Energy Efficiency

By Tyler Michael
Director/New Solar Homes Division, HelioPower

How much solar do I need?

This is the first question that we hear when asked to design solar for a new custom home. If you get an answer to that question from someone who does not ask you at least four or five questions back, you might consider showing them the door in a hurry before either of you wastes too much of your time. A good solar contractor will always carefully prioritize the customer’s interests.

Generating more electricity for a residence than is required to run that

New solar home installation by HelioPower

residence is not a very good way to spend money. Utilities are increasingly being called upon to pay for “over-production” by residential customers; however your best value is eliminating only the power you actually use. Most people building their “Dream Home” tend to overestimate the energy requirements of their new home because they are thinking in terms of their older home’s requirements.

Why do people overestimate electrical use in their new home?

In most cases, the new home is substantially larger than the old one. Naturally, there is good reason to assume that if the new home is twice as large, the energy required to run that home will be greater. This is not necessarily the case. In California and in most other states there are far more stringent “Energy Efficiency Requirements” in place for building new homes than were in place when the owner’s previous residence was built. Before you can get a building permit in California, you must show that some minimum energy efficiencies have been designed into the home.

For clarification, speak to your architect about your “Title-24” or CF-1-R form. Because of these design requirements, a 3000 square foot home built in 2010 is likely to require about 60% of the electricity that the same size home, with the same amenities built prior to 1985, will require. This difference is not quite as evident in the mildest climates. 

Some of the most important energy efficiency improvements in recent materials and design are:

• Radiant barrier roof sheeting
• Higher insulation ratings
• More efficient HVAC Systems
• High efficiency lighting systems, including activity sensors
• Low ”E”  windows and doors, with better sealing
• More efficient pool pumps

While all of the above greatly reduce electricity loads, there is still the ”Lifestyle Factor” to consider in calculating true energy usage. Your personal habits are an important factor. Just because we design homes with automated systems and better features, there is nothing that will guarantee the occupants will not override the automated controls or ignore the opportunities for energy savings built into the new home. Your energy consumption in your own home is still, and rightly so, your own business. If you choose not to take advantage of the systems in your home you may not realize the benefits of those systems.

Here are some questions that you should hear when a solar contractor discusses sizing a solar plant for your new home:

1. How much (kWh) electricity do you use now in your current home?
2. How many square feet is your old home?
3. How any square feet is your new home?
4. Are those homes in the same “Climate Zone”?
5. Will there be the same number of occupants with the same habits?
6. What are the ages of the occupants? (Small children will grow up to use more energy, and elderly occupants may have special comfort requirements.)
7. Are there “guest rooms” or other parts of the home that will not be in constant use?
8. Do you plan to occupy the home ”full time”?
9. Is your new home serviced by the same utility company as your old home? (rates differ)
10. Do you have or plan on purchasing a Plug-In Electric Vehicle (PEV)?
11. Are there any other major changes in your lifestyle that you will be making in the new home?

Of course, you can see where these questions are leading. There are many other pertinent questions, depending on your specific requirements, lifestyle and design. The absence of these questions will let you know immediately that you are talking to the wrong contractor, and the presence of these kinds of questions that will at least assure you that you are speaking with someone who MAY be qualified to design an appropriate solar plant for your new home.

New homes are a very specialized sector of the solar marketplace. There are hundreds of solar contractors in California but only a small percentage of those are qualified to design and install solar for new homes, and secure the generous New Solar Homes Partnership Program (NSHP) Rebates for their customers.

For more information contact Tyler Michael at his email, TMichael@HelioPower.com

Lower electricity costs and increase safety with LED holiday lights. LED technology (Light Emitting Diode) for holiday lighting is a smart choice. They use 10 times less energy than incandescent mini lights, 100 times less energy than standard bulbs, last more than 50,000 hours, and are safer because they're virtually indestructible and cool—safe to the touch and eliminate fire concerns. They are easily strung and don't overload a typical household electrical circuit. If a bulb burns out, other bulbs will stay lit, so you can easily replace the bad bulb.

Further maximize holiday lighting savings with timers. Limit light displays to no more than six evening hours daily. Leaving lights on 24 hours will quadruple your energy costs—and create four times the pollution. Also, untended incandescent lights can cause fires, so always unplug your interior holiday lights before going to bed or leaving the house.

Unplug the video games and turn off the millionth broadcast of It’s a Wonderful Life – and read your favorite holiday story instead. Your children may appreciate your attention and time, and you will be saving energy in the process.

Teach personal finance to your children in these difficult economic times — conduct a home energy audit together. Locate everywhere that you are needlessly wasting energy AND money. Minor changes can capture precious dollars that could be better spent for other needs.

In the spirit of Kwanzaa—the African-American spiritual week of remembering, reassessing, recommitting, and rejoicing –reassess your power consumption, recommit to energy-efficient practices, and rejoice in the savings.

Once you’ve lit the Chanukah menorah, spin a dreidel by candlelight – it uses no energy! By the eighth night, you may not need any electric lights at all!

Switch to solar generated energy.  For as little as $1000 down you can move to solar energy for 2010.

Heat your home at 68 degrees or cooler with the thermostat fan switch on "auto." To save even more, lower your thermostat to 65 degrees or cooler at bedtime or when you're away from home. Don’t forget to wear cozy sweaters to stay warm!

Clean or change your A/C filter once a month. Many homes use strip heating in their air conditioning units, which have to work harder to heat the house. A clogged filter makes your A/C work harder than it has to.

Reduce hot water temperature. Set your water heater to the "normal" setting or 120 degrees, unless the owner's manual for your dishwasher requires a higher setting.

Seal up leaks. Caulk leaks around windows and doors. Look for places where you have pipes, vents or electrical conduits that go through the wall, ceiling or floor. Caulk works best on small gaps. Your hardware store should have products to close the larger gaps.
Sources:
-Alliance for Saving Energy

-Floriday Light and Power

-For "Safe Holiday Lighting Tips and benefits of using LED's" from Southern California Edison, click here.

From The Daily Transcript, writer Monica Unhold, "Ocean Beach offices county's first net zero building."

An Ocean Beach architecture firm’s new offices will be the first commercial building in San Diego County to qualify as net zero — meaning it generates as much energy as it consumes.

Architects Hanna Gabriel Wells converted the 54-year-old Ocean Beach Auto Repair shop into a modern office building expected to enjoy no monthly energy costs, said Jim Gabriel, principal at Architects Hanna Gabriel Wells.

The firm has called Ocean Beach home for the past 12 years and jumped at the chance of ownership when the auto repair property became available. The location at 1955 Bacon Ave. is ideal; situated near to the small beach community’s shops and restaurants, and just one block from the beach, Gabriel said.

In converting the building, architects added modern details while keeping 90 percent of the original building intact. Still visible are the steel beams used by mechanics for lifting engines, cinder block walls and polished concrete floors.

“The big auto repair bays they use for automotive work are actually perfect for what we do because we need a lot of space too,” Gabriel said.

The interior of the building is simplistic with large open space bounded by floor-to-ceiling windows on one side. The workspace exhibits obvious remnants of the building’s former use while offering creative modern details such as LED bar lamps hung at intersecting angles and window frames of varying-sized rectangles pieced together in a seemingly geometric yet asymmetrical fashion.

Now completed, the building is 49 percent more efficient than required by code and is expected to receive a Leadership in Energy Efficiency (LEED) Gold rating — the second-highest designation for sustainable design awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council. To achieve the rating, architects incorporated solar thermal water heating, low-flow plumbing fixtures, natural ventilation, a cool roof and took care to recycle 86 percent of construction waste. The building’s orientation will help to provide 90 percent natural light within the building.

Outdoors, pavement was replaced with drought-tolerant landscaping and a low-water irrigation drip.
The building’s greatest energy-saving component is its natural ventilation system that eliminates the need for air-conditioning, Gabriel said. Heating and cooling costs are typically the greatest source of energy consumption for commercial buildings.

The cost of the building was supplemented with $36,000 in grants from San Diego Gas & Electric meant to offset the greater cost of designing highly efficient buildings. The utility has $40 million in rebates available this year to local business customers for construction of energy-efficient buildings and renovations that increase efficiency.

Since 2004, SDG&E has provided incentives to 11 projects through its new construction programs, said Alex Kim, director of customer innovations for SDG&E. Buildings designed to be at least 10 percent more efficient than required by state building code are eligible for the incentive program.

The utility also leases space atop commercial rooftops where it installs and operates solar panels. SDG&E leases space surrounding a 16-megawatt photovoltaic solar panel system atop Architects Hanna Gabriel Wells’ offices. The system was installed by Escondido-based solar provider, HelioPower.

SDG&E also installed free of charge, a state-of-the-art monitoring system for the offices. The system will collect data relating to the building’s energy consumption, production and efficiency under different conditions. The system will help SDG&E better understand the performance of net-zero buildings, Kim said.

“We think this will help our other customers see the benefits of net-zero buildings,” Kim said. “Energy efficiency is definitely the future of buildings.”

For more information and project photos, click here.

Reporting from Environmental Leader and Bloomberg, "$500B Plan for U.S. Green Building Retrofits Touted."

The United States can build a low-carbon economy by retrofitting existing homes and businesses for energy efficiency, which would reduce waste and pollution, jumpstart an economic recovery, create good jobs and deliver energy cost savings, while reducing global warming, according to a new report. The report is calling on Congress and the Obama administration to ensure that investments will be made in weatherization and energy efficiency as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The $500-billion plan with public and private investment would retrofit 40 percent of the nation’s buildings within the next ten years, create about 625,000 full-time jobs, generate $32 billion to $64 billion in annual consumer energy cost savings, and reduce global warming pollution by 20 to 40 percent for 50 million homes and small businesses, according to a proposal released by the Center for American Progress and the Energy Future Coalition.

Rapidly improving the efficiency of existing buildings is essential to meeting clean energy and climate legislation recently passed by the House of Representatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 17 percent by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050, according to the report.

The report also identifies five key areas where focused national policy leadership is required immediately to launch a nationwide energy efficiency retrofit industry. These include technical assistance and capacity building, retrofit financing and cost recovery mechanisms, retrofit performance standards and quality assurance, smart codes and regulations and workforce development programs and job quality standards.

The plan to retrofit buildings, which consume 70 percent of all U.S. electricity and emit 40 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gases, will be discussed at an energy conference in Las Vegas, which is co-sponsored by Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and the Center for American Progress, reports Bloomberg.

When the principals of ARCHITECTS hanna gabriel wells were looking to relocate their offices, they made a commitment to minimize their impact on the environment by targeting Net-Zero Energy use.

To achieve their goal, they converted an old auto body shop into a new state-of-the-art office building, becoming an example within the community for building re-use and environmentally sustainable re-development. The building is expertly designed to maximize energy efficiency, featuring emerging technologies such as solar thermal water heating, LED lighting and operable skylights. The office hosts a San Diego Gas & Electric-owned 16 kW photovoltaic (PV) system on its roof, which provides renewable energy to the community. The PV system designed and installed by HelioPower, offsets 104% of the building’s energy use.

This building by and for ARCHITECTS hanna gabriel wells is an outstanding example of energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy generation, making it the first Net-Zero building in San Diego County.

Photo Credit: ARCHITECTS hanna gabriel wells

With 84 solar modules from Sharp, the solar power system will produce 26,400 kilowatt hours (kWh) of renewable electricity per year.

For more specific information and more photos of this ground-breaking project, click here.

Among amendments added to the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) of 2009, H.R. 2454, yesterday is important legislation for the solar power industry.  Yesterday’s votes at the House Energy and Commerce Committee markup of global warming and energy legislation included an amendment passed which ”gives states the ability to adopt 'feed-in tariffs' for renewables.”  This amendment was added by Kathy Castor (D-Fla.).  Florida is ahead of the curve with its adoption of a feed-in tariff program in Gainesville, through the Gainesville Regional Utilities, known as GRU.  GRU is the 5th largest municipal electric utility in Florida.

ACES, a combined energy and climate bill, was released by Congressmen Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Edward Markey (D-Mass.) in May.  A summary of the legislation from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce web site can be found here.

The Wikipedia entry on Feed-In Tariffs gives this definition “an incentive structure to encourage the adoption of renewable energy through government legislation. The regional or national electricity utilities are obligated to buy renewable electricity (electricity generated from renewable sources, such as solar photovoltaics, wind power, biomass, hydropower and geothermal power) at above-market rates set by the government.”

More from Wikipedia, “The German federally managed program that has proven to be the world's most effective practice for boosting adoption of renewable energy technologies. Feed-In Tariffs (REFIT) have been associated with a large growth in solar power in Spain, Germany and wind power in Denmark. These countries now boast the supply of 9%, 5% and 20% of their electricity respectively. These systems involve fixed payments that are guaranteed in the long term; 20 years in the cases of Spain and Germany.”

For points of view on the ACES, here are a few resources:

Solar Energy Industries Association Improvements to the ACES, pdf summary.

Alliance to Save Energy, offers an energy efficiency perspective. From their website, “This legislation represents our first real chance for a national carbon reduction plan in the United States.”

IEEE, the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology, is conducting its first ever Energy Fly-In to Washington, DC June 15-16.  A review of their energy policy’s can be found here.  From their website, “Energy underlies and connects three converging challenges that face the United States in the early 21st century: security, prosperity, and the environment.  To address these issues, President Barack Obama and Congress have vowed to make energy issues a priority this year.”

Related information:
Tracking of the bill can be found at OpenCongress.org.

Testimony on the bill can be found at the National Resources Defense Fund site.

Projected Senate and House Votes on 2009 Climate Legislation information can be found on E2.org site.

Writer Richard Crume, of Solar Today Magazine, brings us this excellent review of home energy upgrades that pay in their March 2009 issue.  Solar Today is the publication of the American Solar Energy Association. Here is an excerpt, click here for the full article.

Are homeowners making good choices when it comes to reducing home energy consumption? Do they make decisions about improving energy efficiency based on the best advice of experts, or are decisions driven by popular trends and the latest advertising campaigns? If our nation is to make progress toward the goal of energy independence, we need to understand whether homeowners are making rational decisions about conserving energy when remodeling their homes, upgrading their appliances or simply replacing light bulbs.

President Obama’s New Energy for America plan makes efficient use of energy a national priority. Calling energy efficiency the “cheapest, cleanest and fastest energy source,” the president wants to cut electricity demand by 15 percent from projected levels by 2020, saving consumers an estimated $130 billion in utility costs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Under the president’s plan, more efficient energy use will be required across all segments of American society — in our factories and businesses, on our roads and in our homes.

Energy efficiency in the residential segment is particularly important because houses consume so much energy — nearly 21 percent of total U.S. energy production. Many homes are old and poorly insulated, and their owners cannot afford to make necessary improvements. Acknowledging this problem, the president’s energy plan sets forth a national commitment to weatherize at least 1 million low-income homes each year for the next decade. With simple improvements like sealing around windows and doors, fixing leaky ducts and installing insulation, the energy plan estimates home energy bill reductions of at least 20 to 40 percent. And by upgrading the furnace and adding energy-efficient lighting and appliances, a homeowner can achieve even greater savings.

Wise Decisions for Home Energy Upgrades
What are homeowners doing right now about energy efficiency? A recent survey by building products manufacturer Johns Manville (jm.com) helps answer that question. When homeowners were asked about energy upgrades made in the past year, 54 percent reported taking some action in their homes to conserve energy. The most popular action was putting in energy-efficient lighting, followed by caulking and sealing and then by installing energy-efficient appliances. Just 16 percent of respondents invested in attic insulation, a suprising outcome given that this may be the single most effective means for conserving energy in many older homes. (According to the U.S. Department of Energy, roughly 80 percent of older homes are poorly insulated.)

An interesting survey outcome concerns what motivates homeowners to conserve energy. Asked about the best reasons to increase home energy efficiency, homeowners gave these responses:
• Reducing home heating and cooling costs — 64 percent
• Reducing home contribution to global climate change — 19 percent
• Home comfort — 11 percent
• Increased resale value — 5 percent

Fast Company Magazine brings us an excellent resource to review the projects, including energy, in the Stimulus bill and how the list was generated.  View writer, Chris Dannen, full artile here, "Breaking Down the "Energy" Projects in the Stimulus."

Commercial Solar Power Installation in Poway, CA by HelioPower

Here is an excerpt:

Most of the projects in the the President's $900 billion stimulus package are the kind of public works the government has executed for decades: trains, bridges, and so on. But the "Energy" projects that will be eligible for funding are full of new technologies that have never before been implemented on a large scale. What exactly are they?

According to the House Committee on Appropriations, the House version of the bill reserves "energy" monies for the following project categories.

• $11 billion for R&D devoted to the Smart Grid Investment Program and various energy pilot projects
• $8 billion for loans for renewable energy plants
• $6.9 billion for loans to state and local governments, to help them make general "investments" that will increase their energy efficiency
• $8.7 billion to weatherize HUD-sponsored and moderate income housing
• $2 billion in loans and grants for battery technology
• $1.5 billion for increasing the efficiency of schools and colleges
• $300 million in rebates for consumers who buy Energy Star-rated appliances
• $1 billion to buy alternative fuel cars for federal, state and local government
• $200 million in grants towards electric vehicle research
• $2.4 billion for carbon-capture technology to cleanse fossil fuel energy
• $350 for the Department of Defense to figure out how to power bases and weapons with renewable energy
• $500 million for energy-efficient manufacturing projects
• $300 for reducing diesel emissions.

You can read the House's summary of the bill here.

We know a little bit about the so-called "smart grid" that President Obama is advocating. The smart grid is an energy transmission system that can handle variable energy levels, and can pull energy from homes and businesses as easily as it can send energy there. That makes inconsistent generators like wind turbines and solar panels feasible energy sources, and opens the possibility for hybrid cars and houses to sell back some of their energy to the utility company.

But the details of the other projects are discussed largely in catch phrases and metonyms. To figure out where this money will actually go, you have to dig into the pages of the Main Street Economic Recovery Report, which is a list of potential stimulus projects compiled by the US Conference of Mayors. As I explained in an earlier post, the mayors of America's cities will be the ones sending stimulus ideas to the state-level government, who, in turn, will apply for funding from the Department of Commerce once the stimulus–aka the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act–is signed into law at the end of this week.

But if you want a more Web 2.0 way to explore the mayors' project suggestions, you can check out Stimulus Watch, which has ported the mayors' list, and allows people to vote and comment on the projects.

The mayors' report lists over 1300 "energy" and related project ideas in all 50 states. This is the meat and potatoes of the stimulus package, right here; each idea is summarized with job-creation predictions and cost estimates. It's also the most exciting part of the act, because many of these suggested projects will, if enacted, bring thousands of talked-about "green" ideas to immediate popular use.

Fat Spaniel Technologies, the market leader in monitoring and reporting services for distributed energy systems and HelioEMS, Energy Management Solutions, recently announced a partnership to develop a Demand Side Monitoring Channel focusing on energy monitoring services.

“Since you can’t save what you don’t measure, monitoring the energy use of a building and selected systems within it, is the critical component to meeting energy efficiency goals.  Our breakthrough service is offered in partnership with Fat Spaniel to give building owners real-time actionable intelligence to understand energy use and proactively manage costs,” said TR Bietsch, Managing Director of HelioEMS.  “We are pleased to offer an intelligent energy decision service at a time when our country reaches for new and expanded goals in energy efficiency.  We are very  pleased to work with Fat Spaniel to bring real-time energy analysis and performance measurement to property owners and facility managers.” 

The technology gathers on-site energy information and delivers real-time energy  analysis via an online portal to make energy use decisions. The on-site set up, proprietary energy analysis and load management recommendations are provided by HelioEMS, Energy Management Solutions specialists.  The online technology delivery and portal user interface elements are powered by the industry leader, Fat Spaniel Technologies.

“Fat Spaniel has built a market-leading position based on our ability to deliver intelligent monitoring solutions to our renewable energy customers.  Ever-changing marketplace dynamics require methods to reduce installation costs for our customers,” said Chris Beekhuis, President and CTO of Fat Spaniel Technologies. “Combining the strengths of the two companies will aid that effort. Together with targeted industry leaders, we can meet our customers' solution needs.”

In today's news, Helio Energy Management Solutions, (HelioEMS), an energy services company, announced its Energy Efficiency contract with food ingredient manufacturer, Amoretti®, the Title Sponsor of the National as well as the World Pastry Team Championships since 2005.

To support Amoretti’s sustainable energy goals, the Energy Efficiency contract will implement lighting, HVAC and monitoring facility improvement measures based on the findings of an initial Energy Audit conducted by HelioEMS.  The company engineers and installs energy solutions designed to provide sustainable energy, improve facility efficiency and reduce energy costs.

“Amoretti manufacturers over 1800 ingredients for the food industry in one facility located in Oxnard, CA explained HelioEMS Managing Director, Thomas R. (TR) Bietsch.  “The Energy Audit we conducted revealed we could help them manage their energy usage more efficiently and reduce their overall energy consumption. The essential deliverables included using less energy, intelligently controlling the load and shedding load per the utility request in demand response. These objectives support both their company financial and environmental goals.”

The contract calls for the reduction of HVAC and refrigeration costs and related engineering including lighting improvements, monitoring and long term energy planning, aimed at reducing peak demand and developing a demand response strategy which will include load shifting and other strategies.

“Perfection is the mission we bring to our food ingredient preparation,” said Amoretti Chief Executive Officer, Jack Barsoumian.  “Working with the HelioEMS team, we are able to bring this same passion to our sustainable energy goals.”