Summer Energy Efficient Windows  — Part 8

It’s summer now here in South Texas. Those energy efficient windows are calling my name!

The solar energy coming our way brings heat and lots of it. The aim of energy efficient windows is to keep that solar thermal energy at bay!the cost may be prohibitive, even with energy tax incentives attached.

For those who grapple with fixed incomes and rigid budgets, it still comes down to basic economic factors. Replacing windows solely for saving the energy bill is not often a cost-effective measure. See replacing windows at the Energy Star site.

So if the economic factor is your prime motivator, you can make your existing windows more efficient by using a few other methods:

·    Cellular shades

·    Curtain panels with interlinings

·    Window films

·    Solar screens

·    Cover your windows during the sunniest times of day

But if you need to replace your windows for other reasons, maintenance perhaps, or you just want nicer windows, make it an occasion to provide your home for comfort and energy cost savings.

Summer Energy Efficient Windows – Part 4

Did you know that air can pass through windows? Solar energy can heat up our Texas air to egg frying temperatures during the summer months. And that hot air can come into our homes!

No window keeps all air out. Air seeps through around window joints and assembly. Really, that’s a pretty good thing; we all need to breathe.

But some windows let less air inside than others.

Windows have an “air leakage” rating. This value measures cubic feet of air passing through one square foot of window area per minute.

The lower this value, the less air passes through the assembly, the better it is for your electric bill. Look for a rating of .3 or less.

Window selection is more complicated that I first thought!

More next time.

Energy Conservation Works

Going solar. Sometimes it seems the going is slower than I’d like. But occasionally I get motivation to keep going. Ours is defiantly a “Tortoise and Hare” story.

The most recent encouragement to keep our hare in the race was the arrival of our electric bill.

For eight months now, we’ve had our home on an energy diet of sorts, trying to reduce the amount of electric energy our home uses. The less energy we require the less we will need to spend on a solar energy system.

Our current electric energy bill…drum roll please… is 45 percent less than the same month last year!

Yes, that means a 45 percent reduction in kilowatt-hours used. And I am ecstatic.

I feel myself becoming an energy miser.

Not all months have shown this great a decrease in energy use. But each month, compared with the same month last year, has shown a decrease.
The interesting thing is, we have only been practicing energy conservation, not energy efficiency.

Energy conservation practices do not require huge outlays of money. Think of conservation as small conscious habits and choices, which, made daily, add up to huge savings over time.

After we get the conservation habits down, we begin implementing efficiency measures, which require some larger monetary investments.

After efficiency measures reduce our energy consumption even further, we will have a more accurate idea of how many solar panels we need.

I’ll keep you all posted on our progress.

We’d love to hear how your home energy story is unfolding, so leave us a comment. Thanks!

Image by clownfish via Flickr

Lower Energy Bills — Build a Solar Home

All of us want to cut our energy bills. Some of us are retrofitting our homes to incorporate solar energy.

Others are building green, solar homes from the ground up.

Now with the new federal tax incentives it makes financial sense for retrofitters and builders alike.

The U.S. Green Building Council offers a Green Home Guide. The guide gives information on how to make your home more energy-efficient, tax credits and incentives and more.

Check out the Green Home Guide to help your energy efficiency and green home projects.

Here are a few more resources for you:

• U.S. Green Building Council:
• A state-by-state list of incentives
• Information on federal energy efficiency tax credits
• The EPA

My home utility bill came in January 2008, with a friendly little note saying that my power cooperative was,

“…ringing in the new year in 2008 by reducing rates…by $0.0015 per kilowatt-hour beginning with bills rendered after January 1.”

Nice!

In May, my energy bill came with a little note attached from the utility cooperative. The attachment informed me that my power provider had increased rates,

“…because of increases in wholesale power costs, bills for all rate classes reflect an increase of $0.01098 per kilowatt-hour.”

What happened to the ringing in the New Year?

My July home utility bill came with another note attached advising me of a rate increase. This time it read,

“…increased their fuel charge due to rising natural gas prices. To recover this increase in the cost of power we distribute to members, we have increased rates for residential and most other rate classes by $0.0106 per kilowatt-hour.”

I know you’re home energy bill is up too. Some places experience greater increases than 21%.

But here’s the point.

When the cost of doing business increases for the energy companies, they pass that increased expense on to us, the customers. “To recover this increase in the cost of power we distribute to members, we have increased rates…”

Now, Mr. Obama wants to tax big oil company profits. The best I can ascertain in the murky political waters is that this tax will be used to give Americans a refund of $500 or $1000 (depending on marital status) to help with our fuel costs.

I like rebates as well as the next person. And I think big oil companies should be doing their part to bring relief in the current energy crisis.

But think about this just a second.

If big oil companies get hit with a huge tax, who do you think they will pass that expense on to?