- Appliances: use less power
- Beware vampire appliances
- Commercial building energy assessments
- Commercial building incentives
- Common mistakes
- Gifts that save energy all year
- Heating and coolling savings
- Holiday lighting: festive & efficient
- Insulation types: pros & cons
- Kitchens: ways to save
- Lower your utility bills
- Path to Energy Efficiency
- Programmable Thermostats
- Radon: test after energy upgrade
- Refrigerator: retire for quick payback
- Resolutions to conserve energy and save money
- Seal duct leaks
- Stack Effect Influences Energy Use
- Systems in house work together
- Wash clothes in cold water
- Water heating bills
- Where to make home improvements
- Windows: repair, don't replace
Energy assessment shows where to make home improvements
Your Path to Energy Savings
By Shawn Lindabury, Special to The Ithaca Journal
November 8, 2010
Upgrade your home for big savings on energy costs. A home energy assessment identifies where your home is losing energy and suggests cost-effective improvements to reduce energy costs by 20-30 percent. Subsidies, loans and tax credits help make the recommended alterations and improvements affordable.
For best results, hire a Building Performance Institute-certified (BPI) contractor to conduct the energy assessment. Many of the financial incentives require the work be done by a BPI contractor.
The contractor evaluates insulation levels and determines the efficiency of heating systems, household appliances and lighting. A special camera identifies heat loss through walls and areas that need insulation. Air leaking from the house is measured using a blower door test, which uses a large fan affixed to an exterior doorway to show air infiltration. The blower door test is a critical part of the assessment.
Energy assessments also evaluate indoor air quality. Resulting recommendations can limit your family's exposure to radon, mold, carbon monoxide and other indoor air pollutants. The contractor provides a report detailing energy and air quality improvements, costs, the amount of energy that can be saved and estimating the payback period.
Energy assessments typically cost between $300 and $500. This cost is usually refunded if the contractor is hired to do work on the home. Income-qualified homeowners can take advantage of free assessments and financing for making the recommended upgrades. Landlords and renters may also qualify.
Cooperative Extension is offering free "Ask the Expert" panels of local BPI contractors so residents can learn about energy assessments and the financial incentives. Pre-registration is required for the panels that will be held November 16th at the Lansing Community Library and November 30th at the Dryden Fire Department from 7pm-9pm. Call 272-2292 or e-mail scl36@cornell.edu.
Visit ccetompkins.org/energy for a list of BPI contractors and information on financial incentives.
Shawn Lindabury is on the Energy Team of Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County. The team's Your Path to Energy Savings appears weekly in The Journal during the heating season. For more information on how to reduce your energy consumption, call 272-2292 or visit ccetompkins.org/energy.
