  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

1. Self-sufficiency:  On the grounds of Hogwarts are at least three greenhouses.  They are primarily used to grow magical plants that can then be used in various potions or for Madame Pomfrey’s remedies.  Growing your own crop that has magical properties is not recommended.  But greenhouses are great for extending the growing season for your vegetables, herbs and fruit.  Homegrown tomatoes in October anyone?
2. Energy Conservation:  Hogwarts is a big old English castle that’s cold and drafty in the winter, and not that comfortable during the long rainy fall and spring.  Lucky for all of the students, at least those in Griffindor house that they are provided with a four poster bed, complete with canopy and curtains.  Get one for yourself (and your kids) and you can turn your thermostat down another two to four degrees at night and still stay cozy.
3. Earth Sheltering: The Slytherin  and Hufflepuff Common Rooms and Dorms are located in the lower regions and dungeons of the castle.  They are not the most welcoming and light filled places, but they sure do take advantage of the temperature regulating benefits of earth sheltering.  It’s not likely that you could pile earth up against your house, or bury it completely.  However, you might consider one of those options, a vegetative roof, or at least a full walkout basement when you plan a major renovation, addition or a new house.
4. Localized Heat – Strategy 1:  Fireplaces are located all over Hogwart castle, providing heat when and where it is needed.  Instead of heating your entire castle, you can use fireplaces, electric space heaters, pellet stoves and/or solar air heaters to warm up just the rooms that you use, when you use them while keeping the rest of the house several degrees cooler.
5. Localized Heat – Strategy 2:  Dorm Rooms are shared by several students.  This arrangement drastically reduced the number of heat sources required to keep them warm at night.  Instead of having a separate room for each kid, have two or three kids sleep in one room and then use the other bedroom as a play room.  Then you can heat/cool the former at night and the latter when needed.
6. Daylighting:  The common room for Ravenclaw house that is filled with bookcases, tables and chairs has a high domed ceiling and numerous arched windows in the walls that provide spectacular views of the surrounding mountains.  Of the four common rooms in the castle, this is the one I would choose to spend my time in.  What an ideal place to hang out and study for your O.W.L.s.  It has been proven that daylighting will increase test scores, improve your mood and lower your energy bills. Let the sun shine in.  Open the drapes.  Add a skylight, solar tube or an extra window.  Cheer yourself up, and save some energy.
7. Alternative Transportation:  Harry and his friends use numerous forms of alternative transportation.
   • The most eco-friendly would be old fashioned walking.  Wizards do a lot of walking.  Something that we should all do more of.  Why is it that in today’s world we consider walking “alternative transportation”.
   • Traveling by the flue network, broom and apparition rank right up there too, but they rely almost exclusively on the use of magic.  Aside from the fact that we have not yet developed this types of technologies, if we ever do, it will inevitably be very energy intensive.  So they will never be an eco-friendly option.  However, one could argue that broom riding is similar to bicycle riding, and then it would be a very eco-friendly option.
   • Now, determining whether or not flying on a Thestral or Hypogryph is an earth friendly option is a bit tricky.  Keeping a horse, the closest non-magical equivalent, for personal intercity use these days is a bit impractical, but if we could just genetically alter them so that they sprouted wings, then they might be worth the trouble.
   • Finally we have the Hogwarts Express.  We all know that rail transportation is one of the most efficient ways to move things, right?  But how eco-friendly is a coal burning, four car passenger train that travels non-stop from London to Hogsmeade and back about four hundred miles just three times a year?  It doesn’t even stop at the halfway point for the kids from northern England and Ireland.  Instead, on September 1^st every student must make their way from all over the UK to platform 9 ¾ at Kings Cross station
   • Alternative Transportation: some forms are great, some live in the land of myth and science fiction, some are impractical or would cause public outrage, and some are still up for debate.
8. Multi-use Spaces: Talk about the ultimate multipurpose room!  Need a place to hide something for centuries?  The Room of Requirement.  Need a place to secretly study Defense Against the Dark Arts?  The Room of Requirement.  Need a place for your girlfriend to sleep off a night of butterbeer overindulgence?  The Room of Requirement.  Need a place to hide from the bad guys and smuggle all of your friends into the castle? The Room of Requirement.  Including rooms in your house that can serve multiple purposes can save you space, time and lots of money.
9. Native Habitat:  Creating a diverse, natural habitat with indigenous plants on your property can reduce your water use, your time maintaining your property, and it can attract wildlife.  The Forbidden Forest has no irrigation system.  One gamekeeper for hundreds of acres – you do the math.  A herd of Centaurs, a colony of Acromantula, Unicorns, Thestrals, Werewolves, Trolls, and Bowtruckles  – now that’s wildlife!
10. Off Grid:  Hogwarts is so off the grid that there is no grid.  Ok, they use torches, candles, lamps and a bit of magic for light.  But can you imagine what your electricity bill would look like if you didn’t have any TVs, VCRs, DVDs, DVRs, computers, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, microwave ovens, cell phone chargers, …..!!?

You don’t need to be a wizard to slash your energy consumption, but taking a look at how they do things at Hogwarts could teach you a few things.

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

Ever since Thomas Edison fired up his Pearl Street Power Station in 1882 more and more households every year are connected to the “Grid”, and your house is probably not an exception to this. The question is, how much energy does your house pull from the power transmission network? It’s time to get out your electricity bills for the past year and determine how much you have used and how much it has cost you. If you have complete records, this will be easy. If not, you may have to dig through your bank statements to determine how much you have paid each month. Many power companies include a summary of your energy use for the past twelve months. Using this information, total up how much you have spent on electricity and the kilowatt hours (KWH) that you have for the past year. Then divide the former by the latter to determine your effective electricity rate. If you want to be even more accurate, you can sort through all of your electric bills and subtract all of the charges that are not related to how much electricity that you use from your annual electrical cost. These are charges that will you will pay just for being a customer, and unfortunately won’t shrink as your electricity use goes down.

Next, repeat the last step with your fuel (natural gas, propane, fuel oil) bills. Find your bills, total up your costs and total energy used. In the US natural gas is typically measured in CCFs (100 cubic feet), while propane and fuel oil are measured in gallons. Here to, you may have “customer” charges on your bill that you might want to subtract. Divide your fuel costs by the amount used in order to determine your rate.

Third, you should find your water bills, record your water usage for a year, and calculate your rate. Just like natural gas, in the US water is usually billed by the CCF. However, unlike other utilities they don’t just charge you for what you use (water charges), but they also charge you to take it away (sewer charges). Furthermore, they charge you to manage the rain that falls on your property (stormwater charges).

You may also use an alternative fuel type for some or all of your heating needs. Whether it is solar, wood, pellets, corn, coal or another fuel, you should determine your annual consumption, costs and rate.

The other aspect of setting a baseline is to itemize the water and energy saving strategies and products that you already employ that are not readily evident when doing a home energy audit. Do you have ceiling fans in any of your rooms, a clothes dryer heat diverter, dual flush toilet conversion kits, or LED night lights? How about a moisture meter for your garden and lawn, motion/occupancy sensors, electric space heaters or a solar attic fan? Do you line dry your clothes, use a sun oven or have a wind turbine? List all of the water and energy saving products and strategies that you already use. This will help you when you prioritize which products and strategies to use next.

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

Heating System:

• Type:  Furnace, Boiler, Baseboard, Stove, Heat Pump (Ground or Air Source), Solar: ___________________, Other ____________
• Efficiency:  _______%
• Size: ____________
• Fuel Type:  Natural Gas, Propane, Fuel Oil, Electricity, Wood, Pellet, Coal, Solar, Other _____________

Cooling System:

• Type:  Condenser, Window Unit, Heat Pump (Ground or Air Source), Whole House Fan, Window Fans, Passive Thermal, Other ____________
• Efficiency:  _______%
• Size: ____________
• Fuel Type:  Natural Gas, Propane, Electricity, Other _____________

Distribution System:

• Type: Ducts, Pipes, Radiators, Steam, Hot Water, In Floor Radiant, Other ________________
• Insulation Type:  None, Sealed, Radiant, Fiberglass, Other ______________

Hot Water Heater:

• Type:  Tank, Tank-less, Solar, Other ________________
• Efficiency:  _______%
• Size: ____________
• Fuel Type:  Natural Gas, Propane, Fuel Oil, Electricity, Heat Pump, Sun, Other _____________
• Pipe Insulation Type:  None, Sealed, Foam, Radiant, Fiberglass, Other ______________

Thermostat:

• Type:  Standard, Programmable (5 day/2 day, 5/1/1 day, or 7 day), Other ________________
• Settings:

Now you have completed the first five steps for your Home Energy Audit and you are well on your way to understanding where all of that energy that you pay for is used.  The goal of the audit is to find the most cost effective ways to save energy and water.  The end goal is to implement energy and water saving strategies and install energy conservation products and save hundreds if not thousands of dollars, every year.

Dan Bossenbroek

	_
Dual Flush Toilet Kit	American Standard 4035.216.020 FloWise Dual Flush 12″ Toilet Tank, White	Kohler K-3654-0 Persuade two-piece elongated toilet with Dual Flush Technology, less seat, White	Kohler K-3564-0 Saile elongated one-piece toilet with dual flush technology and Saile Quiet-Close toilet seat with Quick-Release functionality, White

Cut your water usage down to 1.6 and 0.8 gallons per flush with a conversion kit or a new toilet.  A family of four will save as much as 18,000 gallons of water and $170.00 annually over a 3.5-gallon toilet.

1.     Buy an energy star front loading washing machine.

Energy Star Washing Machine

2.     Install a water saving toilet.

3.     Skip taking a shower once in a while.

4.     Wear your clothes more than once between washes.

5.     Use a watering timer when watering your lawn and garden.

6.     Use a moisture meter to make sure you need to water.

7.     Install an instant hot water heater – hot water will be at the tap sooner.

8.     Insulate your hot water pipes.

9.     Install aerators on all of your faucets.

10.   Use a toilet tank water saver.

11.   Turn off the water when you brush your teeth.

12.   Skip shaving once in a while.

13.   Install a waterless urinal.

14.   Replace your thirsty lawn with indigenous, drought resistant plants.

15.   Capture the first gallon of cold water that comes out of your shower and use it to brush your teeth or water your plants.

Drought Resistant Plants

16.    Install a composting toilet.

17.    Switch to low flow showerheads.

18.    Fix a leaky faucet or toilet.

19.    Buy a membership at the pool instead of your own pool.

20.    Put the scraps from your plates in to a worm bin instead of down the disposal.

21.    Stop rinsing off your dishes before you put them in your new dishwasher, they usually don’t need this.

22.    Drop that tissue in the trash, not the toilet and save a flush.

23.    Clean up the dishes immediately after you use them so the leftovers don’t dry on and stick like glue.

24.    Take shorter showers – keep them to five minutes or less.

25.    Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap until the water gets cold.

26.    Fill up your dishwasher before you run it.

27.    Keep potted plants indoors instead of cur flowers.

28.    Install a drip irrigation system in your gardens.  Connect it to rain barrels.

29.    Water your lawn and garden on the morning – less evaporation.

30.    Patronize a carwash that recycles the water it uses.

31.    Make sure that your sprinkler system (or sprinkler) is not watering the sidewalk or street.

32.    Install a dual flush toilet.

33.    Switch to an energy star dishwasher.

34.    Install covers on pools and spas to help prevent evaporation.

35.    Only do full loads of laundry.

36.    Plant a tree or more to shade your lawn and/or your garden.

37.    Replace water hungry plants for indigenous, drought resistant plants.

38.    Install a greywater (used water from showers and sinks) system and use the water to flush your toilets.

39.    Install a dual flush conversion kit.

40.    Use captured rainwater to fill water features.

41.    Raise your lawn mower setting.  Longer grass retains water better.

42.    Don’t run the water when you wash dishes, fill up one sink to wash and another to rinse.

43.    Avoid planting in the summer when watering requirements are higher,

44.    Think about saving water and you will,

45.    Wash produce in a bowl of water or a partially filled sink instead of continuously running the water.

46.    Turn the water off while you shave.

47.    Two uses per flush.

48.    When you take a shower turn off the water while you lather and wash.

49.    Switch to an electric shaver.

50.    Sweep your driveway, patio and deck instead of washing them off with the hose.

51.    Don’t send the water from your downspouts out into the street but direct it towards your shrubs and gardens.

52.    Use a small plate instead of a large one whenever possible, to cut down on dishwasher loads.

53.    Collect the water from your dehumidifier and water your plants with it.

54.    Check to see that your toilet flappers are working properly.

55.    Two young kids in the same tub = ten gallons of water saved.

56.    Take a shower once a month, whether you need one or not.

57.    Get your kids involved and teach them to turn the water off when they are done washing their hands (for instance).

58.    Stop watering your lawn and garden before the soil becomes saturated.

59.    Use a rain gauge to make sure that you don’t over water your lawn or garden.

60.    Buy a rain barrel and use the water to water your plants.

61.    Adjust your water softener so that it regenerates only as often as necessary.

62.    Use a spray gun nozzle when you wash your car.

63.    Weed your lawn and garden frequently to keep them from stealing water from your plants.

64.    Add compost or other organic matter to your garden soil so that it will retain water better.

65.    Fix or replace a leaky hose bib.

66.    Take the dirty mop water outside and water some plants with it.

67.    Avoid planting in containers as they tend to require more water.

68.    Use hand sanitizer instead of washing your hands sometimes.

69.    Set a sprinkler in the area of lawn that needs water the most when your kids want to cool off.

70.    Steam your vegetables when you cook and give the leftover water to a thirsty plant.

71.    Use one glass all day for your drinking water and it will take longer to fill up your dishwasher.

72.    Capture the water that you washed the produce with to water your houseplants.

73.    Let food thaw in the refrigerator instead of using running water.

74.    Let your lawn “go wild.”   You won’t need to water it at all, but your neighbors might not be too happy with you.

75.    Pour the melted ice in your cup on a houseplant.

76.    Shave your head or cut your hair short – you will spend a lot less time washing your hair.

77.    Park your car in the grass before you wash it.

78.    Use collected rainwater to flush your toilets.

79.    Plug the tub before you turn on the water and just add more hot water as it fills up.

80.    Try to use only one plate or bowl per person for each meal, this will lead to fewer dishwasher loads.

81.    Check for leaks in your pool.

82.    Take tandem showers: as soon as one person is done the next hops in.

83.    Avoid using too much fertilizer.  Fertilizer promotes plant growth and this will also increase your watering needs.

84.    Give your dog a bath in the water your kids just bathed in.

85.    Plant a rain garden and direct some of your downspouts there.

86.    Mulch your gardens with organic mulch, it will help keep the soil moist.

87.    Jump in the shower before the water gets warm and enjoy a refreshing start to your day.

88.    Partially fill the sink with water when rinsing the dishes instead of letting the water continuously run.

89.    Mulch your gardens with recycled rubber mulch, it will allow all of the water to reach your plants and also 

Recycled Mulch

help to keep the soil from drying out.

90.    Serve food in the pots that you cooked the food in and it will take longer to fill the dishwasher.

91.    Use a soaker hose instead of a sprinkler.

92.    When you refill the pet’s water bowl, give the old water to your plants.

93.    Grow your own vegetables, organically so all they need is a quick rinse.

94.    Water your lawn or garden with the water from your fish tank when it is time to clean it.

95.    Convert a portion of your lawn into a patio or deck – they never need to be watered.

96.    Don’t allow water to run down slopes and hill when you water them.  Water for a few short periods with a few minutes between each.

97.    Use organic fertilizers to promote slow healthy growth.

98.    Measure how much you water your lawn or garden with a rain gauge or empty can to prevent over watering.

99.    Water your lawn once every three weeks or less and let your lawn go dormant during the summer.

100. Put a bucket in the shower with you and use the captured water to flush the toilet.

101. Share water saving tips with your family and friends.

Have fun and start saving!

Dan Bossenbroek

1. Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL’s): Replace any incandescent bulb in your house that you use ½ hour or more per day immediately. These will pay for themselves in a year or less, that’s at least a 100% return on your investment. Replace the remaining incandescent bulbs as they burn out. Two words of caution: many CFL’s don’t work too well in cold or wet locations, and CFL’s contain mercury, so dispose of the burned out ones properly.

2. Weatherize Your House: Plug all the cracks in the exterior walls of your house, they can be found around doors & windows, pipes & wires that poke through the wall, and between different siding materials. Also seal all of the outlets, switches and light fixtures that are in any exterior walls or ceilings below an attic. There are a multitude of products that can be used to accomplish this: weather stripping, door sweeps, sealant, foam insulation, outlet and switch gaskets, and aluminum tape, to name several.

3. Insulate, insulate, insulate: Walls, attics and basements should all have adequate insulation. Adding insulation to your walls and attic is one of the most cost effective ways to save energy. First determine how much insulation is recommended in your area, and then add insulation to your attic, walls and then basement to the recommended levels. Fiberglass and cellulose are two of the best insulation choices for your attic. Determining the correct insulation for your walls is a little more complicated, foam insulation is an additional choice here. In your basement, fiberglass batts are typically the insulation of choice.

4. Light up the Night: LED (Light Emitting Diode) nightlights are the most cost effective way to add a little bit of light in just the right places throughout your home. LED bulbs are about 10 times more efficient than incandescent bulbs and 50% more efficient than fluorescent bulbs. By using LED nightlights you can turn off many of the lights that you might leave on so that you can safely walk around your house at night. Consider using a couple of 1 watt night lights instead of a 10 watt fixture.

5. Programmable Thermostat: Turning down the thermostat every night in the winter, turning it up in the morning, down again while you are gone at work and up again when you get home is a great way to save on you heating bills, but can become a real hassle. It’s easy to forget to adjust it, and even when you do remember, it’s a bit chilly in the morning when you wake up. A programmable thermostat will remember to adjust the thermostat for you, and can be set to warm things up a little before you have to get up in the morning. Programmable thermostats: saving energy made easy.

6. Low-Flow Showerheads: Not only will you save water with these water misers, but you will save the energy that heats the water for a double savings on your utility bills.

7. Water Heater Insulation: Another thing that you should consider insulating is your hot water heater, especially if it is warm to the touch.

8. Solar Lighting: Install a few miniature photovoltaic systems to provide accent light in your garden and security lights where needed. Solar powered fixtures have made great strides lately with the advances in battery, LED and solar panel technologies. The increased efficiency of the collectors, smaller size of the batteries and the increased bulb life and output of LED lamps and the decrease in cost of all three will allow the solar powered lights of today to shine brighter and longer than those made just a few years ago.

9. Window Fans: You may want to consider a Window Fan to cool your house during the night when the temperatures are significantly lower than they are in the day. Many times your house or apartment can be cooled off to such an extent that you can close your windows in the morning and the temperature inside will stay quite comfortable for most if not all of the day. Window fans create a great cool breeze throughout the house and can even lower the temperature inside lower than an air conditioner would.

10. Clothes Dryer Heat: There is a handy gadget available that attaches to your dryer vent and directs the warm humid air from your electric clothes dryer back into your laundry room instead of outside through the dryer vent. It has a screen that is easy to clean and a movable damper so that the hot air can be directed outside during the cooling season.

11. Radiant Insulation: More than half of the heat lost up through your roof in the winter and that comes down into your house in the summer is radiant (infrared) heat. Traditional fiberglass bat and cellulose insulation work well to slow conductive and convective heat flow, but don’t do much to stem the radiant heat flow. Radiant insulation reflects the heat back down into your house in the winter and back up through the roof in the summer so that it never has the chance to heat up your attic. Hence, it keeps your attic much cooler in summer and warmer in winter, greatly reducing the difference in temperature between the inside of your house and the attic and in the size of your energy bills both in summer and winter.

12. Drip Irrigation System: Spraying water all over an entire garden might simulate natural rainfall, but it is not the most efficient way to water your plants. Drip irrigation is a method of watering plants by which pipes and/or hoses are run through the garden and emitters or holes in the hoses for water to leak out are placed at the bases of the plants. This way, water is delivered only where it is needed, at the roots. Very little water is wasted through evaporation and none should run down your driveway and make it into the local storm sewer. These systems are very inexpensive and fairly easy to install.

13. Furnace Filter Whistle: Not only will a dirty furnace filter reduce your furnaces efficiency, it will also increase the wear and tear on your furnace. Thus, it pays to replace your furnace regularly, but when should you change your filter? Some say that you should change it once a month, others say once a quarter. Regardless of how often, it is very easy to forget. A Furnace Filter Whistle takes away all of the guess work, and remembering by telling you when your filter needs to be replaced.

14. Space Heater: In the cold of winter it’s great to feel warm and cozy, but you don’t have to turn up the thermostat and heat your entire house. Use a space heater or two to heat the few spaces that you are actually using and save on your heating bills.

15. Hot Water Pipe Insulation: With this strategy you can save energy and water. Pre-slit foam insulation is easy to install, just cut it to length and fasten in place with a little duct tape. By insulating your hot water pipes you will not have to wait as long for hot water to reach the faucet and you can also make sure your pipes don’t freeze in your unheated crawl space.

By employing these fifteen mostly inexpensive strategies in your home, you will be able to save energy, water and hundreds of dollars every year on your energy bills all while making your home more comfortable to live in.

Dan Bossenbroek