Where Does All the Energy Go?

If you’re setting out to convert your home to a “zero energy” building standard, then it’s a good idea to know your baseline. In other words, where does the energy go in a typical home?

As you might expect, especially for heating and cooling requirements, it depends on where you live, the age of your home, and to some extent (since the records indicate that higher income seems to produce higher energy usage) how much money you make. However, one thing is clear, the bulk of the energy used in a home is for heating and cooling. According to the DOE Energy Information Administration’s 2001 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, anywhere from 38 percent to 70 percent of a home's energy consumption is spent on heating and cooling. The average values across all home sizes, home ages, and climate zones from that survey are shown in the following pie chart.


The key point of all this data is that heating and cooling consumes the bulk of a home’s energy, and all of that energy is exchanged through the home’s shell or envelope. As a result, the starting point for any attempt to convert an existing home to a zero energy building standard must be an upgrade of the building envelope. In general, energy losses through the envelope are evenly divided between infiltration (air leaks), windows and doors, and conduction through the wall, ceiling, and floor.

So what's a homeowner to do? Luckily, Building Green has a slew of articles and tips on the hows and whys of improving the energy efficiency of your building envelope.

Green for Green

This week, we bring you news that might actually have you thanking the IRS! This year, homeowners can take advantage of IRS tax credits by upgrading their homes using qualified energy-efficient products placed into service by December 31, 2007.

Federal tax credits for energy efficiency range from up to $2000 for solar panels and solar hot water heaters to up to $500 for many other types of home improvements, including extra insulation, replacement windows, and certain high-efficiency heating and cooling equipment (see chart).

A tax credit can provide significant savings by reducing the amount of income tax you have to pay. Unlike a deduction, which reduces the amount of income subject to tax, a tax credit directly reduces the tax itself. And with the money you'll be saving on your energy bill, the financial incentives for greening your home really start adding up.

Happy Green Homeowners

In case you were holding off on greening your home, here's a little incentive to get greening. According to a recent MarketWatch article, 85 percent of homeowners said they were more satisfied with their new green homes than with their previous, traditionally-built homes. The survey, which was conducted by the National Association of Home Builders and McGraw-Hill Construction, found that homeowners were willing to pay more - up to $18,500 more - for the benefits of a green home, with 50 percent citing concern for the environment as a reason to buy a green home, 50 percent citing their family's health, and 63 percent citing lower operating and maintenance costs.

According to Harvey Bernstein, vice president of industry analytics, alliances and strategic initiatives at McGraw-Hill Construction, "green" homes in this survey had to have three of the five following elements:

• Incorporation of energy-efficient products
• Features that address indoor air quality
• Attention to resource management (including use of recycled materials in building)
• Attention to site management (including the location of the home and its surroundings)
• Increased water efficiency

And, remember, you don't have to buy a new home to go green. According to the study, about half of U.S. homeowners recently renovated their homes, and about 40 percent of them used green products. Energy-efficient windows and doors, as well as energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning systems are some of the most popular green upgrades.

Yes, green homeowners are, for the most part, satisfied with their decision to go green. So what's holding others back? Surprisingly, this report suggests that the biggest obstacle to building or renovating a green home wasn't the extra up-front cost, but rather lack of education and awareness. Hopefully, this blog is helping to remove that obstacle for our wonderful readers!

Green Building Case Studies

I know this is last-minute, but I wanted to alert you all about this upcoming event. It should be really fantastic!

On Wednesday, August 15, GreenHomeNYC and the Guggenheim Museum will hold a special forum on green building case studies. A panel of guest speakers will discuss some of the most anticipated green buildings under construction in New York. This will be an excellent opportunity to learn firsthand about the latest innovations in sustainable design and construction, as well as green building practices at work. The forum will be held alongside Rirkrit Tiravanija's "Untitled 2002 (he promised)" which is showcased in the Guggenheim's exhibition "Shapes of Space." Mr. Tiravanija's installation consists of a partial reconstruction of Austrian architect Rudolf M. Schindler's environmentally sensitive residence in Los Angeles and explores the relationship between public and private spaces.

Speakers:
Serge Appel, AIA Cook+Fox Architects LLP
Tony Daniels, AIA LEED AP
Sarah Beatty, GreenDepot, Co-Founder

When:
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
6.30pm-8pm

Where:
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10128
Enter through staff entrance on 89th Street and take elevator to "Tower 7" gallery.

Attendance is limited. Please, RSVP to rsvp@GreenHomeNYC.org