Certify Green at the lowest cost!

My clients often wonder how much more it costs to build their next home green. My builders are always trying to get the best green product at the lowest end cost. That's the way it has been and that's the beauty of green. Competition helps drive prices down! As a member of the Homebuilders Green council (Columbia SC) we are always working to make going green as inexpensive as possible. To that end we have re-developed our own local Green building and remodeling program. Our program is now based on the NAHB Green building Standard ICC 700-2008. With this system you can get as green a home as any of the other nationally administed programs, but a reduced program cost.  That's how we roll in South Carolina, making green as affordable as possible! You can now get your home certified through this program for as low as $50 in administration fees! And if you've looked around at programs, that's incredibly cheap! Now you still have to build a green home and go through testing and verification to qualify, just like the other programs, but we feel like lowest cost is a good motivator. If you agree and are interested in this program contact Bin at www.columbiagreenbuilders.com to get your green project started! You can contact me at www.squareoneplans.com also!

Great green article

Got interviewed for a great article last month for Columbia Business Monthly on the topic of Green building in our area. Best in depth look at the progress we are making to date. I think the majority of the public will soon be exposed to how green building is giving us the tools to build and renovate homes in amazing new ways. Read the article and see how some of the front runners in this field are building vastly superior houses. After getting a feel for how well these new homes perform, maybe you will want a better performing home for your family! See the article at http://sctrend.net/

Home repair fix #1 Change your light bulbs

The easiest way to save power in your home is to change the way you think about light bulbs. To be honest when the compact fluorescent light bulb came on the scene I was not a big fan. But that was only until I read what was on the box. It said 13 watts=60 watts. That's the same amount of light for 22% of the power used. That's a lot, folks! Not only do you use less power, you get less heat, and that makes your air conditioner run less. So why would you not check this out and start saving money. They make lots of types, regular swirly bulbs, can light replacement bulbs, lights for your vanities, and lamps, even dimmable bulbs (although they don't dim all the way down yet.) You can get also get CFL lights for your floodlights outside. They make different colored light options too, I like the soft white ones at the home depot, because they are closest to the color of my old bulbs. I replace almost every bulb in the house with a couple of exceptions. I left the light over the master bath vanities alone, we don't leave them on when we're not in there. But I did do the kid's bathroom and closets because they leave lights on all the time. So if you can't change you kids, change their light bulbs and everybody will be happy and your power bill will be lower too!

Home repair tip #2 Missing or unsealed insulation

Of course older homes in the south are poorly insulated as a rule. If your home is an older one you might need insulation installed beneath your floor or some insulation added to your attic. Now, that said, you guys with insulation can still have some problems by today's standards. One of the coolest things I learned about insulation is the "sealed on six sides rule". When insulation goes in your walls there's usually only 3 1/2" of it. This insulation works a lot better if it's sealed on six sides. The top, bottom, sides, front, and rear. In a regular wall this happens normally. What you need to look for is places where this does not happen naturally. Places like "knee walls", bonus room walls in the attic, unfinished rooms, places like that. If you can go in your attic and see unfaced insulation on the walls in places, then you have this problem. The wind blowing around in your attic could cause this insulation to not properly do its job. To fix it you need to seal the backside of your insulation in these spots. You can do it with 1/2" foam board, 1/8" plywood, or even a roll of housewrap. Just seal it up so it's enclosed on all six sides. (I wouldn't use plastic sheeting for this, as moisture problems can arise in certain situations.) Once your wall insulation is sealed up tight it will begin to do its job properly and your power bills should go down!

Home repair fix #3 Window and Door leaks

Lots of people think they need new windows. Sometimes they do, but lots of times they may not. Replacing your windows is a big budget item for sure. When looking for leaks you have to remember it's not just the window, it's also how well the window or door frame fits in the wall. When they built your home chances are that the rough openings for the windows was an inch or more larger than the actual window unit. In the new green homes this space is sealed with spray foam for a tight fit, but on the older ones this is a major source of air leaks. While I don't recommend taking off the window trim to seal it up, at least run a clear bead of silicone around the edges. The sides are usually caulked well, but the top and bottom are usually overlooked by the painter and lots of air can come in there. Also check the door trim, the door frames and how well the doors seal up inside the jambs when the door closes. Might have a little work to do here as well. If the operable parts of the windows have leaks it might be time for some new windows, but lots of times it's not the window itself but how well it's sealed in the hole.

Home repair fix # 4 Chimney flue

When we hook the blower door up to homes for a test, lots of times the fireplace is the first problem area we find. Sometimes the damper has been left open. Sometimes it leaks. Some older homes don't have a damper at all. That's a problem. Find a way to seal up your fireplace when you're not using it and you can save a lot of money on your HVAC bill. I've seen a cool fireplace cap with a chain attached that seals it from the top. I've seen some inflatable bags that seal things up also. For those small coal burning fireplaces with a small flue you could even inflate a beach ball in there to close it up. Find the solution that works for your application and get started on it today. The less ways for air to get in and out of your home the lower your next power bill will be.

Home repair fix #5 Plumbing penetrations

Another place air leaks in and out of your home is places where the plumbing pipes go through the walls or the floor. If you can pull back the little cover, spray some foam in there to seal up the penetration. That's good for toilets and sinks where pipes go through the wall. For your tub you might have to crawl up under the house. When they put your tub in they probably cut a big square hole for it. Air can get in and out. Take some foam and maybe a piece of styrofoam cut to size and seal that thing up. While you're down there look around for any other pipes or wires going up through the floor and seal that stuff too. Your home will be a lot tighter and use a lot less energy.

Home repair fix #6 Sealing your outlets

What we've found about insulation is really cool. Insulation sealed in a box (six sides) works really well and insulation in a space where air blows through works really poorly. Now whatever the situation in your walls sealing up the holes makes them work lots better. You can't always get to the outside of the wall, it has siding or brick, or something in the way. But what you can do is seal up the holes on the inside. Outlets and light switches, and ceiling fixtures are places where air can and does come in and out when the pressure changes in your home. The fix is relatively easy, even for do it yourselfers. Got to the home depot or lowes and get some outlet gaskets. Take off the covers, put the gaskets in and you're good to go. Then take some clear silicone caulk and seal up around your leaky light fixtures. I've seen how much these things leak during a blower door test, and the good thing is that it's an easy fix.

Home repair fix #7 Sealing "can" lights

Man when I figured this one out I stayed awake for four or five nights wondering how we could have been so stupid for so long....Recessed or "can" lights can be notorious energy wasters because only recently has there been available anything like a "sealed" can light fixture. The new "green" homes like mine have them but I bet you don't. And depending on how many you have in your home, it could be leaking air like swiss cheese! I've fixed these leakers two different ways. For the ones that you can get to in the attic, we use a styrofoam minnow bucket, about $3.00 at wal-mart. Cut a slit in it where the electrical wire comes out, then foam it into place, and seal up the slit you cut also. Works like a champ! For the other ones, like in a floor or a vaulted ceiling, I've taken them apart from the bottom and sealed up all the holes with that aluminum duct tape. After you get done with each method I'd recommend changing out the bulbs to a compact fluorescent version. They look the same, but don't put out any heat like the old bulbs do. And they use 25% of the energy of the old bulbs too. You can spend about $12 a bulb instead of the $6 for the regular ones and get dimmable if you need them. They don't dim all the way, but they do dim about half way. And you fixed one of the biggest potential leaks in the house!

Home repair fix number 8 Bonus access door

Do you have a bonus room in your home (some guys call it a FROG finished room over garage). There are usually some attic access doors up there and they usually are big energy wasters. Here's what to look for. Check to see if they have gasket material around the edges to seal them up. See if they have insulation on the back. If they don't you can easily apply styro board to the back by gluing it on. Use spray foam or some construction adhesive that goes in your caulking gun. Last, check to see if the latches work right and hold the door tight when the wind blows.

Home repair fix #9 Attic Stair or Attic Fan

One of the worst leak offenders in your home is your attic stair. Does it shut correctly? Probably not. Does it have a gasket? Probably not. Insulated? Probably not. Big energy waster. Fix it by building a syrofoam box over the top. Put a handle in it so you can seal it tight from the bottom. You can glue the pieces together with foam, or caulk. If you have a whole house attic fan build a box for that too. You can remove the box if you ever want to use the fan, but when you aren't, it isn't leaking huge amounts of air into your attic. And by not removing the fan altogether, you don't have to fix the hole in the ceiling either.

Home repair fix # 10 "Leaks in the ductwork"

Your heating and AC system is the biggest power user in your home. Lot's of focus on replacing that "old" unit with a better, more efficient one. But did you know that a poorly installed HVAC system could be losing 20% of the air due to duct leakage? No wonder your unit can't keep up. Before you even think about replacing the unit have someone take a look at your ductwork for leaks. Places to look are where the unit is connected to the supply and return ducts, all of the joints, and where the ducts connect to the registers. Look for duct mastic, that's the thick grey goo that seals the joints. If your ducts don't have it you probably have a problem. Other places to look at are uninsulated trunk lines, joist pans,(that's where they make a duct out of your wall cavity, or floor system, instead of a four sided duct), and leaky air returns. Open where your filter grill goes, if you don't see mastic on the joints you could have a big leak. Fixing your HVAC ductwork might be the biggest step you can make toward fixing your power bill. Have your energy rater do a duct leakage test as soon as you can to find much your's may be leaking!

Top 10 ways to lower your power bill 50%

Staring a new series today, talking about things I've learned while helping people lower their power bills. Ive got 10 different things you can do to your home to turn it into an energy miser. Each day or so I'm going to post one on this site untill we've covered all ten. Some are things you can do yourself, and some are things that you might want to get outside help with. Everybody's home might not need everything on this list, but I bet you need at least a few to get your home comfortable and your power bill where you'd like it. The best way to find out which ones you need are by an energy inspection and an energy audit.

Sealing your ductwork

I have found that the biggest savings on your electrical bills can come from the simplest things. Every time you turn on the media these days there are ads that tell you to upgrade to a more efficient HVAC system. There's a lot to be said about investing in a better unit. What's not mentioned so much is the ductwork for the unit. But when you want to save money that's the place you want to look first. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, but there's a lot of leaky A/C ducts around Columbia, SC. Everytime a friend of mine complains about the power bill, I suggest that we look. Some of them have the ductwork under the house. We open up the crawl space door and stick out heads under there. Cool under here isn't it? That's your air conditioning leaking out of the ducts. Usually I get an incredulous stare. What? That's not the real reason my A/C isn't working right is it? Can't be! For you guys that have your ductwork in the attic, crawl up there and have a feel around the joints while it's running. You might actually feel the air coming out of the cracks. Now think. If the air is leaking out up here, and the return air comes from inside the house, and there's not quite enough.... then the extra would get sucked in from .... outside. Viola! Now you realize that the best HVAC system that leaks maybe 15% of the air into the wrong place, is at least 15% less efficient than it's suppossed to be. Horrifying, but fixable. They make a mastic that the HVAC guy uses. Just start painting it around the leaks in the pipes. Don't forget the inside of the return where your filter goes, and the gaps around where the ducts enter the conditioned part of the house, either in the ceiling or in the flooring. If you really want to get serious about it, an energy rater can test the integrity of the ductwork with a ductblaster test. A trained HVAC guy can seal it up, and then they test again to see how much better it is. Best money you may ever spend.