Energy efficient doors and windows can have a big impact on reducing your utility bills

Home buyers are going green, and research shows that they are even willing to pay more for green homes in a down economy! Especially because buying a green home usually means saving a lot of green on utility bills. With the rising costs of energy, savvy homeowners are paying more upfront to save more over time. A two-year study by Carson Mathews of Atlanta Fine Homes reveals that EarthCraft House certified homes sell for more money and sell faster than standard built homes. EarthCraft House is a residential green building program designed to address the climate conditions of the Southeast. A blueprint for creating and maintaining energy- and resource-efficient living environments, the EarthCraft House program is intended for single-family detached homes, townhomes and duplexes.

According to the 2009 and 2010 Atlanta Green Homes Sales Report, homes certified by EarthCraft, LEED for Homes and ENERGY STAR sold for 3.4% more than standard built homes and sold 28 days faster. To find a sampling of builders embracing green, home shoppers can turn to Atlanta Real Estate Forum for energy efficient home builders, the communities they build in and their latest news.

Active adult home builder, Windsong Properties has partnered with ENERGY STAR® to build energy efficient, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-approved homes in their Somerset community located in Woodstock, Ga. The home builder has built 50 ENERGY STAR® homes using eco-friendly products such as radiant barrier roof sheathing, LP® TechShield®, Silver Line windows with low-emission glass and high-efficiency Lennox HVAC home comfort systems. These homes are beneficial for homeowners as well as the environment. Proven to provide homeowners with less maintenance and lower utility bills, these energy efficient homes also improve air quality by producing less harmful greenhouse emissions. With an estimated 2 million ENERGY STAR® qualified homes expected in the United States by 2012, this trend is clearly not going out of style.

Ashton Woods Homes builds eco-friendly single-family homes and townhomes in the Atlanta area through its PowerHouse Green with Environments for Living program. This program ensures buyers are purchasing homes that are safe and green, with feature such as CFL lighting, water management fixtures, fresh-air ventilation, controlled humidity and more. Home buyers can expect to save up to 45 percent on energy costs compared to a same-size home without the PowerHouse Green features.

Taking a bit of a different twist on green, Traton Homes has focused on reducing the waste during the framing stage of building homes. By utilizing a highly engineered method of cutting and allocating wood based on Traton’s floor plan requirements, Traton’s framing process has virtually eliminated waste. When cuts do require waste, the excess pieces are used in other areas of the building process, resulting in an environmentally responsible and efficient use of left over materials.

There are a wide variety of green programs and energy efficient homes for new home shoppers to choose from. Thanks to Atlanta Real Estate Forum, a popular Atlanta real estate blog, for sharing this article! You can find green resources and homes on their website.



Check your insulation

By far the largest single chunk of the average electricity bill goes toward heating and cooling your home, and proper insulation can make a sizeable difference.  The DoE estimates that only 20% of homes built before 1980 are sufficiently insulated, so it’s worth examining your insulation. However, be aware that many homes built before 1980 also contain asbestos, as it added heat resistance to the construction materials it was combined with.  Inhalation of asbestos fibers can lead to lung diseases or cancer.  Symptoms of mesothelioma can remain latent until the disease is past the point of treatment.  If you suspect you may have fraying or damaged insulation in your home, call a licensed asbestos abatement team to remove it.  Insulation and fireproofing materials in the U.S. now contain no more than 1% asbestos, but it is still best to check the packaging to make sure – mesothelioma symptoms are serious.

Test for air leaks



Cracks and gaps in or around doors, windows, electrical boxes and outlets, plumbing, ceiling fixtures and attic hatches can leak cooled or heated air into the surrounding environment, draining money and energy.  A simple way to check for leaks on a windy day is to hold a lit stick of incense or other smoke-producing item near the suspected crack.  If the smoke is blow horizontally, there is a leak.  Dirty spots on insulation, ceilings, and carpeting can also indicate air leaks.

Consider your windows

Double-paned windows with high-performance glass and an Energy Star label can go a long way toward improving energy efficiency.  However, the cost of replacing all the windows in the house is often prohibitive, so you may consider other methods of minimizing energy loss.  Those in cold climates can install tight-fitting window shades or storm windows, or tape heavy-duty clear plastic to the interior of windows.  Those in warm climates can install light-reflective white window shades or sun-controlling films, as well as remember to close curtains on south and west-facing windows while the sun is up.

Remember your chimney

If you have a chimney, keep the flue damper shut when there is no fire in the fireplace.  Otherwise, it’s essentially just a large hole where air can escape.  If the flue is old, consider investing in an inflatable chimney balloon to seal the gaps during long periods of non-use. A chimney is another location where asbestos has been found in your home. Due to the durable and heat resistant nature of this fiber, it has been used to line chimneys for many decades. Mesothelioma life expectancy is extremely poor and not an issue you want to take chances with.

Replace (or Reduce Your Use of) Appliances

Refrigerators, clothes washers, and clothes dryers top the list of electricity-draining appliances.  When shopping for new appliances, look for the Energy Star label that denotes energy efficiency.  If your budget does not allow for new appliances, find ways to use the ones you have a little less often.  Let clothes air dry, wash dishes by hand, cook with the microwave instead of the oven.  Turn all appliances – even the computer – off when not in use.

Adding a few simple green habits to your day-to-day routine can make a big difference in your energy consumption, quality of life, and finances.

Thanks to Krista Peterson for guest blogging this article!

In the meantime, homeowners need to “do their homework.” The bill offers two rebate programs and each one has unique requirements:

The Silver Star program provides a $1,000 rebate for each retrofit described in the bill. The maximum amount paid out will be $3,000 or 50% of the total cost, whichever is lower. For example, if a homeowner spends a total of $4,000 on eligible retrofits, they will get $2,000 or 50% back as a rebate. If they spend $8,000 on eligible retrofits, they would only receive $3,000 in rebates instead of $4,000 (which would be 50% of the cost).

To qualify for the Gold Star program, homeowners must reduce their total home energy consumption by 20%. A $3,000 rebate will be rewarded for this reduction. Homeowners can receive an additional $1,000 for each additional 5% reduction, up to a total rebate of $8,000 or 50% of the total retrofit cost. Rebates may be provided for any of the retrofits listed under the Silver Star program, or for any other energy-saving measure, including: home energy management systems, high-efficiency appliances, highly reflective roofing, awnings, canopies, and similar external fenestration (window) attachments, automatic boiler water temperature controllers, energy-efficient wood products, insulated vinyl siding, and mechanical air circulation and heat exchangers in a passive-solar home.

The Home Star bill also outlines 13 different types of retrofits eligible for funding. Again, each one has unique requirements and rebate amounts. Fortunately there are many online resources that provide details. For example, Estimating Software Advice has created an easy-to-read table that lists the 13 retrofits, along with their eligibility details:

Click here to continue reading their report! And thanks to Houston of Software Advice for sharing this. I’ve been thinking of some energy improvements I’d like to do to my house – maybe I’ll take care of those this fall!

Of the over 4,300 people who have earned the Green Designation, approximately 60 of them are property managers. Even though NAR’s Green Designation is only a 18-hour course, it can lay an important foundation in sustainability for property manager.

And how can green property management make a significant impact on our environment? Chris explains:

One of the main reasons why green property management is becoming increasingly important is the fact that buildings account for 50-80% of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Many experts are pointing to reducing building greenhouse gas emissions as the most effective and least cost-prohibitive way to fight global warming.

In addition, there are approximately 300,000 property managers in the United States, managing over 90 million tenants. That’s nearly one-third of the U.S. population depending on another person to manage their building’s sustainability.

Instead of just one home owner responsible for greening one home, a property manager has the opportunity to engage many residents in the practices of sustainable living and reduce their carbon footprint through community-wide changes to properties.

Read the full article here: Ask your landlord about their green credentials.

Metal roofs come in many styles, above being one of the more tradtitional looks. (Photo courtesy of Whirlwind Steel.)

Every roof has a lifespan and (almost) every homeowner or homeowner’s association faces the prospect of replacing their roof at some point. So why not go green? Environmentally-friendly metal roofs now comes in all sorts of styles that emulate a traditional roof and they can reduce summer energy bills by up to 40 percent. A reflective metal roof has a longer lifespan, too, lasting a lifetime versus a traditional roof that lasts an average of 17 years.

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that we spend $40 billion in the U.S. on cooling our buildings, which is staggering. Hopefully people will continue to go the route of metal roofs and green roofs (I would love to have a green roof one day… maybe I’ll flatten my attic and install one upstairs…).

Metal roofs can also emmulate other types of shingled or slate roofs, as seen above. (Photo courtesy of Mel Harris Co, Inc.)

Not faced with the prospect of replacing your roof any time soon? You can also paint it white for the same effect, as recently encouraged by U.S. Secretary of Energy Dr. Chu.

You can read more about metal roofs by clicking for this article!

Local Decatur Business Offers Home Performance Assessments

May 22, 2009 –Considering that 45% of Decatur and 61% of Atlanta homes were built before 1960, it’s not surprising that local homeowners are often faced with drafty windows and doors and leaky ducts, often resulting in high energy bills.

Renewal System Solutions – sister company of Decatur’s Renewal Design-Build – offers Home Performance with Energy Star, a comprehensive home assessment that reveals where and why a home is not energy efficient. With diagnostic equipment, Renewal can pinpoint a home’s problems and provide the homeowner with solutions. Home improvement services include: energy efficient renovations, HVAC systems, duct systems, crawl space encapsulation, insulation and air sealing, replacement window and doors, and combustion safety. Improvements to the home result in improved energy efficiency and air quality, and lower utility bills.

“Twenty percent of the energy produced in the United States is consumed by homes,” says Renewal CEO Peter Michelson. “By evaluating and making improvements to our homes, we as homeowners are protecting the environment by conserving energy, and we are saving money by cutting costs on our utility bills. It’s a win-win all around.”

Homeowners will not only save on utility bills, but they can also get cash in their pockets through rebates and tax credits. Georgia Power is now offering its customers Home Performance rebates, and there is a multitude of federal tax credits available to those homeowners making green improvements to their homes in 2009 and 2010. For more information on getting your home tested, visit www.RenewalSystemSolutions.com.

For information on RSS or RDB, call 404.378.6962 or visit www.RenewalDesignBuild.com or www.RenewalSystemSolutions.com. You can also contact: Joe Thomas, home performance consultant, at 404.378.6962 or Joe@RenewalSystemSolutions.com

World's largest solar tower outside of Sevilla, Spain. (Image courtesy of Abengoa Solar, which I then borrowed from the TreeHugger website.)

Spain has debuted the largest solar tower in the world that now supplies 10,000 homes with renewable energy! The impressive farm of mirrored solar panels, called heliostats, all point at a 532-foot tall tower which collects the solar radiation and creates steam that then runs through a turbine to generate the clean electricity. Each heliostat is 1,291 square feet and there are 1,255 of them. Abengoa Solar, the creators of PS20 and its little sister PS10, estimates that the two solar farms will prevent the ejection of 12,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. Click here to read the article and readers’ comments on land usage and weighing the costs of using land for solar versus corn or coal or nuclear. Some readers did a great job crunching numbers!

Even around Atlanta, the “City of Trees,” I’ve seen more solar panels popping up on people’s houses. If developers continue to insist on clear-cutting for new subdivisions, maybe they’ll at least consider implementing a renewable energy source since these neighborhoods are all bright sunshine with no trees. And how about more green roofs on new construction housing, too??

Thanks to my brother Byron for passing along this article he found on www.TreeHugger.com!