The SMUD Home Performance Program has just announced a significant increase in rebate levels! The basic Prescriptive Level that consists of air sealing, insulation and duct sealing went from $1,000 to $1,500. For the advanced Performance Level the following increases are now in effect: Improvement Level Old Rebate New Rebate 20% $2,000 [...]
Posts Tagged energy audit
After kind of a slow start last fall, the SMUD Home performance program part of the Energy Upgrade California program has been going in full swing for a few months now. I thought it would be interesting to share some results of the program by profiling a recent project I completed in Fair Oaks. In [...]
Last Friday I attended the contractor kickoff meeting for SMUD’s Home Performance Program. Promoted as a soft launch, between now and September SMUD staff will verify eligibility requirements of participating contractors and gear up for a media campaign involving print, online, television and radio advertisements. Here are the basics of how the program will work: [...]
Here’s a good article and graphic from Fine Homebuilding by Martin Holladay, Senior Editor of GreenBuildingAdvisor.com. It outlines a 10 step program that’s guaranteed to reduce your utility costs. It’s along the lines of the page found on this site, but includes a pyramid shaped graphic that’s kinda cool. As always the first step is a [...]
In the last few months we have heard a lot of discussion on upcoming home performance incentive programs that will be offering great opportunities for homeowners to increase the comfort and efficiency of their homes. Whether it’s PACE , utility programs or the Home Star legislation, interested consumers and members of my industry have been [...]
The next crucial step in our energy audit is combustion safety. What is combustion safety? Any condition in the combustion appliance zone (CAZ) that could be considered a health and safety problem. High ambient carbon monoxide levels or in flue gases, electrical or fire hazards and gas leaks all fall into this category. The CAZ The CAZ [...]
We have completed our client interview and are armed with a list of issues based on that conversation and our analysis of the homes energy usage patterns from the last 12 months utility bills. I use a data collection form I put together which is part checklist and part list of prompts that I use as [...]
The last post in this series discussed the benefits of a comprehensive energy audit as a starting point for any serious energy improvements. Not only will the information gathered assist in putting together an effective game plan, it will be required for most incentive programs including SMUD‘s Home Performance Program and Home Star. The [...]
With the emphasis on energy efficiency and upcoming local opportunities like SMUD’s Home Performance Program and AB811 funding, I thought it might be helpful to provide some information on what you can expect during an energy audit. Part of the reason being an audit will be required to take advantage of the larger incentive levels in most [...]
First lets look at some ways a remodel can affect your whole house. You might be planning to do a simple kitchen or bath remodel. You would never think that it could affect the other areas of the your home that aren’t included in the remodel scope of work. Many of the neighborhoods I [...]
Efficiency First is reporting this afternoon that the HomeStar legislation which would provide incentives for home energy retrofit projects passed the U.S. House of Representatives today with bipartisan support. The HomeStar Energy Retrofit Act of 2010 (H.R. 5019) passed with a vote of 246-161. Though this is a major milestone for this legislation and the [...]
Infrared Thermal Imaging
May 3
Originally developed by the U.S. military as an advanced weapon sighting technology FLIR or Forward Looking Infra Red thermal imagers were eventually adapted by firefighters to aid in identifying hidden fires in walls and looking for victims in low-visibility smoke environments. Unlike x-ray technology infrared does not see through a material but graphically measures subtle [...]
Ductwork Testing
Apr 29
Based on field testing conducted statewide over a number of years, the California Energy Commission estimates the average duct leakage in California homes regardless of size and vintage to be 30%.
This translates into an increase in heating and cooling costs of approximately 20% for the average home.
