GetWithGreen.com » Heating / Cooling

How to get ready for Cash for Caulkers

Lori Bongiorno — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 21:52:13 +0000

(Photo: Getty Images)

Details for the U.S. government's Cash for Caulkers program aren't available yet, but it's not too early to start thinking about how to cash in on the proposed stimulus program.

"Homeowners that educate themselves will be the first ones to take advantage of the program," says Lane Burt, at the Natural Resources Defense Council. He recommends that you get educated about your home now so you'll know what kinds of changes you'd like to make when the money becomes available. This is good point when you remember that Cash for Clunkers ran out of cash in the end. "Understand what you want to do so that you're not the one left in line when the program runs out of money," says Burt.

While the details are still being hammered out, there are potentially two ways to have the government help with the costs of making your home more energy efficient:

One idea is that an accredited buildings professional would come in to conduct an energy audit to determine where energy efficiency improvements can be made, help you decide on a plan of action, and then execute that plan. The expectation is that homeowners could get back 50 percent of what they spend up to a maximum rebate of $12,000.

The other way to get government money is to buy an energy-efficient furnace, windows, or other component. There are federal rebates already available and several states also offer rebates for purchasing energy-efficient appliances and more.

If you decide to make changes yourself and get a rebate on an individual purchase, then know that which order to make home improvements in is important. You'll want to seal leaks and tighten your building's shell so the air you pay to warm or cool doesn't leak out before you buy a new furnace, for example.

While we're all waiting for the proposal to get passed, Burt suggests thinking what your home needs. Figure out where you are wasting energy. Take a look at your energy bill and compare it to others in the area. Start looking for leaks. Look at ducts and make sure they are all connected.

Do the things that you can do yourself and that don't cost much money. Some suggestions:

Install a programmable thermostat.
Weatherstrip windows and doors.
Caulk the obvious leaks.
Insulate your water heater.
Replace incandescent bulbs with CFLs or efficient halogens.

These are all baseline changes that should be made before you embark on more extensive changes so that you can maximize energy and money savings.

Also, think about whether you want to hire a contractor and go for the whole-house approach or if you'd like to pick one project to focus on.

Experts say that you'll most likely need to hire a professional contractor to get the most financial support from the government. If you hire a contractor, that person will tell you exactly where you can save money and in which order you should make changes so that you can maximize savings.

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

Check out Yahoo! Green on Twitter and Facebook.

My furnace runs less than your furnace. Are you using zones?

David Putnam — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 21:09:14 +0000

Like many of you, my house has (had) an old furnace that I swear was a rocket engine taking off when it started up! Struggling with PG&E bills north of $600/mo in the winter, I was determined to change this consumption of cash and energy during my remodel. (Granted the single pane windows and minimal insulation were also contributing factors.)

So the furnace was one of the first items to go as the house was remodeled. I wrote earlier about Carrier furnaces, and their associated rebates. I actually took advantage of that, and saved an additional $1,100 with that offer when I purchased an Infinity model for just south of $15,000 fully loaded, installed with all new duct work. Anyway getting to the point here, my new Carrier furnace enables my house to have multiple ‘zones’ which enables me to save my energy consumption and stop the bleeding of dollars sent to PG&E each month.

What is a ‘zone’ you ask, and how does it work? A ‘zone’ is an area of your house that you define with your heating/cooling installer. A zone is heated (or cooled) to a certain temperature while leaving other ‘zones’ at a different temperature. I went with two zones in my house.

One zone is the family/kitchen/dining living space, and the second zone is the sleeping area of the home. What I have found is that during the daylight hours more time is spent in the first zone. Temperature is set at appropriate levels while the family is in that area of the house, and the second zone is dialed down (off) when because nobody is there. During the night, the situation is reversed. The family living space is dialed down low, and the sleeping area is kept at a more modest temperature. BEFORE this transformation, the rocketship was humming, and heating the entire residence!!!

I suggest taking a look at multiple zones with your next furnace purchase! As I see the savings in my PG&E bill, I will let you know the improvement — but I can already feel the difference

HEATING-COOLING: Get a Carrier rebate today, prices are going up in July

GetGreen — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 17:00:42 +0000

Lookout!! Is a new furnace or air conditioner part of your upcoming remodel? If so, take a hard look at purchasing it now!

Not only are energy prices on the rise, but the products that supply our heating and cooling are about to take a bump. Just today Carrier Corp officially announced it will INCREASE prices up to 6 percent on its Carrier and Bryant brand residential heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning equipment. The increase will take place in mid-July.

Need another reason to order now, and get heating and cooling installed? At the moment Carrier has a “Cool Cash” rebate running when you purchase specific products alongside their very efficient INFINITY line products. Rebates range from $150-$1,200. (Your utility company will likely offer an additional rebate — so check).

Rebates are good for products purchased by June 30, 2008, and installed by July 15, 2008.

For an upcoming remodel here at GetWithGreen.com we are purchasing the Energy Star compliant and highly efficient INFINITY 96.6% Gas Furnace. Our purchase will include the furnace, Infinity 17 SEER A/C, INFINITY thermostat, 2 zone system, with an electronic air cleaner, and all new ducting. Prices so far for the package have ranged from $14,200-18,000 (then apply the rebates). So check your bids on these products as prices will range!!!

SOLAR: $68M in rebates for solar installs, yours for the taking in MA?

GetGreen — Thu, 01 May 2008 06:47:13 +0000

Massachusetts has a $68 million fund to provide rebates to local homeowners and businesses that install solar panels to provide electricity. Fill out the form, and determine just how much of the big piece of pie you can get.

Here is a video from WCVBTV5 in Boston with the details. Solar rebates in Massachusetts.

For more information on solar rebates in your area, check out the DSIRE database.

Bathroom: Ventilation Fans that are the most efficient

GetGreen — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 05:49:45 +0000

It is time to buy a new bathroom ceiling ventilation fan for our hall bath, and so I am going to take you through my thought process, and review of the products GetWithGreen.com found. It wasn?t an easy task sifting through the myriad of models. Light, no light, heat, no heat – the Energy Star site boasts 140+ manufacturers of ventilation fans!

Energy Star qualified ventilation fans that include lighting use 70% less energy on average than standard models, saving $120 in electricity costs over the life of the fan. Further the fans are more than 50% quieter than standard models according to Energy Star.

The first thing that I did was write down my needs in priority order:

Efficient: Yes
Noise: Low
Warranty: 3+ yrs
Light: No
Heat: No

I then used one of the many online tools out there to measure how much airflow my bathroom needed. I didn’t want to buy an over-sized fan. A couple very easy to use tools to size up your fan can be found at: Pansonic and RE Williams. Simply input your room dimensions, and the calculators tell you the size of fan you should be targeting. In my case, the calculators returned a fan size slightly smaller than 80 CFM.

A little technical talk now, because efficiency is important. CFM stands for the cubic feet of air moved per minute. To be Energy Star qualified, an 80 CFM fan must pump at least 1.4 CFM/watt of electricity used. Side Note: if a fan is at 1.4 CFM or less it is not that efficient.

Opening up the Energy Star Ventilating Fan Product List (just updated on March 1, 2008), I sorted the fans from highest CFM to lowest, and then sorted for 80 CFM fans. Here are the Top 10:

1. Panasonic WhisperGreen (FV-08VKS1): 30-80CFM (7.1 CFM/watt), 6-yr warranty, $189.75
2. Panasonic WhisperGreen (FV-08VKM1): 30-80CFM (7.1 CFM/watt), 6 yr warranty, $209.25 online
3. Honeywell QuietFan (BF80Q): 80.1 CFM (3.96 CFM/watt), 5-yr warranty, (Could not find the product online to purchase)
4. Panasonic WhisperCeiling (FV-08VQ3): 80CFM (3.5 CFM/watt), 3-yr warranty, $95.52
5. Panasonic WhisperValue (FV-08VS1): 80 CFM (3.4 CFM/watt), 3-yr warranty, $147.15
6. Air-King Ltd (AK80-1): 80CFM (3.3 CFM/watt), 5-yr warranty, (Could not find the product online to purchase)
7. Air-King Ltd (AK80LS-1): 80CFM (3.3 CFM/watt), 5-yr warranty, $101.25
8. Air-King Ltd (FRAK80): 80 CFM (3.3 CFM/watt), 3-yr warranty, $127.50
9. Reversomatic (QCF80ES): 80CFM (3.33 CFM/watt), 1-yr warranty, (Could not find the product online to purchase)
10. GE (BF100S): 80 CFM (3.3 CFM/watt), 5-yr warranty, (Could not find the product online to purchase)

Amazing how some of the companies above will go through the marketing effort to get their products Energy Star approved, but will not market them to the homeowner who is looking to remodel, or replace. We had to go to #15 on the list to find the next product we could actually purchase! The well marketed Broan/NuTone brand placed their first fan (S80UE) at #15 with a 3.2 CFM/watt, with only a 1-yr warranty. In some cases, the Broan/NuTone fans were very inefficient, so please check if you are looking at one of their models!!

As far as noise level. The Panasonic fans test extremely well according to the data we read, so that was not an issue. Air-King fans we 3-5X louder than Panasonic. The Broan/NuTone fans were very close in line with the Panasonic for noise level.

The Panasonic WhisperGreen FV-08VMK1 offers a SmartAction motion sensor control that turns the fan on with motion in the room. Both #1 and #2 on the list from Panasonic also include Panasonic’s ‘WhisperCeiling’ feature, where the motor is incased to reduce noise even further. The ‘green’ in WhisperGreen is a dynamic airflow mechanism that adjusts the fan?s output based on how your piping exits the fan – NOT green as in eco-friendly

All-in-all we really like the Panasonic brands. Not only are they the most efficient, quiet, warrantied the longest, but they are also so easy to find and purchase!! I am going to go for the top-o-the-line FV-08VKM1. I’ll let you know how it goes!

Check out the update to this article on GetWithGreen.com…

- We Got Green: This Pansonic Ceiling Fan is Silent and Efficient!

HEATING / COOLING: Is it easy to install a programmable thermostat?

GetGreen — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 07:05:53 +0000

Do you use a programmable thermostat in your home? Or do you use one of those ancient-looking round thermostats with the little slide lever on the bottom? The kind that you push all the way to the right, or all the way to the left depending on how cold or hot you are. You know, the same kind that you leave in the ”On” position when you drive off to work? If you haven’t done so, please look into a programmable thermostat. Among many other great features, you can schedule when they turn “On” and when they turn “Off”. You can purchase one at your local Home Depot, Ace Hardware, or Lowes for under $25, and they can save you $$ — before or after you remodel.

Programmable thermostats are also easy to install. If you don’t believe us, Ed Begley, Jr. and the Home Depot Eco Option environmental program created this short video to show you how:

ENERGY STAR: New Energy Star “Home Advisor” tool, advises on how to save

GetGreen — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:29:11 +0000

With winter just around the corner, we now have access to a tool that can help us evaluate and possibly reduce our energy bills up to 25 percent by making some simple improvements around the home, according to the EPA. The new tool from EPA, the Energy Star Home Advisor, provides consumers with customized recommendations for improving energy efficiency and comfort at home. And as we know, using energy more efficiently is also another way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

?Dropping temperatures don?t have to lead to rising energy bills. By making a few energy saving home improvements, Americans can stay warm this winter, while keeping more cold cash in their pockets,? said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.

The average family spends $1,900 per year on energy bills. For example, EPA estimates that homeowners can save up to 10 percent on their annual energy bill simply by sealing air leaks and adding insulation. If every American home improved energy efficiency by 10 percent, the result would be 800 pounds of carbon removed from the air each year.

Using the Energy Star Home Advisor, we can enter our zip code and some basic information about the types of fuel used to heat and cool their home, and get recommended home improvement projects to increase energy efficiency and comfort. Homeowners can also see the average energy savings for these improvements and associated greenhouse gas reductions.

Common recommendations for homeowners include sealing air leaks and ducts; adding insulation; installing a programmable thermostat; replacing older heating, cooling, and water heating equipment with more efficient units; as well as changing lighting, appliances and windows to Energy Star qualified models.

Homeowners can visit the Energy Star Home Advisor at: http://www.energystar.gov/homeadvisor

Energy Star was introduced by EPA in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Today, the Energy Star label can be found on more than 50 different kinds of products as well as new homes. Products that have earned the Energy Star designation prevent greenhouse gas emissions by meeting strict energy-efficiency specifications set by the government. Last year alone, Americans, with the help of Energy Star, saved about $14 billion on their energy bills while reducing the greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of 25 million vehicles.

CEILING FANS: How do you select the right one?

GetGreen — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 01:09:17 +0000

How do you choose the best ceiling fan, and save on energy? Read more from a guest writer, and Monte Carlo Fan Co. here on GetWithGreen.com…

CEILING FAN CAN LOWER BILLS
By Mary Beth Breckenridge

Ceiling fans help you lower both your cooling and heating bills. Here are some tips from Monte Carlo Fan Co. for choosing and using a fan:

For best results, mount the ceiling fan in the middle of the room, at least 7 feet above the floor and 18 inches from the walls. If you have a tall-enough ceiling, installing the fan 8 to 9 feet above the floor will produce optimal air flow.

Select the right-size fan for the room. A good retailer should be able to help you choose the correct size. A 10-by-10-foot room, for example, should have a 38- to 48-inch fan; a 15-by-15-foot room needs one that’s 52 to 56 inches across.

Look for the Energy Star label, which indicates the fan moves air more efficiently than conventional fans.

For humid areas such as bathrooms, buy a unit that has a ”damp” rating from Underwriters Laboratories. A fan that may come into direct contact with water, such as one on an exposed patio or porch, should have UL’s ”wet” rating. These fans have features such as sealed or moisture-resistant motors, rust-resistant housings, stainless steel hardware and all-weather blades.

In winter, reverse the blades so they rotate clockwise. This produces an updraft, which forces warmer air near the ceiling to circulate downward.

Turn the fan off when you’re not in the room. A ceiling fan doesn’t lower or raise the temperature; it just makes people feel cooler or warmer by circulating the air.

SWIMMING POOL: Who manufacturers solar pool heating & heaters? The List.

GetGreen — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 04:45:08 +0000

To many of you, the “remodel” you are presently doing may be a backyard and pool makeover project – and it is highly likely that you may be evaluating the different methods for heating that swimming pool oasis. GetWithGreen.com wants to reveal a list of top manufacturers of solar heating products to you. We want to make your quest to understand your options as easy as possible. Additionally, we want to make sure you have a place to double check the information you are receiving from your pool specialist or installer.

How does a solar pool heating system work? A solar pool heating system works via black plastic panels or collectors capturing the energy from the sun and using it to heat the water in your pool. The materials used to make these systems are manufactured from high tech. plastics which have been designed to resist weather and resist the sun’s ultraviolet radiation. The materials are typically a flavor of polypropylene. Using your existing pool pump, water is circulated through the solar panels where it is heated by the sun and then returned to your pool. The collectors that sit on your roof typically come in the same sizes, no matter what manufacturer you get them from: 4ft x 8ft, 4ft x 10ft, or 4ft x 12ft.

Solar heating is not “on demand” heating. On demand heating? On demand heating is, “I feel like turning on the heater and heating my pool.” Solar pool heating systems doesn’t work that way. Solar systems heat only when water is running through those collectors, and when those collectors are being heated by sunshine – so your pool will not heat at night. But how well will solar heat your pool? FAFCO (collector manufacturer) says their systems will:

“raise you pool temp 2 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit each time the water passes through the system, and
raise your pool’s temperature 5 to 15 degree Fahrenheit over a period of several days of good weather.”

Do solar systems cost a lot? Solar, unlike electric or gas heaters, uses sunshine, and that sunshine is free – therefore there is no operating cost, and you are heating your oasis with a completely renewable, non-polluting, green, eco-friendly sourse. In addition, following the purchase cost ($2,500-$7,000), there are no ongoing associated utility bills. Here is some other cost and feature comparison between solar and other heaters:

This table compares Gas, Propane Electric and Fuel Oil pool heaters and the saving you realize by going with solar instead. Estimated costs of equipment, installation and energy supply for an above ground 24ft. (7.5m) diameter pool or an in-ground pool 15 x 30ft (4.6 x 9.2m)

Heating Method	Annual Solar Savings	Payback for $2500 Solar System	Payback for $3500 Solar System	Payback for $4500 Solar System
Gas Heater @ $1.39/therm	$1612	1.6 years	2.2 years	2.8 years
Propane Heater @ $1.75/kWh	$2223	1.1 years	1.6 years	2.0 years
Electricity @0.089/kWh	$2270	1.1 years	2.9 years	1.9 years
Fuel oil @ $1.50 / gal	$1243	2.0 years	2.8 years	3.6 years
*Table from the Florida Solar Energy Commission (FSEC)

The charts below give some other interesting solar comparisons. (charts from FAFCO):

Here are the the Manufacturers GetWithGreen.com researched
(in order of the ones we found most informative)

FAFCO
Claim to be the oldest and largest manufacturer of solar collectors, having started their overall business in 1969. In 1996 FAFCO installed their 1,000,000 solar panel collector. FAFCO offers three products for in ground pools: SunSaver, Revolution, and SunSaverST. Solid website with information on ideal placement of panels.

Heliocol
Been in business since 1977. 12 year warranty. Claim to be the largest manufacturer with 200,000+ installations. Distributed all over the United States. Helicol manufacturers their panels out of polypropylene w/ “special” ultraviolet inhibitors, which Helicol claims won’t discolor your pool water. Heliocol has a fairly informative website, and claims several patents on their technology.

Aquatherm Industries
Solar collector manufacturer. Claim 125,000+ installations of their solar collectors The collector systems are called Ecosun Solar Pool Heating Systems, and designed into systems by a nationwide distribution network. The website is semi-informative.

Techno-Solis
Established in 1976. Techno-Solis has created a sizing calculator to estimate the number of panels you would need. Solar panel sizing calculator for pool. Semi-informative website. (We also found two other calculators: solar pool panel calculator, solarenergy.com pool calculator).

Suntrek
Established in 1991, and their products carry a 15 year warranty. Manufacture complete systems and those systems are sold by dealers in the US. Unclear if Suntrek is a manufacturer of their own collectors. Semi-informative website.

Enersol Solar Products, Inc.
Family owned and operated since 1979. 15 year warranty (pro-rated toward replacement).

Solar Attic
Solar Attic manufacturers a completely different type of pool heating system that uses the sun. Their product runs piping through your attic where it collects and extracts the heat and deposits into your pool. This is a very innovative approach as it elimates the need for panels and positioning of panels. We had some interaction with the team at Solar Attic and we found them to be very responsive to our inquiries. Definitely we would recommend at least reading about their offering.

Sunfence
There is minimal US information about SunFence, as the products are designed and manufactured overseas, but we wanted to bring them to your attention. They manufacturer solar pool heating systems that are built into fencing.

More…

Finally, we want to note a couple must read websites before you make your purchase:

Solar Energy Specialists
This is a must read page on solar pool heaters. Great background and overview of solar pool heating.

BuilditSolar.com
This site also gives great overview information. Warning: the BuilditSolar team website has many links that will keep your researching mind busy for hours!!

Insulation: A list of eco-friendly products that can help you save!

GetGreen — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 23:32:29 +0000

Better insulating your home while remodeling reduces your need for heating and cooling, thus saving $$.

If you are interested in helping the environment with an eco-friendly insulation product at the same time, what products can you turn to for insulation?

Here is a list. If you know of others or have used one of the products below, please tell the GetWithGreen audience via Comments!!!

Eco-Friendly Home Insulation:

Air Krete, Inc. – Cementitious Foam Insulation

Applegate Insulation

Ark-Seal – Blow-In-Blank Insulation System and Fiberiffic Insulation System

BioBased Systems – BioBased Insulation

Bonded Logic – Natural Cotton Fiber Insulation

Can-Cell Industries – WallBAR and Wethershield brand insulation

CertainTeed – MemBrain, SpeedyR, DryRight, ToughGard, SpeedR Bandit insulation

Climatizer Insulation, Inc.

Demilec – SEALection 500 Insulation

Fiberlite Technologies, Inc. – Fiber-Lite, Fiber-LitePlus, Wal-Mat