Seal It Tight Video

I don't know how they did it but they're making caulk and foam fun and sexy.  I love this:
Seal It Tight

and I'm going to link it on my website.

I'd rather ignore this blog, but it's probably prescient

Suzanne Shelton, CEO of the Shelton Group wrote a thought provoking opinion piece on the immediate future prospects of the Home Performance field.  She states "In fact, the availability of more generous federal tax incentives has been a primary driver for the increase in energy efficient home improvement activity we’ve seen over the past year."

Since I haven't seen any excess of activity this year, I'm not sure what increase she's talking about though I suspect that the US as a whole has seen a noticeable uptick in Home Performance contracting in 2010.  But the part I dislike - only because it's a somewhat bitter taste - is that the forecast for 2011, which I and many other Home Performance Contractors hope will be substantially busier, is that on third of possible clients is lost this year because of the decrease in tax incentives.  As Shelton says, "Thus at a minimum, approximately one third of the population who made their home more energy efficient would likely not have acted or would not have purchased the more efficient unit if it weren't for the incentives offered."

Granted, California utilities have stepped up their rebate plans, rolling many of the individual existing rebates for insulation, high efficiency furnaces, etc. into the new Energy Upgrade California (EUC).  The requirements for a Contractor to get in to the EUC are set high enough to keep out the casual and untrained, but the program itself is fairly robust and is funded by everyone's utility bills so it's not going away for the next few years.  I've heard that cash rebates are available to qualified homeowners using qualified Home Performance Contractors up to $4000, though I haven't been able to get more than $3500 for a client so far.  And as it should be, the rebate amount is dependent on the tested and modeled percentage increase in energy efficiency of the home, so it's both science based and verified afterwards by both 3rd party Verifiers and by following the homeowner's utility bills for the next year or two.  That's a lot of what I like about the EUC: the building science, or home-as-a-system approach, helps us understand why certain efficiency measures are more important than others, the the verification system helps homeowners trust us as contractors.

The Shelton Group's Blog:     http://www.sheltongroupinc.com/blog/?p=2106

Energy Upgrade California:     http://energyupgradecalifornia.org/

PGandE Releases Energy Efficiency Estimates

Sonoma County reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 161 million pounds in three years

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PGandE) announced last month new estimates that demonstrate the significant impact energy efficiency investments made by Sonoma County customers have had on reducing harmful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. From 2006-09, PGandE customers in Sonoma County saved 248,000,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity through energy efficiency and helped avoid 161,000,000 pounds of GHG emissions - equal to the emissions from burning about 8,185,000 gallons of gasoline.

Many Sonoma County-based businesses achieved significant savings through energy efficient upgrades and retrofitting projects. PGandE supports these measures with customized energy efficiency incentive programs that are available to all local governments, businesses and residential customers.

“We congratulate Sonoma County for its focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and its great results,” said Randy De Caminada, manager of Energy Solutions and Service for PGandE. “PGandE is here to help all of our customers with energy-saving solutions.”

Climate Protection Results 2006-2009

Area	GHG Emissions Avoided (lbs. CO2)	Equivalent homes powered for one year	Equivalent Gallons of gasoline
Sonoma County	161,000,000	42,630	8,185,000
Santa Rosa	72,920,000	19,294,000	3,705,000
Rohnert Park	28,058,000	7,345,000	1,425,000
Petaluma	22,186,000	5,870	1,127,000
Cotati	3,070,000	812	156,000
Cloverdale	3,238,000	856	164,500
Sebastopol	6,198,000	1,640	315,000
Sonoma	7,798,000	2,063	396,000
Windsor	6,538,000	1,730	332,150

For more information, contact Kera Smith at (707) 577-1082 or visit www.pge.com.

Surprising results

Just did an audit on a VERY high end home up on the ridge above San Rafael, above the ferry building.  Built in 1913 for a well heeled ship's Captain.  Wild layout but was ready for a remodel, something the new owners were doing.  A brand new high efficiency furnace system was already installed with all new ducts and they looked *beautiful* from the outside.  Very neat and clean, beautifully finished and taped, we expected very low duct leakage. So we sealed up all the registers we could find and pressurized the duct system.  Surprise!  It was off the charts high.  First thought: perhaps the manometer was hooked up wrong or was on the wrong setting.  Nope.  Then perhaps we missed a register and that was why we couldn't pressurize the system.  After crawling all through the house; attic, upstairs, downstairs, basement, crawlspace, we couldn't find any open registers.

Next: get out the smoke generator so we could blow theatrical smoke in to the duct system and perhaps we could then see where it was blowing out.  Running around the house while the smoke generator was sending smoke in to the duct system, the whole place was slowly getting smoky.  Everywhere.  After working on this simple duct pressure test for 2 hours and going over everything multiple times, we finally had to face the fact that this beautiful duct and furnace system leaked like a SIEVE!  I mean huge leakage.  We had the duct pressure fan up to max and still barely were able to get a number of CFM leakage.  Ready? Over 1100 CFM25.  Perhaps that doesn't mean anything to you but we were expecting around 100 CFM from a new, correctly installed system and we got over 1100.  1100 CFM is another way of saying that the duct leakage was around 50%, meaning half, HALF, of the heat put out by the furnace was lost to the outdoors before it ever got inside.  And in a brand new system, no less.  I was floored.  Part of the report will emphasize that the contractor MUST get the HVAC sub-contractor back out there to do his own test and fix the system.  It won't be easy and there may be some metaphoric blood spilled but the owner has the right to a correctly installed system.

What an example of a beautiful façade hiding a lousy system.  Note to self: put aside your snap assumptions until the data is in with the real story.

From the DOE's Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy News

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory recently released a report on how governments and industry can spark homeowners to seek out home energy improvements, or retrofits, which save energy and money for consumers. Energy efficiency upgrades include energy saving improvements such as adding insulation, sealing air ducts, installing high-efficiency lighting, enhancing or replacing windows and doors, and replacing furnaces, heat pumps, water heaters, and air conditioners. Called "Driving Demand for Home Energy Improvements," this study will help ensure that the Department's investments in energy efficiency provide taxpayers with a high rate of return on their investments, deliver the maximum impact in local communities, and support a self-sustaining industry for residential energy efficiency improvements that will help grow America's economy and create new jobs.

The report is aimed primarily at policy makers and energy efficiency program designers, especially those new to the field. The authors examined 14 residential energy efficiency programs, conducted an extensive literature review, interviewed industry experts, and surveyed residential contractors to draw lessons from first generation programs. The report highlights emerging best practices, provides insights into how to increase the effectiveness of incentive programs for comprehensive home energy improvements, and suggests methods and approaches to use in designing, implementing, and evaluating these programs. The report's findings will guide future investments for DOE's residential energy efficiency programs and similar state and local programs. The report's conclusions include:

• It is not enough to provide information, programs must offer something people want: High home energy use is not currently a pressing issue for many people. It is more important to identify an issue that people are drawn to such as health, comfort, energy security, competition, or community engagement to attract interest.
• It is important to know your target audience: A blanket marketing campaign to reach "everyone" will likely be ineffective and expensive, especially at the start of a program. The more effective approach is to find and target early adopters and tailor messages directly to this important audience. Demographics can help program administrators better understand the market and select optimal strategies. Organizers can also segment the market by interest in hot issues such as health concerns or the likelihood of getting savings.
• Partner with trusted messengers: Larger subsidies and more voluminous mailings don't necessarily win over more customers. Programs can and should have a local face, with buy-in from community leaders. Tapping trusted parties, such as local leaders and local organizations, builds upon existing relationships and networks.
• Language is powerful: Avoid meaningless or negatively associated words like "retrofit" and "audit." Use words and ways of communicating that tap into customers' existing mental frames. Encourage program staff and contractors to use specific vivid examples, personalize the material wherever possible, frame statements in terms of loss rather than gain, and generate a public commitment from the homeowners.
• Contractors are program ambassadors: Contractors, more than any other party, are the people sitting across the kitchen counter making the final sales pitch to a homeowner – contractors are often the public face and primary sales force for the program. Most programs that succeed in performing a significant number of energy upgrades have worked closely with contractors. Conversely, poor first impressions or shoddy work by contractors can reflect poorly on the program.
• Make it easy, make it fast: Offer seamless, streamlined services such as packaged incentives, minimized paperwork, and pre-approved contractors. By making it simple, it will make the decision to invest in home energy improvements even easier.

The report concludes that success will require multifaceted approaches that acknowledge a deeper understanding of what motivates homeowners and what contractors are concerned about. Effective programs will tend to be tailored to the location, thoughtfully researched and piloted, personalized to the target audience, and more labor-intensive than simple incentive programs.

California takes another Giant Step

Just a few days ago, on Oct. 14, the California Public Utilities Commission introduced Engage 360 to the public.  Engage 360 is a new brand name and a web portal that the CPUC hopes the public will as a place to go for information an to participation in energy-saving activities.

Commissioner Grueneich of the CPUC says "This new name, Energy Savings Assistance Program, is clear and concise. Customers will immediately understand that this is a program that provides energy and cost savings, resulting in a true benefit for customers otherwise unable to take advantage of energy efficiency programs."

According to the new website:  Engage360.com, the program was developed through a year-long process based on an in-depth, collaborative approach between CPUC staff and the utilities. The brand is built on the core attributes of conveying progressive inspiration, meaningful change, and a trusted information source with the aim of galvanizing Californians to adopt more clean energy solutions throughout their lives.

Another part of the new program is called the Energy Savings Assistance Program. The CPUC acknowledged the importance of a single recognizable and trustworthy name for these programs.  The name, Energy Savings Assistance Program, will be used by all CPUC-regulated utilities for programs providing weatherization and energy efficient measures to low income households.

So far, the site is pretty simple with a mainly social feel but since there's quite a bit of government funding behind it, I expect it to move more in to public education on the hows and whys of energy efficiency and conservation.

Check it out and let me (and them) what you think.

Another voice is added

“Convincing millions of Americans to divert their time and resources into upgrading their homes to eliminate energy waste, avoid high utility bills, and help stimulate the economy is one of the great challenges facing energy efficiency programs around the country,” says Merrian Fuller of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBNL).


LBNL has a research and information dissemination program that has been doing some fantastic research into how to best get homeowners to buy into the deep energy reductions that are necessary for us to control our national energy policy.  Some of their more interesting findings - to me, anyway - are that the words 'audit' and 'retrofit' don't make homeowners weak in the knees like they do me.  They are better sold on comfort, protecting their home's structure and value, or that their entire community is coming together to do this work en masse.  And the best inducement is seeing their local community leaders have it done to their homes and then give voice publicly on how much better their home is.


And since I'm considering going door to door, covering an entire targeted neighborhood, I'm particularly interested in a report on how well that worked out for a few that have already done it.  Haven't got around to reading it yet but will. 


I'd like to see this on the front page of the newspaper, talked about by the morning commute radio personalities, and billboards beside the freeway.  This *must* cover deep reductions in the proper loading order, not just 'let's put solar on the roof'.  Solar companies that are cold calling everyone in town and trying to sell them a solar electric system without talking about what's more cost effective - efficiency improvements first - drive me nuts, and I hope this clarification is part of any and all or the advertising strategies that are getting near (Yah!).