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February 26, 2008
Florida: a non-sunshine state of mind
I'm a pretty easy-going guy most of the time. But, after spending a week in Florida I found my hackles were starting to get up over the lack of solar domestic water heaters. Hey Sunshine State, what's the deal?
Attending the International Builders Show in Orlando was a great excuse to escape the sub-freezing temps of Pittsburgh. Once in Orlando, Stacy and I decided to spend a little time touring the area, checking out the beaches, and basically taking in the sunny scene. And sunny it was! Even though the locals may find high temps in the low 70's to be a bit of a bracer, to us it was de-light-ful.
All that sunshine got me thinking about solar water heaters, how great they are, how much energy they save, the rapid return on investment, and the overall common sense logic behind using solar radiation to power domestic hot water. But as we drove from destination to destination, I was at first surprised, and then confused, and finally confounded at how few solar panels I saw on the roof tops. Even new, large, developments were void of the technology.
Maybe they just don't use hot water in Florida.
Once back in frosty Steel City I called up a pal of mine who is the director of sales for a prominent Florida solar water heater manufacturer. I asked him why there isn't a solar water heater on every home and boy, did I get an education.
"No one thinks about solar hot water down here because they've never had it before. It's one of those things where, if you've lived in a house with some panels on the roof that save you money day in and day out, you can't imagine going back and paying full price for your hot water," he said. "But, if you've never experienced it, it's just out of sight out of mind."
That's odd, I thought solar was really starting to catch on.
"It's catching on, but not with homeowners. Almost every major city down here now has some sort of incentive plan to promote solar domestic water," my friend said. "In the city of Jacksonville, for instance, the Sierra Club started a solar incentive that takes $800 off the installation of a system as long as it is installed by a licensed Florida contractor. Then the state offers a $500 rebate on top of that, and they've extended the Federal rebate so you get a 30 percent tax credit as well."
As he spoke I started to do the math. Assume, for the sake of example only, a basic batch-style passive system, fully-installed would cost around $4,000. Between the rebates and tax incentives, the net cost to the homeowner could dip to about $1,800. That means with even moderate use, like for an empty nest household, a solar hot water system could be making money for the homeowner in less than five years.
That's right, making money. Not only do your monthly expenses drop, but your home value rises.
So why all the foot dragging? What about all the media coverage of climate change, energy independence, and the rising costs of fuel? How can it be that a state that boasts the highest population of retirees in the nation (23 percent of Florida's population, or about 4.1 million total) isn't proactive about reducing monthly utility bills of those living on fixed incomes? If the citizens don't know about the benefits of solar, what is the government doing to educate and spread the word. Lower utility bills and reduced consumption of energy are in the public interest, right?
"Down here the state is just missing the boat. The Florida State Energy Office set up some great incentives, but they didn't spend a dime advertising it," he said. "All this money is available through 2010 for anyone installing a solar system, but no one knows about it."
I checked out the program and it looks like it may have been under-funded right out of the gate. The website says you'll get your $500 rebate, you will just have to wait on it for awhile. But he was right, there is money out there if you know where to look.
"There are a lot of programs out there for anyone wanting to go solar for domestic water, just check out www.dsireusa.org, they have a huge data base of state incentives for all kinds of renewable energy choices. The money is available but it requires the homeowner to do a lot of work to discover them. Once you start filling out the applications it isn't that bad, but finding the incentives and hearing about these programs can be tough."
Alright, I told him, I've heard the problems, but as a player in the solar game, I had to ask him if he had any real solutions to get people to wake-up to the benefits of solar.
"Yeah, some one should convince the solar industry to advertise. Most solar energy companies are small and don't have the budget for advertising, but they need to know that the burden is on them. No one is going to come to the rescue and suddenly start talking about how great this technology is. If we don't get the word out, start going door to door, it will never catch on.
"You know," he continued, "every time I read an article in newspaper or catch a headline on the television, all they talk about is PV (photovoltaic) energy, the media never mentions domestic hot water. Yet within the scheme of solar energy, domestic water is the biggest bang for the buck and fastest return. Passive heaters have no moving parts, require almost no maintenance, and south of the Mason Dixon line there's really very little chance of freezing. I'm baffled as to why they aren’t mandatory on every home."
My friend was baffled, I was confused, and Florida is behind the curve.
Posted by Andrew Hunt at 12:14 PM | Comments (15) | TrackBack
February 16, 2008
Department of Energy and National Association of Homebuilders Launch New Initiatives at the International Builders Show
Consumers are demanding more efficient, greener homes, and builders are finding ever-increasing challenges to market and deliver them. Technical and marketing barriers - some as simple as trade contractor's lack of familiarity with technology, some as complex as builder's inexperience in marketing improved performance - are preventing the market from adopting green building practices as quickly as some would like. The public and private sectors are responding by creating new, voluntary programs for builders to assist them in overcoming these challenges, and for consumers to assist them in understanding building performance.
Two such initiatives launched this past week at the International Builder's Show in Orlando, Florida. Ironically with no connection to the holiday whatsoever, both initiatives launched on Valentine's Day. The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) launched their new National Green Building Program and the Department of Energy launched the Builders Challenge.
The NAHB National Green Building Program is intended to allow builders and consumers to have a standardized, nationally-based method to evaluate the performance of homes. Behind the scenes, it seems that the NAHB has woken up to the fact that if they don't get ahead of the curve, the curve may get ahead of them - in terms of the creation of new building code and policy that will require increased building performance standards. This initiative tells me that they're being proactive in creating an initiative that can guide policy, codes and standards. Not surprising for such a politically savvy organization, and in this case quite a boon to the green building industry.
The DOE's Builders Challenge is focused on energy performance, using a nifty new scale created for the initiative called the EnergySmart Home Scale (E-Scale). This scale allows consumers to see the energy performance of their home at a glance, on a simple chart. The initiative is based on the DOE's Building America Program - a research program that's been churning out excellent technical information for more than a decade. The Builders Challenge takes this information to the market through simple performance packages and the commitment to drive home performance by calling on the industry to deliver 220,000 homes that meet Challenge performance standards (a 70 on the E-Scale, which is significantly better than a home that performs even to Energy Star standards, and about 30% more efficient than a standard new home for example) by the year 2012.
This blogger has to admit to being a bit biased - I've been working with the Department of Energy for the past year on the Builders Challenge - and I'm delighted to see that they've launched the initiative, and the E-Scale, after some deliberation. But, despite being biased, my unbiased self thinks the E-Scale is a great tool for consumers and builders. It's about time someone created a simple, consumer-friendly tool for evaluating home performance. Now I'm just hoping that everyone, the NAHB's Green Building Program included, will pick up the E-Scale and use it.
What are your thoughts on these two new initiatives, and the new E-Scale?
Posted by Stacy Hunt at 6:58 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
February 6, 2008
Popping the cork - getting to know cork flooring
When Stacy and I started to consider flooring options for the addition we're putting on our new home in Montana we had a short list of requirements. We wanted to find a product that was healthy, durable, sustainably produced, and economical. Not asking much, huh? Imagine my surprise when cork ended up floating to the top of mix?
Cork is produced from peeling the live bark from the cork tree which grows naturally around the Mediterranean Ocean. This harvesting can be done every nine years without damaging the plant and the governing bodies in the region have strict laws about the harvest schedule to ensure a bountiful harvests well into the future.
No chainsaws, no replanting, no deforestation involved - cool!
Once the cork is peeled it is punched to make the most common product, bottle stoppers. What's left over is a pile of end pieces and bits from the center too small to plug up your favorite Merlot. This waste is pressed together and made into flooring, push-pin boards, bobbers, and, well you know, cork things. So when you think about it, cork flooring is not only a renewable resource, it is actually a reclaimed resource. Double-points if you are keeping score at home.
On top of that cork is naturally healthful. The plant contains oils which are anti-microbial and anti-fungal. These give it an exceptionally long lifespan, reduce the risk of rot, mold, and actually help improve indoor air quality. Also the large pliable cells of cork are great at withstanding pressure, absorbing blows, and keep a more neutral temperature feel, so even in a cold room the floor won't feel cold. Cork also is a great sound dampener so it works well in a hallway or a pass through.
So why is cork not top of the charts with green builders?
Well, there are some drawbacks. Cork can be damaged if you do the Electric Slide in high heels, or if Fido decides to dig in your living room. From an environmental standpoint cork is far from being a local product, so shipping will have to be taken into account if you are tracking carbon emissions. Price can also be a challenge. All cork flooring isn't created equal and some of the more attractive designs, stains, and patterns can give the average home owner a stinging case of sticker shock.
But if you are just looking for some click-together pieces to cover an existing eyesore, you can do a quick internet search and find cork flooring for under two dollars a square foot. As with most bargains, buyer beware.
So cork flooring passed our little test for green, and I've yet to hear any horror stories about cork flooring that disappointed home owners. All things considered installing cork in specific areas, like a home office or media room, can be a perfect solution to create a unique look, feel, and green statement.
And just for the record, I've never done the Electric Slide.
Posted by Andrew Hunt at 9:34 PM | Comments (10) | TrackBack
