease. An energy audit is very adaptable – it works for any home, anywhere in the world, under any conditions. It also works for apartments, shacks, sheds, and businesses!

So, how do you do an energy inspection? Let me tell you the simple steps behind performing a basic audit in your home tonight.

First, get several pieces of paper and something to write with. Now, fold the paper four times lengthwise, or else just draw 4 vertical lines on the paper. These are your columns.

Next, walk in each room of your house and note every single thing that uses energy. Start with things like light bulbs, plugged in appliances, etc. Also make note of fans, a/c units, and furnaces (or heating appliances). Write the appliance name in one column, and in the next column, write how much electricity the appliance uses. In the next column, write down how many hours per day the appliance or device is used. Leave the fourth column blank.

Repeat this for every room of your house.

When you are finished, sit down and do a quick calculation. Multiply the rating times the number of hours. Put the answer in the fourth column for each appliance. This is your daily energy usage for each appliance.

If you add up all the energy usage for the day across each appliance, you’ll get your daily consumption. This is how much energy you use per day.

Now, focus on areas to improve your efficiency, or reduce your usage. Cut down on wasted energy. It should be obvious by looking at the numbers the “problem” areas or where you need to focus your conservation efforts. As you reduce your usage and waste, you reduce your utility bills.

If you want to take the next step and replicate the results of the professional, I recommend going to http://www.energyaudits.net and downloading the professional audit kit. It contains the complete audit guide plus calculators that let you easily calculate the energy you are wasting – and how much it is costing you.

How to Get a Home Energy Audit Done and What Questions to Ask

January 5th, 2011

Q: What is a home energy audit?
A: A home energy audit is when an energy expert comes to your home and evaluates the overall efficiency of the house and tells you what improvements should be done first, to save you the most.

Q: How will they measure the efficiency of my house?
A: One of the most important ways energy audits are done is by the amount of air being lost from the home. Contractors measure this with something called a blower door test. During this test, the energy experts hook up a very strong blower in an outside door to your home and turn it on. The blower acts like a large vacuum and pulls air out of the house. The inside air pressure lowers and the higher pressure outside forces air in through unsealed cracks and openings. The expert then writes down analytic data which shows how much air is being lost from the home. They also have special instruments to find exactly where the air leaks are in the house. Once work is performed to cut down on air loss, measurements are taken again to make sure all areas have been effectively treated.

Q: What kinds of things will an energy auditor do to my home?
A: Professional energy auditors will typically look for and seal the many leak points that add cost to energy bills. They also look at existing things in the home to check whether or not they are as efficient as possible. For example, they will look at your attic insulation and tell you whether or not it is the type and amount of insulation needed to keep the house as comfortable as possible. Auditors will also tell you whether your exterior doors and windows are too drafty, depending on their findings. If your light bulbs are not efficient, they will change the bulbs to energy efficient bulbs.

Home energy auditors can recommend better hot water heaters and furnaces if they see yours is an outdated, inefficient model. Tests are also performed on all energy appliances to determine this. They will give you tips on getting the most out of your home appliances and the energy they use. Different auditors do a variety of things during a home energy audit, but these are the big points a responsible auditor should cover while at your home.

Q: What is the cost of a home energy audit?
A: Home energy audit costs depend on the contractor you go with. But cheaper is not always better. Many times, going with the cheapest contractor will get you what you paid for – a cheap result that doesn’t save you as much as it could. Instead, focus on hiring a responsible home energy auditor who offers a comprehensive energy audit and doesn’t try to just get into your wallet. A good auditor will explain their cost to you and explain anything that doesn’t make sense. Don’t be afraid to ask if something doesn’t make sense – it’s your home after all and you should know as much about it as possible.

Q: If I put an addition on my home do I need to get an energy audit again?
A: Putting an addition on a home means a new building “envelope” that is going to get carved out by electricians, plumbers and other contractors. It’s possible that the addition could be as energy inefficient as the main house was originally. It’s best to call your home energy auditor and ask if they could evaluate the new part of the home, to ensure it’s as up-to-date and effective as possible. And since you’re a past customer, many auditors will even give you a discount for being a repeat customer, so be sure to ask.

To find a contractor who performs comprehensive, 90-point home energy audits in your area, contact Dr. Energy Saver. They will put you in contact with the energy audit professional in your area.

How An Electrician’s Home Energy Audit Can Save You Money

January 1st, 2011

The idea of a home energy audit is simple. An audit checks areas of the home to see where energy is wasted or not efficiently used. Once these areas have been discovered, they can be properly addressed. An electrician who is trained to specifically look at common areas where energy is wasted in homes can conduct home energy audits.

Although homeowners are tempted to conduct a self-home energy audit, hiring an electrician to complete this audit will more than likely save you money in the long run.

As part of the energy audit, lighting will be looked at. An electrician would look at the different lighting fixtures. He or she will also look at what types of bulbs are used. Most of the energy used by incandescent light bulbs do not produce illumination but rather heat. The main purpose for using light bulbs is to illuminate a particular area. Throwing off heat is not its primary function, nor is it typically a wanted one. Replacing these inefficient light bulbs with Energy Star approved high-tech compact fluorescent ones will result in instant energy savings. LEDs are also becoming a popular alternative to replacing incandescent light bulbs.

How the lighting is controlled can be a big energy saver. Programmable timers, occupancy sensors, motion sensor lights, photocell controls are all good ways to save energy by controlling its use. An electrician can examine a home and determine which lighting control products are a good fit.

The greatest source of energy loss is with older appliances that eat up electricity or gas. Appliances such as refrigerators, washers, dryers and dishwashers use a lot of energy. An electrician can recommend energy efficient appliances that require a certain amount of investment upfront, but will be more economical to operate and maintain in the long run.

On a commercial installation, an electrician would do a cost savings and payback analysis for the company. This analysis would compare the savings achieved if the business were to convert to lighting that is more economical. There are also rebates available from local utilities as well as the federal government. An electrician can estimate how much customers would get back and assist in the application process.

Hiring an electrician to conduct a home energy audit is a small investment that could result in huge savings due to an increase in energy efficiency. An electrician will also provide tips and suggestions on how to further improve the energy efficiency of any family home.