Putting Your Home on an Energy Diet
Simple steps with fast payback can cut family power bills
Putting your house on an energy diet is simple: airtight construction, smart heating and cooling design, and high-efficiency appliances. But simple doesn't mean easy. You might as well tell Americans they ought to lay off nacho chips and sign up for a daily Zumba class. The nation's power demands, like our waistlines, are growing ever more bloated.
Look at just one of the new energy guzzlers: the digital photo frame. This always-on gadget burns a barely noticeable $9 extra a year into the average household electric bill, says the nonprofit Electric Power Research Institute. But the impact could be staggering. EPRI estimates that if every household in America owned one, it would take five medium-sized power plants just to keep those family photo slide shows rolling in the nation's living rooms. "I call these electronics the sleeping giants in our homes," says Thomas Reddoch, EPRI's director of energy utilization.
But there's a rising call for Americans to use less energy, either out of self-interested concern over escalating costs or genuine concern over the risk to the planet from global warming if the world's leading fossil fuel users continue on their current course. "The cleanest and cheapest kilowatt-hour is the one we do not have to produce," says Jim Rogers, chief executive of Duke Energy.
Goals. When the consulting firm McKinsey recently mapped out a possible pathway for U.S. carbon dioxide cuts at a cost that would not break the economy, almost 40 percent of the potential savings came from energy-efficiency steps that also would save people money. "It's a staggering amount of potential that could be an important step for achieving the carbon-abatement goals we have as a nation," says Ken Ostrowski, a McKinsey director.
Among the world's major economies, the United States is second only to Canada in energy use per person, but the nation's efficiency picture isn't all bad. Natural gas use per household is down significantly, thanks to vastly more efficient furnaces, better-insulated homes, and the population shift to the warmer South. As a result, overall energy use per U.S. household declined 26 percent between 1978 and 2001. But residential electricity use is surging, up 11 percent per household from 1993 to 2006 and 42 percent overall, as the number of gadget-filled households grows.
But research shows that with conservative measures that have fast payback, U.S. homes could become a third more energy efficient. "Green" builders everywhere know how to do it. Use 6-inch studs instead of two-by-fours for more wall cavity space to fill with insulation. In varying climates, use different kinds of high-performance windows to maximize sunlight or shield its intensity. And one simple, nontraditional step—designing ductwork so it's inside the home living space although still cleverly hidden—can cut family energy bills by a quarter to a third. Ductwork is so leaky that much of the heat or air conditioning in a home is lost. "Every time we build four new power plants to meet summer peak load, one of them is not necessary because it's generating nothing but cold air that's going into attics or crawl spaces," says Jeffrey Harris of the Alliance to Save Energy, a nonprofit coalition of business and environmental groups. The alliance is among groups pushing for a national minimum standard in building codes.
The National Association of Home Builders supports voluntary efforts but not mandates. "If you look at the places with more stringent energy requirements, you're looking at places with high housing costs," says Carlos Martín, assistant staff vice president of NAHB. "Especially in the market we have now, with foreclosures and people not able to afford even a slight price increase, that's a concern."
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Reader Comments
Put your home on an energy diet
I have two major issues with this article. First, I added up all my energy costs (minus food) and I only use half of what is indicated in the article for the US average. I have a hard time believing the large discrepancy. Second, dollars are used to rate some appliances. Why not use energy costs (e.g. BTU)? In my experience, dollars do not equal BTUs.
Businesses are just as much of a problem
The print edition of this article had a page dedicated to large businesses like hotels, universities, and large manufacturing plants who consume too much energy and refuse to go green because "the incentive to go green is very difficult". But there are companies like Enernoc who has an enterprise energy management (http://www.enernoc.com/demand.html) system that actually pays businesses to go green and monitor their energy usage, so they shouldn't have many excuses.
Energy conservation
The article above is quite informative, especially the 2X6 studs in lieu of 2X4. I built a passive solar home in south East Denver in 1978 that has 2260 sq ft on main floor and 2260 sq. ft in the lower level. Our utility bill for all electric in 1978 was $225 in December 1978, with a family of 4 which included 2 teenagers. Now 29 years later and having installed a forced air gas furnace with AC our bill is only $295 in winter and less than $150 in summer.
Our home was built somewhat on the idea of "The Arkansas Report", that was initiated by the town of Little rock Arkansas that gave a Cart Blahche check to home builders in1965 to build an energy efficient home. Some were; 3 ft overhang to allow 5 hours of sunlight in winter on south side and no sun in summer, 2X6 staggered outside walls, which our builder would not allow,1 inch styrofoam on outside wall before the brick, 3 1/2 inch insulation in outside wall and 24 inches in attic, triple pane windows, soffett vents, roof/attic power fan, central loacated all house fan, no windows on the north side, but maximum windows on south side, and deciduous trees on south/west side to give maximum shade in summer and max sun in winter, flourescent bulbs where possible, two incandascent chanderliers with variable dimmers that are more than 40 years old and bulbs replaced only twice, and a programmable thermostat.
With the above scheme with two attic fans, the A/C set at 78 degrees does not come on in summer until about 2 to 3 PM. The roof/attic fan set at 80 degrees comes on in summer sometimes at 9 AM. The all house fan manually is turned on in summer about 6 AM to cool the home and remove stale air, and sometimes late at night.
Energy conservation
The article above relating to the inefficiency of the fireplace is correct to a point. When we built our passive solar home in 1978, we also installed an energy efficeint fireplace as follows. Prior to installing a free standing heatelator, and prior to pouring the concrete for the hearth, we installed two 3 inch pipes that brought fresh breathing air from the outside to promote burning. The flue remains open 24 hours per day in winter. Four heat sintered glass folding doors remain closed until the fire is started. It is intuitively obvious that part of the combustion is created by outside cold dense air. Once burning effectively, the fire place heats the family room, kitchen, and dinette, about 500 sq. ft, until the outside temperature goes below 20 degrees F. The electric T/S (thermostat) set at 72 degrees, across from the fireplace and about 25 feet, seldon comes on.
When we retire for the evening, we close the glass screen doors which prevent most of the heated air from escaping up the chimney. However radiation energy is absorbed by almost 95% within the glass and does not heat the room. The next mornimg the same process begins again.
For gas fired fireplaces, the City of Denver mandates that all flues are welded open to prevent a gas explosion in case of a gas leak. Per Public Service of Colorado, with each burning of 1 cubic foot of natural gas, 10 cubic feet of combustible air are required. Consequnetly, I would never use a gas fire fireplace.
Enough is Enough
I remember in my early teens in the early 70's talk of and implementation of sacrificial conservation efforts. Water shortages required brown lawns and bricks in toilet tanks. Showers were every other day and then with same gender siblings. Even back then we were concerned about which lights were on where. I remember the two fuel crises during that decade, one as a young observer, and the other as a frustrated participant.
Since then we have mandated and designed toilets that use much less water, motion detection light switches, autos with much better fuel economy, and factories that emit much less pollution. TV's and radios no longer utilize fiery hot vacuum tubes. Water heaters are better insulated and more people are blanketing them for even more efficiency. Curly light bulbs are in almost every light socket. More efficient flat screens are replacing more and more CRT monitors. Home heating systems are more efficient, with more people installing ceiling fans to increase efficiency. And the list goes on.
The question then is how much more can the average, moderate income person be expected to do? Most Americans do not have the incomes to mount solar panels and erect windmills in order to produce their own power. We have been described as energy gluttons. Yet, over the past three or four decades we have been making more and more sacrifices to conserve. Still we are told it is not enough.
Well, enough is enough. It is time for our politicians and other policy makers to start working in a more constructive and realistic manner with our energy producers. We also need to stand up to and keep at bay the environmental Jihadists that are stalling realistic advancements in energy production from our many abundant resources here at home. Our tax dollars would much better be spent finding realistic solutions to our energy crisis (not to mention the many other crises we are facing) than the billions of dollars spent in space exploration all for the purpose of trying to figure out where we came from. We're here, for crying out loud; let's learn to live here in a responsible, reasonable, and realistic manner.
Using the wasted hot attic air to heat water
There is a renewable energy technology company SolarAttic Inc. located just outside of Minneapolis, Minn that developed and patented a solar technology that captures the wasted hot attic air to heat swimming pool water and soon domestic hot water.
How it works: The existing pump sends the pool water up to the PCS2 (Pool Convection System 2) located inside the attic. As the water circulates through the heat exchanger a fan draws the hot attic air into the system heating up the pool water. By utilizing the hot attic air to heat the pool water it cools down the home lowering the demand for air conditioning ultimately reducing their energy bills up to 35%
You can find out more about this technology by googling SolarAttic
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How To Reduce Your Energy Bills / Energy Conservation Begins at Home
Imagine leaving a window open all winter long -- the heat loss, cold drafts and wasted energy! If your home has a folding attic stair, a whole house fan or AC Return, a fireplace or a clothes dryer, that may be just what is occurring in your home every day.
These often overlooked sources of heat loss and air leakage can cause heat to pour out and the cold outside air to rush in -- costing you higher heating bills.
Air leaks are the largest source of heating and cooling loss in the home. Air leaks occur through the small cracks around doors, windows, pipes, etc. Most homeowners are well aware of the benefits caulk and weatherstripping provide to minimize heat loss and cold drafts.
But what can you do about the four largest “holes” in your home -- the folding attic stair, the whole house fan or AC return, the fireplace, and the clothes dryer? Here are some tips and techniques that can easily, quickly and inexpensively seal and insulate these holes.
Attic Stairs
When attic stairs are installed, a large hole (approximately 10 square feet) is created in your ceiling. The ceiling and insulation that were there have to be removed, leaving only a thin, unsealed, sheet of plywood.
Your attic space is ventilated directly to the outdoors. In the winter, the attic space can be very cold, and in the summer it can be very hot. And what is separating your conditioned house from your unconditioned attic? That thin sheet of plywood.
Often a gap can be observed around the perimeter of the door. Try this yourself: at night, turn on the attic light and shut the attic stairway door -- do you see any light coming through? These are gaps add up to a large opening where your heated/cooled air leaks out 24 hours a day. This is like leaving a window open all year round.
An easy, low-cost solution to this problem is to add an attic stair cover. An attic stair cover provides an air seal, reducing the air leaks. Add the desired amount of insulation over the cover to restore the insulation removed from the ceiling.
Whole House Fans and AC Returns
Much like attic stairs above, when whole house fans are installed, a large hole (up to 16 square feet or larger) is created in your ceiling. The ceiling and insulation that were there have to be removed, leaving only leaky ceiling shutter between the house and the outdoors.
An easy, low-cost solution to this problem is to add a whole house fan cover. Installed from the attic side, the whole house fan cover is invisible. Cover the fan to reduce heating and air-conditioning loss, remove it when use of the fan is desired.
If attic access is inconvenient, or for AC returns, a ceiling shutter cover is another option for reducing heat loss through the ceiling shutter and AC return. Made from R-8, textured, thin, white flexible insulation, and installed from the house side over the ceiling shutter with Velcro, a whole house fan shutter cover is easily installed and removed.
Fireplaces
Sixty-five percent, or approximately 100 million homes, in North America are constructed with wood or gas burning fireplaces. Unfortunately there are negative side effects that the fireplace brings to a home especially during the winter home-heating season. Fireplaces are energy losers.
Researchers have studied this to determine the amount of heat loss through a fireplace, and the results are amazing. One research study showed that an open damper on an unused fireplace in a well-insulated house can raise overall heating-energy consumption by 30 percent.
A recent study showed that for many consumers, their heating bills may be more than $500 higher per winter due to the air leakage and wasted energy caused by fireplaces.
Why does a home with a fireplace have higher heating bills? Hot air rises. Your heated air leaks out any exit it can find, and when warm heated air is drawn out of your home, cold outside air is drawn in to make up for it. The fireplace is like a giant straw sucking the heated air from your house.
An easy, low-cost solution to this problem is to add a fireplace draftstopper. Available from Battic Door, a company known for their energy conservation products, a fireplace draftstopper is an inflatable pillow that seals the damper, eliminating any air leaks. The pillow is removed whenever the fireplace is used, then reinserted after.
Clothes Dryer Exhaust Ducts
In many homes, the room with the clothes dryer is the coldest room in the house. Your clothes dryer is connected to an exhaust duct that is open to the outdoors. In the winter, cold air leaks in through the duct, through your dryer and into your house.
Dryer vents use a sheet-metal flapper to try to reduce this air leakage. This is very primitive technology that does not provide a positive seal to stop the air leakage. Compounding the problem is that over time, lint clogs the flapper valve causing it to stay open.
An easy, low-cost solution to this problem is to add a dryer vent seal. This will reduce unwanted air infiltration, and keep out pests, bees and rodents as well. The vent will remain closed unless the dryer is in use. When the dryer is in use, a floating shuttle rises to allow warm air, lint and moisture to escape.
If your home has a folding attic stair, a whole house fan, an AC return, a fireplace, and/or a clothes dryer, you can easily, quickly and inexpensively seal and insulate these holes.
Mark D. Tyrol is a Professional Engineer specializing in cause and origin of construction defects. He developed several residential energy conservation products including an attic stair cover, an attic access door, and is the U.S. distributor of the fireplace draftstopper. To learn more visit www.batticdoor.com
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