Home Energy Efficiency & Infrared Thermal Imaging in Connecticut CT

Energy Efficiency, Putting the Cart Before the Horse pdf

By James Quarello

Whenever taking on a major project the best thing to start with is a plan. Planning reduces mistakes and waste. The same principal should be applied when making your home more energy efficient. Having a plan will give direction on which improvements should be done first to gain the greatest efficiency and save the most money.

As an energy auditor my experience has been some folks think with their hearts. They want to do the right thing for the planet and that’s great. Being more energy efficient is definitely being Green. But sometimes they are misdirected in their quest, starting out without a plan, letting their hearts lead them to do the “right thing.”

Let me give you an example. As an energy auditor I do audits for a solar panel installation company. I have audited about 30 – 40 homes this year which have had solar panels installed. Some of these homes were extremely energy inefficient. Some with antiquated heating systems that were not well maintained, little or no insulation and drafty old windows and doors to name a few of my findings. But they all had solar panels supplying for the most part just a portion of their electricity use for each month.

As most everyone knows solar panels are not cheap even with subsidies. A 4 kW array can cost the homeowner in the neighborhood of $20,000. Some of that money could be used, for example, to seal and insulated the home making it more energy efficient thus yielding essentially the same result as installing the solar panels, to reduce energy use and greenhouse gases.

In fact $20,000 could more than cover the cost of all the repairs and energy upgrades in a vast majority of the homes that are audited. A recent client’s home that was audited (with solar panels) was found to need $14,000 worth of energy improvements. Implementing these improvements was estimated to result in an annual reduction of greenhouse gases equivalent to not driving a car for 13 months with an estimated annual energy savings of $2038.

Now I am 100% behind solar panels, wind turbines and geothermal heating systems. They are technologies we should embrace and use as much as possible. But they are not solutions to an energy inefficient home. These technologies should be used at an appropriate phase in a homes energy improvement plan.

As I said earlier people want to do the right thing and sometimes think with their hearts. But being pragmatic can be good for our hearts as well as our planet. The most important thing to do before deciding to put solar panels on the roof or changing out old windows is to acquire a plan.

An energy audit is often the best way to begin forming an energy improvement strategy for a home. Through the audit process the biggest deficiencies can be identified and a plan formed for improving the efficiency of the home. In this way the home is improved sensibly yielding the greatest reduction in energy use while saving the homeowner the most money and reducing the maximum amount of greenhouse gas emissions….

And it’s good for your heart and mind.

top of page

Saving Energy, Correctly Sizing Heating Systems pdf

By James Quarello

As an energy auditor being conscious of how large the heating system is relative to the homes size is extremely important. After all it is the heating system that is costing the homeowner quite a bit of money to operate. Not to mention keeping them warm. The problem is that most system, especially older systems, are often greatly over sized for the job. In fact it was standard practice in the past to oversize the heating system by as much as 30%!

The rule of thumb, not a precise measure, is generally 50,000 gross BTUs of heating per 1000 square feet of living space for older, minimally insulated homes. Today's newer homes can be as low as 30,000 gross BTUs per 1000 sq. ft. or even lower!

Getting back to older homes, the house may have a "newer" heating system that replaced an old dinosaur, but the new system was sized by simply replacing it with the same size unit as the original. So the new system may be more efficient, but is still using more energy than needed to provide adequate heat for the home.

Another and more important consideration is upgrades to the thermal envelope. In other words has the home been better insulated. Increasing insulation, replacing old leaky windows and sealing air leaks will lower the amount of required heating system BTUs. In fact these improvements should be made first before installing a new boiler or furnace.

Consider an example of a home I audited recently. The home was a 1950s split level with 1600 square feet of living space. Only 1250 sq. ft. was heated. A lower level family room was not conditioned, but could easily be incorporated into the heating system with some simple plumbing work. The gross BTUs of the boiler was 172,000. Using the rule of thumb above for an older home, the system should be around 62,500 BTUs for the conditioned space. Adding in the family room would bring the number to 80,000. Quite a large difference between what was installed and what was actually needed.

As I mentioned above if the home owners follow the recommendations in the audit report concerning adding insulation and sealing air leaks, it is conceivable that a new system could be even smaller.

So before deciding to change your heating system here are a few points to consider:

Get an energy audit. This will provide insight on where the home is most deficient and a plan on where to begin sensibly improving the home cost effectively.
Before installing a new heating system improve the homes thermal envelope by making the necessary improvements outlined in your energy audit report.
Be sure your heating system installer is considering all the improvements to your home when sizing the new system, not just going by the old system size.

There are always variables that can affect the sizing of any homes system. Therefore the rule of thumb is not a substitute for a competent, licensed heating specialist and the proper heating system size estimating tools. It can however give some idea as to where the size of the system should be in relation to the homes size and can raise a red flag for an educated homeowner.

top of page

Windows, a Clearer View on Energy Savings pdf

By James Quarello

Windows are one of the most noticeable parts of our homes. They let us see the world outside and let light inside. They are also a gaping hole in the thermal envelope of our homes. A significant amount of heat is lost through the windows. This is because glass is an extremely poor insulator. Due to this characteristic windows have evolved to the thermal multi-paned types today. But is replacing your "old" windows with a modern thermally superior variety going to make a huge difference in your utility costs? The short answer, very likely no.

In my experience clients have related claims by window installation companies of energy savings of as high as 40 percent by installing new replacement windows. This number was very likely derived from the chart to the right from the Efficient Window Collaborative. The problem with the chart is the base line window is not a realistic example. An aluminum framed, single paned window is not common. In fact I can never recall ever seeing one in the seven years I have been inspecting homes, although I have seen numerous thermal double paned aluminum windows. The baseline example in the chart would be the absolute worst thermally performing window possible. A more realistic and accurate example would have been a wood framed single paned window.

But let's say you already have thermal double paned windows. They are old, worn and drafty. If you replace the old thermal windows with new double low-E windows the expected savings is about 5 percent according to the above chart. That is the difference between double clear (green bar) and double clear with low-E (orange bar).

Let's take another scenario; a single paned window outfitted with storm windows. This configuration is a double paned window but not thermally sealed. In the infrared image at right the window on the left is not equipped with a storm while the right window has a storm in place. As is very apparent the difference in temperature is great. In fact it is approximately 15 º F. What you may also notice is the storm window decreases the drafts. The left window has a cloth draft preventer along the center seam. That is also the coldest part of the window.

These windows are original to this 1914 built home. So you would believe that replacing the windows in this home would be very beneficial. The truth is through the assistance of a complete energy audit the windows were found to be a poor improvement. There were 27 windows of this general size in the home. Replacement cost was estimated at $9500. The estimated yearly savings was $320. The time to payoff the windows through realized energy savings was 30 years.

One parameter that can not be estimated is the draftiness of the windows. The air infiltration through leaky old windows can be a significant factor in comfort and energy costs. Therefore it could be reasonably inferred that the figures just given may be considered conservative. That due to the elimination of drafts the energy savings and certainly the comfort level of the home would be greater than estimated.

Here's another example. The window in the IR image at right is 12 years old. It is a thermal double paned window. This window is a low quality, "spec" window and is substantially leaking air causing further heat loss and discomfort. Notice at the bottom of the image is the baseboard heater. The quality of this window is so poor that the heat has almost no effect on the glass.

The next IR image is of a good quality replacement thermal double paned window. Notice the glass is about the same temperature as the walls around the window. What is worthy of mentioning here is the heat is forced air with the duct located well above and to right of these windows.

The cold area at the base of windows is actually from aluminum foil the home owner placed there due to a perceived draft. The foil is reflective to IR and as such appears colder.

As is evident replacing windows to gain energy savings is a complex process. Changing windows can be in some instances a bad energy saving choice.

The tag at the right from the National Fenestration Rating Council should be on any window you are considering purchasing. Manufacturers voluntarily submit their products to NFRC for certification. However in order to meet the ENERGY STAR® criteria a product must be NFRC certified.

A detailed explanation of each criteria found on the NFRC Label can be found on their web site @ www.nfrc.org/label.aspx

Before considering replacing windows in your home an energy audit would be highly recommended. Through this process from an independent auditing service the cost effectiveness of a planned window replacement can be sensibly evaluated. If it is determined that a window replacement makes economic sense for your home, following the quality parameters from the NFRC will aid in finding the highest performing window for your energy improvement budget.

top of page