Home Energy Audit Report and Guide to Energy Efficiency Provided by Xcel Energy and Lightly Treading, Inc. Xcel Energy Customer 123 Main St., Denver CO April 10 th, 2009 Thank you for choosing Xcel Energy and Lightly Treading to help you with your home s comfort, energy efficiency and safety. A home energy audit is the first step toward lowering your energy use.
With natural gas and electricity prices fluctuating, it s important to take steps to lower your energy usage and an Energy Audit is the first step. Some of our clients who have done an Energy Audit as a first step have seen energy savings of more than 25% and some greater than 50%. The process I followed was to view your house as a system; that is to look at each and every component of the house and not concentrate on a single component such as windows. In a house system, the components interact with one another, with the external environment, and with you; if one part changes, all the other parts are affected and must adjust. This report serves as a guide to a general contractor or other appropriately licensed professional who may perform work on your house. When making any changes to your house including energy efficiency improvements mentioned in this report, it s important that the work be done according to all building codes in your area. If performing any of the work yourself, please contact your local building department for guidance on how building codes may affect your home improvement projects. If you have questions regarding the information in this report or energy efficiency, please contact me. Thank you for your business! Mark Rogers RESNet Certified Energy Rater 303.733.3078 markr@lightlytreading.com Services completed: 1. Standard Energy Audit 2. Ambient Carbon Monoxide test 3. Blower Door air leakage test 4. Infrared camera scan Home energy concerns: Report contents Top Priorities Your Energy Usage Home Safety Home Energy Issues and Solutions Rebates Available Infrared Camera Photos 1. Old windows 2. Wants to improve energy efficiency 3. Insulation levels Total Home Performance Rebates Available: $ 620 possible 1
Your TOP PRIORITIES Electric priorities 1. If clothes take longer than an hour to dry, clean out the dryer exhaust duct & see if duct can be straightened or shortened. 2. When your furnace blower motor needs replacement, replace with high-efficiency model. 3. Put TV and any stereo equipment on a power strip and turn off when not in use. Natural Gas priorities 1. Air Sealing throughout the home 2. Insulate un-insulated walls 3. Rake out attic insulation to uniform thickness. Your Energy Usage In the Front Range, Xcel Energy reports that an average 2,500 sq. ft. home uses 70 Therms of natural gas per month (152 in January) and 635 kwh of electricity per month. Here is how your home compares: Utility Bills Proprietary information Monthly belonging to 2500 ft 2 Usage Highs Lows Lightly Treading, Average Inc. and Xcel Energy Home Mo. Avg. Electric (kwh) 740 389 537 635 Gas (Therms) 90 12 41 70 You have two peaks in energy use; one in July/August, and one in January. This could indicate that your furnace motor is inefficient, that you use a lot of lights in January (holiday lighting?), or that you cook a lot during the winter months. Your Home Energy Audit report includes solutions to help you improve your comfort and reduce your energy usage. 2
Home Safety Systems Before starting any energy-efficiency improvements it s important to ensure your house is safe from dangerous pollutants such as carbon monoxide. Here is our checklist: Have a Combustion Appliance Zone test completed. This detailed CO test checks whether your open-combustion space and water heating systems are emitting carbon monoxide into your house and checks if your combustion appliances are back drafting under a variety of conditions. Install and maintain a carbon monoxide detector on each level where people sleep. Install one carbon monoxide detector for every 1000 square feet of floor area, and a minimum of one on each sleeping level. Test detector(s) monthly and replace batteries annually. Concentrate on sealing all cracks, holes, penetrations and doors between attached garages and conditioned spaces in the home to keep automobile exhaust from entering the home. Consider installing an exhaust fan triggered by your garage door opener for garage exhaust venting. Briefly venting the space when exhaust is present will make the garage and house safer. Have a Radon test completed in your home. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, most homes in Colorado are at risk for Radon exposure due to soil conditions. According to the EPA, Radon exposure is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. Testing (or retesting) is important after you perform any air sealing modifications to your home. Install smoke detectors and fire extinguishers throughout the home. The National Fire Protection Agency recommends replacing your smoke detectors every ten years. Test your detectors monthly and replace batteries annually. If you are uncertain of the age of your detectors, you can sometimes look them up by their serial/model numbers. If in doubt, replacement is recommended. Replacement costs are far lower than the life and property that they help protect. Basic Carbon Monoxide (CO) Test The CO test preformed in your home is a first step to see whether your furnace and/or water heater may be emitting CO into your home. This test is not conclusive and we recommend a Combustion Appliance Zone test to provide you with a complete analysis that takes into account worst case conditions. Ambient CO test result was 0 ppm. This is a safe rating. 3
Natural Air Changes per Hour (NACH) s AIR LEAKAGE 0.48 CFM@50Pa 2000 48% of the air in your home is exchange every hour; this is considered leaky. Significant air leaks were: Basement rim, fireplace, wall / ceiling penetrations, attic access, base boards, light fixture connections, doors, bath vents, outlets / switches, holes in wall behind clothes dryer. Build Tight and Ventilate Right. When your air leakage rate is less than 33%, I recommend replacing your bath fans with fans that can run on a timer in order to provide ventilation to the home when the doors and windows are closed. You may also consider a heat recovery ventilator (HRV) to bring in fresh air and exhaust stale air while retaining most of the warmth or coolth from your conditioned space. Air leakage is the number one energy problem in most homes; making these improvements are some of the most cost effective solution you can make. I recommend: Plug gaps around pipes, ducts, and wiring that go through walls with expanding foam. Blow cellulose insulation into un-insulated walls (see Wall Insulation and Basement section). Weather-strip the opening of the attic hatch. Seal air leaks listed above with caulk or expanding foam insulation. Estimates Item Priority Cost Energy Savings Simple Payback Air sealing High $40 - $60 per hr. $25-$50 9-15years Payback/Savings for the section above are calculated apart from other savings in this report and should not be combined. 4
Attic 6-16 inches of blown fiberglass insulation is approximately R-30 on average. The insulation is very uneven in depth because of foot traffic-related compression. Adding insulation to the attic will decrease energy use. Before adding insulation Air seal penetrations (air leaks) between the house and attic. Attach insulation baffles to keep insulation from covering soffit vents. Air seal the flue chase next to the attic hatch using sheet metal and fire-rated caulk, or other materials and methods as required by your local building codes. Insulation For best performance, the insulation needs to be of uniform thickness throughout the attic. Rake the insulation out to accomplish this. Attach R-30 fiberglass batt to the attic side of the hatch. To reduce heat buildup in summer and potential moisture issues year-round, the minimum recommended attic ventilation is 1 ft 2 of high & low openings for every 300 ft 2 of attic space; however 1 ft 2 of high & low openings for every 150 ft 2 of attic space is ideal. Item Priority Cost Energy Savings Simple Payback Estimates Rake insulation out High $0.10-$0.20 sq. ft. $15-$35/year 1-4 years Payback/Savings for the section above are calculated apart from other savings in this report and should not be combined. Exterior Wall At the front of the house and at the wall between house and garage, I found 3.5 inches of blown fiberglass insulation which is approximately R-13. Some areas appeared to have no insulation (back wall, and some portions of the wall between house and garage see IR photos section at end of report for details). Fill the wall cavities completely with blown-in cellulose insulation. Add blown cellulose to existing wall insulation to decrease air leakage and improve comfort in uncomfortable rooms. Estimates Item Priority Cost Energy Savings Simple Payback Add cellulose insulation to uninsulated Medium $2.25 - $4.50 sq. $50-$100/yr 10-20 years above-grade walls ft. Payback/Savings for the section above are calculated apart from other savings in this report and should not be combined. 5
Windows Your metal framed, single pane windows are relatively air-tight. Your vinyl framed, double pane windows are also relatively tight. Caulk around the window sill/frame and any place you see cracks or holes. Seal all gaps around the trim with clear caulk. If you decide to replace your windows, look for a U value of 0.35 or less for better insulation. For Southern windows, maximize wintertime solar heating with Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) = 0.50 or greater. Chose a SHGC below 0.35 for East, West, and North windows. Skylights should always be low-e with a low SHGC. Cooling You have no mechanical cooling system. Keep your windows and doors closed during the day to slow down your home s heat-gain. Open the windows at night and use a whole-house fan or inexpensive box fan to pull in cool outside air, and ceiling fans to circulate air. Consider an energy efficient whole house fan with an insulated, airtight, automatic motorized door. Be sure to open your windows when using the whole-house fan, and only use it when the air outside is cooler than the air inside the house. Be sure to use an insulated, air-sealed cover over the whole-house fan during the winter. Consider an evaporative cooler before AC. The initial cost of the unit plus installation will be less and they use about ¼ of the energy to operate in our dry climate. If you choose to install an AC unit, consider installing an Energy Star rated or higher efficiency unit (14 to 20 SEER). Keep the pad on which the AC unit sits level, shaded and maintain at least one foot from the home and any other obstructions. Water Heating Your newer, 40 gallon,.56 EF (energy factor) water heater is in good condition. Wrap the water heater tank with an insulating hot water jacket.the Department of Energy s website includes instructions on how to install the jacket. Go to www.energy.gov and type water heater jacket in the search box. Make sure hot exhaust vents (flues) have at least 6 inches clearance from the insulation (or as dictated by local building codes) so venting is not disrupted and pipe insulation is not melted. Tank Water Heater Consider replacement if your current heater is near the end of its life (10-14 years old), or if environmental concerns are important to you. Because of their high cost, it generally doesn t make sense to replace a water heater purely for economic reasons. Set water heater at 120 o F or the lowest practical setting for your preferences. This will reduce standby losses (heat loss while idle) and risk of scalding. 6
Heating System Forced Air Your furnace is 80% efficient. This means that 80 cents of each dollar heats your home and 20 cents goes up the chimney. Programmable thermostat is not installed. Programmable Thermostat Using a programmable thermostat can save up to 9% on your energy bills. Install and use a programmable thermostat. Furnace Make insulation and air sealing improvements before replacing your furnace. These improvements can change your heating requirements to a smaller, less costly system. Have your furnace tuned up annually to ensure that it is operating efficiently. Inspect, replace or clean the furnace filter once a month for improved performance. Make a mental note to check your filter when you receive your monthly utility bills. You may also want to set up a reminder in your favorite calendar software. Estimates Most ceiling fans have a switch for summer mode (moves air down) and winter mode (moves air up). Use winter mode at a slow speed to even out temperatures throughout the living space. A similar effect can be achieved by turning on the fan-only switch on your furnace thermostat. This works well for some homes, but uses extra electricity. Item Priority Cost Energy Savings Simple Payback Programmable thermostat High $40 - $75 $10 - $30 a year 2 3 years New 95% AFUE furnace Low $3000 - $5500 $25-$40 a year 20+ years Payback/Savings for the section above are calculated apart from other savings in this report and should not be combined. Wood Fireplace Somewhat leaky. Close the flue damper when not in use. Make sure the fire is fully extinguished before closing the flue. Use an inflatable insert to block air flowing in from the chimney. Just be sure to remove it before starting a fire. Tying a hanging tag onto it may help you to remember. Consider a pilotless, sealed-combustion, natural gas fireplace insert with air-circulating fan. Done correctly, this will seal the existing leaks, eliminate the standing pilot light & allow the fireplace to be used more often and with greater efficiency. 7
Appliances & Electrical Equipment You have many opportunities for improved electrical energy efficiency. When buying new appliances and electronics, purchase items with the Energy-Star label. Continue to upgrade lighting to CFLs or LEDs. Use a smart strip or power strip to reduce phantom loads. Smart Strip Phantom loads are continual electric power draws for devices such as TVs, stereos, computers and videogame consoles. These devices often draw a lot of power even when turned off. Refrigerator Don t place it where the sun will shine on it, keep the gaskets clean so that the door thoroughly closes and creates a tight seal and clean vacuum the coils yearly. If it has an icemaker, turn it off when you have enough ice. Item Priority Cost CFLs High $1.00 to $3.00 each Smart Strip High $35- $40 8
Visit www.xcelenergy.com/rebates Rebates Available As of February 2009, the State of Colorado offers rebates for insulation. http://www.colorado.gov/energy/residential/existing-insulate-co.asp Low-income assistance may be available for air-sealing and insulation improvements, depending on your income. http://www.colorado.gov/energy/residential/income-based-program.asp Federal tax credits are available for insulation, high efficiency boilers, and tankless water heaters. Xcel Energy s Home Performance with Energy Star Rebate Program With the Home Performance with Energy Star program, you have the chance to earn $600 or more in rebates. Below is a list of the improvements that you must make to be eligible for the rebates. The more improvements you make the more rebates you will earn. Only customers who have both gas and electric service through Xcel Energy are eligible. Sign up today for the Home Performance program mailing in the sign-up postcard or by calling 800-895-4999. Starting Criteria (must begin at or worse End Criteria (must achieve this level Energy Conservation Measures than this level) or better) Rebate Required*: Air Sealing & Weather stripping.50.45 NACH $100 Attic Insulation & Bypass sealing R-19 R 38 $150 High Efficiency Lighting Less than 20 CFLs 20 CFLs $40 Optional (choose at least two): Wall Insulation n/a R 11 $250 Set back Thermostat n/a E.S Programmable $10 New High Efficiency Furnace n/a.92 AFUE $80 New High Efficiency Furnace n/a.94 AFUE $100 Tankless Hot Water Heater n/a.82 E.S. standard $100 Power Vented Water Heater n/a.65 EF $60 Refrigerator Recycling/Secondary Unit n/a Removal, no replacement $35 New Energy Star Refrigerator/Primary n/a E.S. refrigerator $10 Dishwasher n/a.65 EF $10 Clothes Washer n/a E.S Clothes Washer $50 *If a house surpasses the threshold for a Required conservation measure on the day of the Xcel Energy Audit, the house will not be eligible for the rebate for that measure. The customer is still eligible to participate in the HPwES program; the customer will simply be required to bring any deficient Required measures up to or beyond the HPwES thresholds listed above, and complete up to two of the Optional measures. 9
Infrared Camera Pictures The IR camera inspection helps reveal energy loss from interior and exterior areas of your home. Infrared cameras produce images of invisible infrared or heat radiation and provide approximate temperature measurements of building components*. Every component of your home produces some level of heat that can be detected by the IR camera. The IR camera detects these temperature differences, giving the energy auditor important clues which can be used to find insulation deficiencies or air leakage issues. The pictures I took at your house are below; these could serve as a good educational tool for a contractor who might do insulation and airsealing work. *Some building materials and testing conditions may decrease accuracy. Examples include; light reflection, the presence of liquid water and highly polished or metallic surfaces. The photos below show the infrared image next to a standard digital photo of the same area. The wall between the house and garage below the stair railing is colder (61.1 degrees or less) than the rest of the wall. This may be due to a lack of insulation in this area, or an air leakage path from the garage. 10
Air leaks between wooden wall boards; corners are particularly leaky. Apply clear acrylic latex caulk to joints. This shows the same as issue in previous pictures. 11
Based on this photo and a few insulation sampling points, the rest of the house appears to have very little to no wall insulation. Confirm this with small inspection holes prior to insulating walls. 12