Plug-in Meter

If you’ve ever hung around with management types, you’ve probably heard Peter Drucker’s famous saying: “what gets measured gets managed.”  If Drucker were alive today, he’d probably have a home energy monitoring system.

I can testify to the truth of Drucker’s statement from personal experience.  When cars didn’t provide any kind of feedback about gas mileage, I didn’t really think about how the way I drove affected how much gas I had to buy.  But when I got a car with a monitor that showed the MPG I had averaged over the last 30 minutes (in 5 minute increments, no less), that had a big impact on how I drove.  No more jack rabbit starts, and no more driving 80 on the interstate.  I couldn’t ignore it anymore, and I changed my behavior.

I’m sure the same would happen if I got a home energy monitoring system.  I wouldn’t be able to ignore the many thoughtless things I do around the house, like leaving lights on or lowering the AC, if my house had a power consumption display like the one in my car.  Seeing the consequences of what I do at home would almost certainly change my behavior.

Research bears this out.  Studies, mostly done by power companies, show that providing real-time energy usage information can result in real savings.   For these trials, the power companies installed special prototype power meters that could report on energy usage as frequently as every 20 seconds.   What they learned is that this approach is effective: tests of these approaches have shown savings of as much as 20% simply because people see what’s going on and change their behavior.

There’s even a story of how one gadget freak, obsessively checking his home energy usage using his smart phone, discovered that his teenage daughter was throwing a big party while he was traveling overseas.  The dad saw that his home power usage had jumped suddenly even though the house was empty — or so he thought.

But here in Atlanta there’s no easy way to monitor your power usage.  The Georgia Power Company offers what it calls a “Smart Energy Report,” but that averages your usage across an entire month, which is much too slow.  It may help you decide you need better insulation, but it won’t really change your day-to-day behavior.  Google and Microsoft each had opened businesses aimed at home energy management, but both companies decided the market wasn’t ready and shuttered their ventures.

That brings us to DIY solutions.  A few examples are listed below.  They range from the small and easy to the large and expensive (as in requiring an electrician to install), but if you want home energy management at all, you’ll have to do it yourself for now.

Easy:  one-outlet power monitors are widely available, not very expensive, and easy to use.  For example, the Kill-A-Watt meter (love that name!) simply plugs into an individual electrical outlet and monitors appliances and other things plugged into that outlet.  If you want to see how much that old freezer in the basement is costing you, this will do it.  Kill-A-Watt meters come in a variety of flavors (basic, wireless, simple  display, elaborate display, etc.) and are available through Amazon, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and many other retailers.  Prices begin at about $20 and go up from there depending on the features.

Midrange:  there are whole-house power monitors that you can hook up to your electrical panel (we’d recommend hiring an electrician) and which work a little like a Kill-A-Watt meter for your entire house.  Probably the best known of these is TED: The Energy Detective, which hooks up to your breaker panel and provides real-time data such as kilowatts per hour, projected power bill based on usage, monitoring of specific appliances, etc.  Black and Decker has now come out with a power monitor for the entire house as well, which I consider to be a good sign for the future.  Price range: from around $150 to several hundred dollars and up.

High-End:  at the cutting edge are so-called “smart home” systems that monitor power usage, provide remote control of individual outlets, and can automatically run your appliances at off-peak hours for cheaper rates.  If you had solar panels (and if you could sell it back to the power company), these systems would manage that, too.   To see what that kind of future looks like, check out Agilewaves.  Smart home systems are complex, highly customized, and pricewise the sky’s the limit.

Of course, someday we’ll all be connected to a smart grid that will manage all of this for us automatically.  But until that day (which your children’s children might or might not see), you’re more or less on your own.

by Rob Aaron

Jo's Attic Before

Jo's Attic After

She used 9 inches of fiberglass batt insulaton that had an R value of 30.  The insulation was laid between her ceiling joists.  The job took about half a day to finish.

Jo just got her March gas bill.  There were twice as many heating degree days in March 2011 than in March 2012 and when the gas use is adjusted for that, Jo’s gas bill was about 75% of last March’s.

Natural Gas Used in March 2011 Compared to March 2012

If this spring is any indication of what is in store for us temperature-wise this summer, it would be an excellent investment to insulate our attic and save electricity on cooling bills this summer.

Greening Neighborhoods got a contribution of can-light insulation covers from CanCoverIt.  These clever pop-up insulated boxes are designed to be placed over can lights that extend through the ceiling and into attic spaces to be insulated with batt insulation.

CanCoverIt Provides Safe Insulation Above Can Lights

If we cover can-lights over with batt insulation, they risk overheating and catching fire.  If we place insulation so the can-lights poke through the insulation, air leaks are caused limiting the efficacy of the insulation.  The CanCoverIt provides insulation while leaving enough space around the light so a fire hazard is avoided.  As a special incentive, Greening Neighborhoods will give away a limited number of covers on a first come basis for those of us who have can lights and are going to insulate our attics.

Contact george@greeningneighborhoods.com if you can use the CanCoverIt.

SHINE offers up to $3,500 in rebates toward qualified energy saving improvements to our homes.  Here’s how it works.

• Get an energy audit from a City approved contractor.  Receive a 50% rebate on the audit cost.
• A prioritized list of energy saving improvements will be given to you from the audit results.
• When you make improvements suggested by the audit, starting with the ones that will save the most energy, you will receive up to $3,500 in cash rebates for insulation, air leak sealing, and replacement of old, inefficient heating/cooling equipment.

A number of Greening Neighborhoods members have taken advantage of SHINE.  The graph below shows the savings Carolyn, Jane and Dave realized.

Dave and Jane reduced their heating bills be 35% after making recommended improvements.  Carolyn saved a whopping 70%.  During the energy audit a two foot by two foot hole was found behind her refrigerator that was allowing heated air to escape outside.  The hole was properly repaired.

Here’s a way to get an idea of how much gas we are using to heat our homes.  Thanks to prudent energy saving improvements made over the years one of our neighbors lives in a very energy efficient two bed room, two bath, 1,500 square foot home.  His December gas bill was 78 therms.  After deducting an estimated 5 therms for cooking and heating water, he divided 73 therms by the size of his home, 1,500 square feet, to get his gas use per square foot, 0.049 therms.  73/1,500 = 0.049 therms per square foot.

We can do the same for our homes.  Take the December, 2011 gas bill and find out how many therms we used.  Deduct 2.5 therms per family member for cooking and heating water.  Divide that number by the size of the heated rooms in our homes.  Therms/size of home = therms per square foot.  Let us know how your home compares to 0.049 therms per square foot.

If you miss out on the SHINE program, click on the NRG SVRS site for a free energy audit offered to Greening Neighborhoods members.

To do your own energy audit click on Greening Neighborhoods’ “Energy Audit” tab.

Many of us like to sleep in cooler conditions, so by setting our thermostats back 10 to 15 degrees for 8 hours we will be rewarded with a good night’s sleep and savings of 10% on our yearly bill.  It is a common misconception that energy is wasted by turning down the thermostat that much and then heating the house back up to normal.  Not so.

To get accustomed to living a little cooler than what we’re used to, try backing into cooler living by lowering the temperature 1 degree for a week.  This will  give ourselves time to adjust to a new “normal” temperature.  Then try doing it again for the following week.

Fortunately, these fixes are inexpensive and easy to put in place.

There are two common ways to reduce those costs by insulation — Fiberglass batt insulation and closed cell spray insulation.  There are advantages and disadvantages to each.

Fiberglass is less expensive, but you need twice the thickness of fiberglass to get the same insulating value as spray insulation.

Fiberglass insulation can be put in place easier than closed cell spray insulation and, with a little care, can be a do-it-yourself project .  It can be laid between the ceiling joists in the attic.

The foam insulation is a two part process where two chemicals are mixed and sprayed on with special equipment.  There are do-it-yourself kits, but if it were me I’d hire a professional.

6 inches of spray insulation being applied

The foam insulation, when applied correctly, seals air leaks and is a vapor barrier.  It can be applied under the roof sheathing leaving the attic space insulated and usable for an additional room.  (Fiberglass insulation can be used to insulate between roof rafters rather than being laid between the ceiling joists, but it has only half the resistance to heat loss than spray.)

Six inches of spray insulation or 12 inches of fiberglass insulation will give us an R36 insulation value.  Either way our energy savings will be noticeable and we can feel good about reducing green house gas emissions.

Find out about Atlanta’s SHINE rebate program.

Find out about Decatur’s Wise rebate program.

Insufficient Insulation

If there is less than 6 inches of insulation in your attic – and 6 inches is the minimum – you are paying more for winter heating than you should.  Many energy conscious builders are now recommending 16 inches of fiber glass batt insulation.

Last winter three of our neighbors insulated their attics and compared their February 2011 energy bills with those of February 2010.  Their savings were significant.

In Carolyn’s case a hole in her wall was discovered behind her refrigerator that was letting heat escape.  With the hole repaired and insulation added, her heating bill was reduced by 2/3.  For Jane and Dave, their bills were reduced by 1/3.

There are still rebates available for adding insulation.  In Atalanta check out the SHINE program http://www.atlantaga.gov/mayor/shine_080410.aspx.  In Decatur go to Decatur Wise http://www.decaturga.com/index.aspx?page=595.

George

As the days are getting cooler our utility bills shift from high electrical costs to high gas costs as we switch from air conditioning to heating our homes with gas.   

As part of preparation for winter check your chimney damper to make sure it is closed.  I learned this the hard way when, after three years in our new home, I discovered my damper had been left open for three heating seasons.  This meant that I was spending a lot of money sending heated air straight up the chimney.  In my case, my use of gas went from 258 therms for the month when I discovered the open damper to 131 therms for the same month the following year when my damper was closed.  

Chimney balloons that seal off the chimney more effectively than just a closed damper are available.  Here’s a web site where you can get one plus learn a lot more scary things that can happen if your damper is open or doesn’t close tightly.  http://www.chimneyballoon.us/chimneyballoon.html  (Greening Neighborhoods doesn’t endorse this site, so investigate before you buy).  Just remember to open your damper every time you light a fire and close it again when the fire is out. 

For more tips on winter weatherizing visit Greening Neighborhoods, Lower Heating and Cooling Bills.

Electric Meter

We should all have our June electric bills by now and it’s time to see how your electric use compares with your neighbors and with the rest of the folks in the country.

If you haven’t entered the number of kilowatt hours (kWh) you used in June click on the red Baseline Energy Tracker and enter your data.

Next week we will announce the households with the lowest power use.  Remember, your name will not be disclosed.

When we investigated it turned out that there was no insulation in the attic.  R30 insulation would cost her $0.83 per square foot for materials.  Electricity for June cost $0.13 per square foot — way too much.  Based on other neighborhood data, adding insulation to our neighbor’s attic would reduce her electric bill by one-half.  And, the other good thing is that her heating bills will be reduced during the winter and for years to come.

R30 Batt Insulation

The insulation will pay for itself in less than two years.

George