9 Nov
Moving to a more energy efficient home. Any way to calculate the energy savings?
I am an energy saving buff (all about going Green) and I am moving from an other home built in the 60s to a house that was built in 96. The new home is all electric. We were paying electric and gas at the older house. It is well insulated and we will be purchasing energy star appliances. We are only paying about 0-0 more a month with this move and I am hoping we will off-set that will the energy savings in the more efficient house. Is there anyway I can calculate this?
Posted by The Three Stooges on 09.11.09 at 12:27 pm
Calculate all you want. There will be no net savings, in that, Going Green equals Spending Green. (I’m talkin’ moolah)
Posted by little.robbergirl on 09.11.09 at 12:27 pm
most of the calculators are rather general, and the saving will depend on lifestyle as much as energy efficiency. you could work out U values (insulation ratings), number of air changes per hour etc. and how often you use washer, how hot you keep the house etc to give energy use estimates, but really, you will only find out through keeping records. we have fuel bills going back 20 years here but i guess thats just obsessive. last bit of insulation and final 2 windows double glazed made a big difference, but its all for nowt when my pa leaves the back door open for hours tsk.
Posted by whsgreenmom on 09.11.09 at 12:27 pm
You can ask the former owners for an energy usage history. I don’t know if the utility can give you that information, but the previous resident can request it from the utility.
Posted by Robin the energy saver on 09.11.09 at 12:27 pm
It’s pretty hard to calculate without knowing exactly what the surface area of the house is, what R-value insulation is installed, how well sealed it is, etc.
Your challenge (depending on how warm an area you live in) is going to be the added cost of heating with electricity, which usually costs far more than heating with gas. My guess is that, unless the house is extremely well insulated (R-36 in the walls, R-60 in the attic, ENERGY STAR windows and doors, intact vapor barrier throughout the walls) you will probably be adding about $200 a month to your heating bill during below-freezing weather.
If you’re a real energy saving buff (as I am) you might consider looking into geothermal heating (which has the added bonuses of also providing air conditioning and hot water). Although it’s expensive up front, it pays for itself fairly quickly and for every unit of electricity you put into it, you get about 4 units of heat out of it in the heating season.