Key Green Energy Solutions

WINA Radio Real Estate Matters Interview

Laura — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 15:14:30 +0000

Today I spoke on the WINA radio program called Real Estate Matters with Michael Guthrie. We discussed how Home Energy Audits will provide a homeowner with detailed information about the energy efficiency of their home. The purpose of the audit is to identify and prioritize which improvements to the home will create the biggest energy savings.

A Charlottesville, VA nonprofit, the Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP), is sponsoring the Home Performance with Energy Star program in our area. By making home improvements that save at least 20% in energy costs, an existing home can be certified as a Home Performance with Energy Star Home (www.LEAP-VA.org). This is a great way for sellers to differentiate their home from others on the market.

Cost Effective Changes

Laura — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 03:28:37 +0000

Blower Door Test

Key Green Energy Solutions offers comprehensive Home Energy Assessments (home energy audits) to evaluate your home’s energy use. The assessment will tell you:

* How to improve the energy efficiency of your home
* Where to start – our clearly written report
prioritizes your issues
* What local rebates are available to you

Information about our services and rates can be found under the tabs at the top of this page. Because we are an independent audit service, you are free to choose your own contractor based on the unique needs of your home. This gives you increased flexibility and reduced costs. We can refer you to the experienced companies in the greater Charlottesville/Albemarle VA area who are best suited to perform your improvements and we’ll be there for you every step of the way to answer questions. To discuss your home energy concerns, call Laura Fiori at 434-989-3514 or email Laura@KeyGreenEnergy.com.

In what year did Code begin requiring wall insulation?

Laura — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 19:30:44 +0000

1973

Bath Fan

Laura — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:00:16 +0000

Your bath fan is designed to remove moisture from your bathroom. Run the fan while showering or bathing and until the mirror clears to remove about 75% of the moisture in the room. Run the fan for 15 minutes after the mirror clears to remove 50% of the moisture in the room. As we should try to keep the humidity in our homes at 50% or less, running the fan for 15 minutes after the mirror clears is a good idea.

Blower Door Testing in Cold Weather

Laura — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 22:11:15 +0000

Heated air is less dense than cold air, so houses tested in cold weather appear leakier than they really are (by about 1 percent for each 10 degrees F difference between indoor and outdoor temperature) unless an adjustment for temperature has been made. Otherwise, testing will indicate the amount of less dense air flowing through the blower door, and not the amount of colder, denser air flowing through the holes. From the Journal of Light Construction article: Blower Door Testing by David Keefe, January 2010 issue.

What year was your home built?

Laura — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:12:14 +0000

Many historic buildings have energy saving physical features and devices that contribute to good thermal performance. Studies by the Energy Research and Development Administration show that the buildings with the poorest energy efficiency are actually those built between 1940 and 1975.
Read more about historic buildings here: http://www.nps.gov/hps/tps/briefs/brief03.htm

Natural Gas usage in Cville

Laura — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:58:44 +0000

Charlottesville Gas has given natural gas users a valuable piece of energy efficiency information. Analyzing their data according the method described below, Charlottesville Gas has determined that for homes that heat with natural gas and have at least one other natural gas appliance (water heater, stove, etc.), the average gas usage for a home in our area is 55 cubic feet per square foot. Efficient homes use about 35 cubic feet of natural gas per square foot. We now have a benchmark to use to determine how individual homes perform.

Home Natural Gas Usage Report

Statistical Analysis Methodology & Assumptions

November 5, 2009

The average home was around 55 cf of gas per sf. The efficient homes were around 35 cf of gas per sf.

The Home Natural Gas Usage Report generated by Charlottesville Gas was a multi-step process of data analysis.

Preparation for the report began months in advance, with City Public Works staff member, Lance Stewart, serving as data analyst. Lance worked with Charlottesville and Albemarle County real estate assessment offices to compile all known information about our region’s housing stock. This is public information, accessible via the internet. The assessor’s data information used to prepare the Home Natural Gas Usage Report included:

Physical Address
Year of Construction
Occupied Square Footage
Heating System Type

Natural gas consumption records were made available to the data analyst for the most recent 12 months: October 2008 through September 2009. No information regarding the cost of utilities or status of the account was shared with the data analyst.

The two sets of records – assessment data and natural gas usage data – were correlated by the physical address of the home. The following selection criteria were then applied, to ensure that the comparison between one home and another was statistically valid:

All homes classified by the real estate assessor as Single Family Residences. No apartments, duplexes or condominiums were included.
All homes noted by the real estate assessor as having Forced Hot Air heating system.
All homes constructed prior to 1973. The majority of Charlottesville Gas customers live in homes constructed before this date: 74%. This year was consciously chosen due to the implementation that year of a requirement that all newly-constructed homes have insulated walls.

This resulted in a total data set of 3,689 homes. Calculations were then performed to determine the natural gas usage (in cubic feet), per square foot, of each home, for each of the past 12 months. A second set of criteria were then applied to ensure each home in the data set was further comparable:

Must have 12 continuous months of natural gas service.
Must have consumed at least some natural gas every month. This was intended to ensure that all homes in the data set either cook with natural gas, heat their water with natural gas, or both.
Must show a data trend that clearly indicates that each home is heated by natural gas. Comparable natural gas usage in both winter and summer months would indicate that a home is not heated with gas, likely due to a change in heating system type – most likely from a gas furnace to a heat pump – that was not recorded by the real estate assessor’s office.

The application of these criteria resulted in a final data set of 2,173 homes.

The “Average Home” natural gas usage was calculated by a simple averaging of all 2,173 records.

The “Efficient Home” natural gas usage was calculated by a simple averaging of the 25% most efficient homes in the data set of 2,173.

Homes selected to receive the Home Natural Gas Usage Report included the 500 least efficient homes in the data set of 2,173.

HVAC System Maintenance

Laura — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:49:34 +0000

Having your HAVC system serviced is similar to changing the oil in your car. Regular maintenance will make the equipment last longer. Have it serviced every 2 years for the first 6 years, and every year thereafter. Change the furnace filter regularly as recommended on the filter package.

Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Laura — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:47:51 +0000

This is a must if you have any appliances/equipment fueled by natural gas, propane, wood or oil. Proper placement of a carbon monoxide (CO) detector is important. If you are installing only one carbon monoxide detector, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends it be located near the sleeping area, where it can wake you if you are asleep. Read manufacturers’ recommendations on placement. For more information: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/466.html.

Water Heater Blanket

Laura — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:45:49 +0000

It is always a good idea to insulate your hot water heater with an insulated blanket. With ambient air temperature at approximately 70 degrees or below and water temperature in the tank at 120 degrees, insulation buffering these extremes makes sense.