Hey, that’s paid for over half of my latest project.  I’ve spent about $450 to insulate my Living Room.

Looks like I need to work on saving some water this year.

Dan Bossenbroek

  Shop light conversion: $36

This results in a grand total investment of $1,262. 

Our utility bills have been paid through the end of 2009 and our total annual savings has climbed to $912.18

Progress: as of end of  2009 vs 2007

• Electricity – 67.7%
• Natural Gas – 80.5%
• Water – 83.0%
• Utility Costs – 75.3%
• Savings 2008 – $  200.15
• Savings 2009 – $  912.18
• Total Savings – $1112.33

What this means is that we are about half way to cutting our utility costs by 50% and we have already recovered 88% of what we have invested so far.  Furthermore, we have only invested about 15% of what we will save over five years once we cut our utility costs by 50%.   Our plan for 2010 is to invest another $900 or so, and increase our savings to $1,150 or more for the year.

So far some of the projects that we are considering are:

• Insulate the Crawlspace – $100   Actual Cost
• Insulate the Living Room – $450  Estimate
• Install a Dual Flush Conversion Kit – $55  Estimate
• Complete Weatherizing Walls and Windows – $45  Estimate
• Two DIY Rain Barrels with Soaker Hoses – $80  Estimate

Stay tuned, more updates coming soon!

Dan Bossenbroek

This results in a grand total investment of $1,226. 

Our utility bills have been paid through the end of  October and our year to date savings has climbed to $795.83.

Progress: as of end of November 2009 vs 2007

• Electricity – 67.0%
• Natural Gas – 76.9%
• Water – 83.5%
• Utility Costs – 73.7%
• Savings 2008 – $200.15
• Savings 2009 – $795.83
• Total Savings – $995.98

Windows:  We have several types of windows in our house.  The original house still has wooden single pane, double hung windows with storm windows.  All of these windows have received need some much needed attention this fall: the cracked and missing glazing putty has been replaced, and the sashes that rattle as they open and close have had weatherstripping added to help seal the gaps and smoothen out their operation.  Next the cracked, peeling and alligatored paint will need to be scraped off and the windows repainted. Finally, when the wind blows the sashes in the storm windows bend a little and let it right in.  The 1970’s addition was built with wooden double hung windows with insulated glass, one of which has cracked glass and the others readily leak air.  Some of the windows in the addition and one in the original house were replaced with vinyl double hung and slider windows with insulated glass.  The vinyl windows are the best in the house, but last year we covered them with insulating window film too and it made a big difference.  The windows in the basement are the worst of all: single pane glass, some cracked and others loose in their frames.

Doors:  There are only two doors into the house.  The front door is a six panel solid wood door with a storm door.  We installed new weatherstripping and a new sweep to the wood door two years ago.  The back door is a steel door with glass on the upper half and a storm door.  Both back door and storm door have new weatherstripping and the glass in the storm door has been sealed with weatherstripping and rope caulk.  We made these improvements at the same time as the ones we made to the front doors. 

Change in Materials:  The joint between the brick of the existing house and the aluminum siding of the addition needs to be re-caulked.  Likewise, the joint between the concrete foundation and concrete driveway may be the source of small water leaks into the basement and should be sealed too.  The joints between the eave trim and the brick is tight and in great shape and so is the joint between the aluminum siding and the block foundation. 

Switches and Outlets:  There are very few switches or outlets on the exterior walls, the outlets and switches in the exterior walls of the original house are surface mounted to the wall and do not need to be sealed.  Those in the addition need to be sealed.

Pipes, Vents, Fixtures and Wires:  There are a number of penetrations through the exterior wall: range hood vent, phone line, electrical, cable TV, condensing unit line set, dryer vent, furnace flue, and three hose bibs.  Most of these penetrations seem to be sealed properly, however there are a few, like the outlet and light fixture by the back door that need some attention.

Attic Ceilings:  Every room on the second floor has a ceiling mounted light fixture with a junction box that penetrates the ceiling.  One bathroom has an exhaust fan that pokes up into the attic too.  The original house has an attic access panel in one of the closets the is in dire need of being sealed and insulated properly.  The access panel in the addition has two inches of rigid insulation secured to it’s back and is weatherstripped adequately on all four sides.  It could also benefit from an attic stair cover some day.

Fireplaces:  The fireplace is decorative, so there is no flue to seal.

After completing this survey it’s apparent that there are a number of weatherizing projects that I need to complete: fixing the glazing putty in the original windows, and adding weatherstripping to the original windows this fall was a good start.  Next on the list are to seal the joint between the foundation and the driveway, seal the joints between the brick and the aluminum siding, install switch and outlet sealers, seal the penetrations through the second floor ceiling, seal and insulate the original attic access panel, add insulation to the newer attic access panel, and seal around some of the penetrations through the building envelope.

Dan Bossenbroek

The first thing you should do is to simply turn things off when you aren’t using them:  TVs, lights, computers, stereos, monitors, and computer speakers.  This seems obvious, but many houses are lit up like an operating room, even when there is no one home.  With the flick of a switch you can start saving.

Your second step, if you are serious about cutting your electrical bills, is to invest in a Kill-A-Watt monitor.  Plug your refrigerator, freezer, small appliances and other electronic devices into this handy gadget and it will tell you your electrical costs by the hour, day, week or year for each of these items.  This way, you can determine how much you can save by unplugging those devices that are off, but that still draw juice, or how much you will save by replacing that old refrigerator.  Make a list of all of these appliances and devices with their corresponding annual costs for your records.

Lighting accounts for about 25% of the average homes electricity bills.  So, if your annual electricity bill is a $1,000, you could save about $150 to $200 a year just by replacing your incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.  As a rule of thumb a 100 Watt bulb that is left on 24/7/365 will cost about $100 per year to keep lit.  Replace incandescent bulbs that are used on a daily basis as follows:

• 100 Watt bulb: 25 minutes or more,
• 75 Watt bulb: 30 minutes or more,
• 60 Watt bulb: 40 minutes or more,
• 40 Watt bulbs: 60 minutes or more, and
• 25 Watt bulbs: 90 minutes or more,

and the savings in electricity will pay for the new bulbs in five years or less.

Calculate your savings:  If you would like to calculate your annual savings you will need to list all of the fixtures whose bulbs you replace, the total current watts (Wc), the total new watts (Wn), and the average time in minutes (T) they are on per day.  You will also need to refer to your electricity bill to find your electrical rate (R).  The formula for calculating your annual savings (S) per fixture is:  (Wc-Wn)*T*R*.00608 = S

Change your drying habits.  Drying your clothes in a clothes dryer can cost you from $50 to $100 a year.  By line drying your clothes, you can reduce this number significantly, and by installing a Clothes Dryer Heat Saver you can recapture the heat from your dryer to help to heat your home during the heating season.

After taking these few steps, you can now determine which electricity saving products and strategies that you should employ first and how much you should expect to save.  Take a first step, take the Net 50 Energy Challenge, and cut your electrical bills starting now.

Dan Bossenbroek

Progress: as of end of August 2009 vs 2007

• Electricity – 65.6%
• Natural Gas – 77.3%
• Water – 83.5%
• Utility Costs – 73.7%
• Savings 2008 – $200.15
• Savings 2009 – $700.67
• Total Savings – $900.82