General Tips on Electricity Efficiency

Home Appliance can cost you significant amount of electricity bill. You have to pay more attention to every appliance in your home. Here are some facts on the average appliance useage and how much it costs per month:

Electricity Usage on Home Appliance

• Air conditioner 900 watts 200 hours a month $16.20
• Aquarium ( with pump and heater) 150 watts 750 hours a month $9.72 per month
• Computer( desktop) 250 watts 120 hours per month $2.70
• Furnace Fan 450 watts 180 hours per month $7.29 per month
• refrigerator 500 watts 120 hours $5.40 per month
• Water Heater (40- 50 gallon) 4,500 watt 90 hours a month 36.45 a month
• Television 130 watt 120 hours $1.40 a month

If you calculate the total bills of all your home appliance, you will be surprised by the amount. The best way to keep your home energy efficient is to change the way how you use the home appliance. Here are 5 tips you can follow to reduce your electricity bills:

1. Clean or replace air filters on a regualr basis
2. Turn off items when yo are not using them especaily TV and Computer
3. Turn off lights when you are not using them
4. If you have a dishwasher wait until it is full before washing
5. Consider towel drying you hair instead of blow drying it.

Now you can start developing your new energy efficient habits.
Don’t give up easily. It take times. But you can do it.

Winter heating bills is one of the biggest spent in utility bills. The average household will pay $986 in heating costs in winter. Invest in an energy audit is one of the solution to lower your utility bill.

Hiring an Energy Auditor to assesses how much energy your home uses can make your home more efficient. With Energy Audit Professional service, you can reduce your heating bill by up to 40 percent.

The costs can range from $300 to $1,500 for an audit. But you’ll generally get more savings. And you won’t need another audit for another 15 to 20 years.

Here is the pricing based on Square Footage of Building:

• Residential: $449 baseline for building up to 2000 square feet, plus $50 per each additional 1000 square feet, or portion thereof.The audit includes diagnosis with the Blower Door and the Infra-Red camera. The audit will also include a combustion efficiency test on the furnace / boiler, and a CAZ (Combustion Appliance Zone) Worst Case Test. A full report of building information and remedial measures (with associated costs) is also included in the price, along with a list of qualified weatherization firms and helpful sketches and diagrams for some simple D-I-Y fixes.
• Small Commercial: $649 baseline for building up to 4000 square feet, plus $150 per each additional 1000 square feet, or portion thereof, up to a maximum of $2000.The audit includes diagnosis with the blower door, where safe and appropriate, and the Infra-Red camera. A full report of building information and remedial measures (with associated costs) is also included, as appropriate to client or participating program rules and guidelines.
• Thermal Camera Imaging Only: $225 includes Thermal Camera used while the Blower Door is running and Walk-thru Inspection. No report will be generated to describe remedial measures. If the conditions permit useable IR data to be gathered, a small thermo graphic report can be generated for an additional $50.

* Note: this price can be vary from time to time. It also depends on contractors you choose, and where you live in.

Another solution is you can do it yourself energy audit for your home. Of course you need to learn how to assess your home. You don’t need an advance training specially designed for Professional Energy Audit career to do your home energy audit. A Basic energy audit course may help you save up to 30% of your utility bills. You don’t need to spent too much money on thousand dollars course and expensive tools & methods to do it.

Learn more how you can do it yourself Home Energy Audit.

Units of Energy

Use for any unit conversions that may be necessary for utility comparisons or economic calculations

• 1 Btu/h = 0.2931 watt
• 1 gallon = 8.346 lb of water (680 F.)
• 1 horsepower = 0.7457 kilowatt = 42.41 Btu/min
• 1 Kilowatt-hour = 3413 Btu = 1,000 watt-hours
• 1 Ton = 12,000 Btu/hr
• 1 watt = 3.412 Btu/hr

Energy Formulas

• Tons = GPM (water) x Δt / 24
• Tons = CFM (air) x Δh / 2700
• Total Heat (Btu/hr) = 500 x GPM (water) x Δt
• Total Heat (Btu/hr) = 4.5 x CFM (air) x Δh
• Sensible Heat (Btu/hr) = 1.08 x CFM (air) x Δt
• Latent Heat (Btu/hr) = 0.68 x CFM (air) x Δw

source: Harvard School of Publich Health

The standard price for classroom energy audit training basic program is $1,595. This class requires you attending the class regularly and few months of apprentice. Yes, the regular program cost is too high because you have to pay for instructor’s fee & facility expense.

Since not everyone can afford the price or have the time to attend the class, now EAI launch the standard energy audit training program, with the same training materials, in-depth energy audit technique and based on US Department of Energy Standards. We understand that not everybody have the energy audit related background, so the training programs are carefully designed & tested to be easily understood by common people with no energy audit related background. You will find many illustrations help you better understand the energy audit technique. The training program has been compacted to 2 weeks program so you can start practice energy auditing.

The cost for this training program is $347 only (retail rate). Yes, You SAVE $1,248! But if you purchase the digital download version, You GET $100 OFF become $247. The digital download version includes 10 energy audit training modules.

If you want to get more discounts, we have Special Discount $50 code that you can apply when you purchase the training program. Copy this code “FALL50” without the quote (“). Now the price becomes $197 only.

Of course we will show every discount you can get. The good news is now you can purchase the bundled version (Home Energy Audit Training & Commercial Energy Audit Training) for $344.00 only. You SAVE another $50. There is no need to use a coupon code to get this bundled version, because the $50.00 discount has been applied to each program.

Here we summarize the final cost:

• Home Energy Audit Training: $197
• Commercial Energy Audit Training: $197
• Bundled – Home and Commercial Energy Audit Training: $344

This is the lowest cost you can get.

Visit Energy Audit Institute from this link and apply the “FALL50″ discount code.

The legacy energy audit training, RESNET and BPI, has shaped the energy audit industry in US. Most of energy auditors are trained and certified from these two companies. Both companies standards are officially recognized by the federal government, and U.S. government, the Department of Energy, and Energy Star.

Both companies provide good training program, although some students complain these programs is too complicated, extensive, and really expensive since it’s primarily designed for engineers, architects, and home trade experts with a history of energy and inspections. The training cost is quite high, up to thousand dollars (The BPI Training cost is $1595. This is just the most basic training).

The legacy companies generally require an apprenticeship training period (beside the training program period) to learn all energy audit techniques. So you need to dedicate your time to follow this schedule. Graduates from these programs are well prepared to conduct “Advanced” audits with machinery including blower door testing, duct blaster testing, thermal imaging, and other in-depth measuring techniques and practices.

You will also need to purchase the equipment necessary to conduct an Advanced energy audit. The equipment average cost is $20,000 – $30,000. This is for long term investment. The minimal rate of advanced energy audit is $400-$600. These programs are suitable for commercial/industrial market. But it’s quite high for homeowners. We only recommend these programs if you already have energy auditing related background, several months of free time and of course the training cost & investment doesn’t matter to you.

Alternative Energy Audit Training to RESNET and BPI Training

If you just want to learn how to conduct a simple energy audit with lower cost, there is an alternative. Today, many certified energy auditor expert share their same knowledge in more simple and practical course at affordable price and investment.

The Energy Audit Institute created a new type of energy audit for the “eco-conscious” market that reduces the need for energy auditors to buy $20,000 – $30,000 of equipment. At the same time reducing the amount of time required in the consumers residence or facility, thereby lowering the cost of an energy audit to an affordable rate.

How? By removing the advanced auditing techniques such as blower door testing, and duct blasting and other time and money consuming testing. This simplified audit is called a “standard” energy audit.

The standard energy audit still finds (on average) 80% of the energy savings of an “advanced” audit but in a fraction of the time.

A “standard” energy audit is primarily a visual inspection and focuses on the primary energy wasting elements such as heating, cooling, and lighting. Since these areas consume and waste the most energy it makes sense that the standard energy audit should focus on these items.

Another area of focus is tax incentives and rebates from the U.S. government, states, and local energy and gas companies. Since there are many new rebates on items such as insulation, solar screens, radiant barrier, HVAC systems, and water heaters – making sure these areas are clearly identified and explained to the homeowners is critical.

Most graduates of the Energy Audit Institute are able to complete their training and get certified in as little as 2 weeks studying part-time from home.

The Energy Auditor course includes training, certification, software, and marketing tools

You will receive everything you need to completely understand Energy Auditing and to go out into the field and start conducting Energy Audits immediately.

Visit Energy Audit Institute for more information about energy audit training program.

You have heard about energy audit can help you reduce your energy bills. Later you find out that home insulation is one of the great recommendations to improve your home energy efficiency. Perhaps you are currently in the position of choosing the right insulation material and you were told to choose the right R-Value for your home insulation. These questions may come up into your mind — What is R-Value? What it has to do with my home insulation?

What is R-Value

The R-value is a measure of thermal resistance used in the building, construction industry and house. In simple words, R-value is a quality of a material to resist transferring heat / cold through it.

In world-wide, the mathematical definition of R-value is Kelvin square meters per watt (m2.K/W).

• m2: meter square
• K: Kelvin
• W: Watt

But in the United States, R-value is measured with degrees Fahrenheit (ft².F.h/Btu).

• ft²: foot square
• F: Fahrenheit
• h: hour
• Btu: British thermal unit.

All insulation has an R-value rating, usually from R-7 to R-50. This rating indicates the insulation’s resistance to heat flow from a warm area to a cooler area. If you want to know the formula and how to calculate it, see the Wikipedia R-value Insulation page. But the essence is the higher the R value, the more effective it is.

What R-value has to do with Home Insulation

The US Department of Energy (DOE) lists inadequate insulation as a leading cause of home energy waste because it forces even the most efficient heating and cooling systems to work harder and consume more energy. Inadequate insulation can be caused by the wrong calculation of R-value or using insulation material without considering the R-value.

The R value of insulation that each person needs to use in his home or office depends mostly on the local climate. DOE recommends ranges of R-values based on local heating and cooling costs and climate conditions in different areas of the US nation

So you need to consult with your energy auditor expert which type of home insulation material should be purchased based on its R value. The higher the R-value, the better your walls and roof will resist the transfer of heat.

Helpful Resources for R-value Insulation

Here are some helpful resources for further information about:

• Recommended Levels of Insulation – The table below shows what levels of insulation are cost-effective for different climates and locations in the US home
• The R-value for material table list – Typical per-unit-thickness R-values for material

Home insulation is the important part in Home Energy Audit. Home insulation can significantly reduce the use of energy in winter. There are many reasons why you might choose to insulate your home. 

Here are 4 reasons to insulate your home properly:

• Save your monthly utility bills. Inadequate insulation can cause you energy waste in your home.
• Make your home more comfortable. Reduce the hot areas, stay cooler in summer and reduce the cold area while stay warmer in winter.
• Eliminate the dependence on limited energy resources. As fossil-fuel-based energy supply is limited and the costs is rising.
• Save our environment. Make our environment more healthy by reducing the pollution of Fossil-fuel-based Energy.

How much can Insulation save?

The answer is insulating your home properly can significantly save you lot of money! The energy you can save depends on several factors:

• The situation of your local climate
• The physical of your building (size, shape, orientation, age, window types and density, construction materials)
• How efficient your heating and cooling systems are
• What type of your energy source used
• How you use your energy wisely (living habits).

Learn how insulation works

Insulation works by reducing the movement of air, to keep your home warmer in winter and cooler in summer. More specifically, air moves naturally from a warmer space to a cooler place. So in winter, the heated air inside your home wants to escape to the outside, or to the unheated spaces of your home, such as the attic, crawl space or garage. Insulation helps to keep the warm air from escaping, which prevents your heating source from working unnecessarily.

In the summer, the opposite is true. As hot outdoor air tries to infiltrate your home, insulation prevents the heat transfer so your air conditioner doesn’t have to work as hard to keep you comfortable.

What type of insulation is the best for me?

Actually the answer can be vary. It is depend on your situation. Everybody situation is unique. So, one type is suitable for one person but not for another. Below are several factors can be considered to choose the best insulation type for your specific needs:

• Ask yourself, how much insulation do you need
• Consider the accessibility of the space to be insulated
• Think the amount of space available for the insulation
• Check the price and availability of various types of insulation
• Your personal preferences and considerations

Another great information that might be usefull for you is Low-density foam is one type of insulation with a high thermal resistance! Also choose the the highest R-VALUE product for your insulating effectiveness. Don’t hesitate to ask any further information from the product supplier. They have great information of the product capibility, standard practice and maintenance instruction.

If you are not confident, you can have your local Home Energy Team expert help you choose the right insulation for your needs.

I think it’s useful to share with my readers information about Michigan Energy Revolving Loan (RLF) Program. This program was established in Public Act 242 of 2009 by Michigan Government. The purpose of this program is to provide low-interest loans to public or private entities for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. In here I want to share the information of low interest loans that are available for family farms to implement their Farm Energy Audit recommendations.

What is a Farm Energy Audit?

A Farm Energy Audit is a comprehensive evaluation of your farm energy use, recommendations for improvements, energy savings, and the estimated payback period. An assessment measures the success for utilizing renewable energy over fossil fuels. Farm Energy Audits are a required prerequisite for the energy loan application. The audit/assessment will recommend specific measures for implementation. It is up to the owner to select the recommended projects that will be implemented.

Who is eligible?

Family Farms. The program is limited to funding energy efficiency and renewable energy projects recommended through the Michigan Farm Energy Audit program. Systems already installed are ineligible.

When can projects begin?

Work on projects may begin once the loan agreement is signed. Only project-related costs that are incurred and paid for after loan execution may be included in the loan request. Applicants assume all financial risk if all loan documents are not approved or executed. If the loan is not approved or executed, MEDC or the State of Michigan is not responsible for reimbursement of any costs.

How much funding is available?

Please call for latest funding availability. Loan amounts will be awarded until funds are depleted and are limited to materials, supplies and equipment costs only.

When should applications be submitted?

Now. This solicitation is open until the funds are depleted. Applications for funding will be reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis and will be evaluated based on project merit and applicant creditworthiness. The Energy Office reserves the right to close the solicitation period at any time.

Criteria for Loan Approval

Applicants must meet minimum credit standards determined by the Advisory Committee. Credit standards are not solely based upon FICO scores and may consist of a face-to-face interview to determine knowledge and interest in passive solar systems. Applicants will be required to submit quarterly reports related energy use, payback and other economic information.

Interest Rate

Interest on approved loans is fixed at 4% for a maximum of 6 years.

Repayment Terms

Interest-only payments will be collected on disbursed loan funds for the first six (6) months starting from the agreement date. After the first six (6) months, loan repayments are made in equal semi-annual installments of principal and interest concluding not later than 6 years after the agreement date. There is no penalty for early repayment.

Loan Security Requirements

A promissory note, loan agreement and security agreement are required to secure the loan. The security interest is limited to materials, supplies and equipment purchased with loan funds.

Disbursement of Funds

Funds are available on a reimbursement basis. Loan disbursements will be made upon the submission of the vendor’s invoice in addition to the other required loan deliverables. Loan disbursement amounts will be 50% of the total order amount at the time of order. The remaining balance will be disbursed upon receipt of equipment, supplies and materials. Proof of payment is required within 30 days of each loan disbursement.

How to Apply

An electronic loan application form is available for downloading as an Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF). Please review additional Application Package Items located on the electronic loan application for. Only complete applications will be reviewed; please take the time to ensure application completeness. Please submit a signed loan application and additional documents via email or ground mail to:

Michigan Energy Office, Farm Audit – RLF
300 N. Washington Square
Lansing, MI 48913
Phone: 517-241-8526
For Farm Energy Audit questions please contact: Al Go, Michigan State University
517-353-0643
goaluel@msu.edu

Note:  Energy Audit Course cited this information from Michigan Government Energy Revolving Loan Program, in Farm Energy Audit Implementation Information. The intention of this, is to help spread this information to people who are eligible for this program.

Probably you have heard about energy audit from your friends or media and it turn on your curiosity about energy audit. So what is energy audit?

The Definition of Energy Audit

Well, the simple definition of Energy Audit is to “Determine the energy consumption of a home and find ways to reduce it”. Energy audit is also known as energy efficiency, energy saving, energy evaluation, energy assessment, energy inspection and energy examination.

Energy Audit Principles

When the object of study is an occupied building then reducing energy consumption while maintaining or improving human comfort, health and safety are of primary concern. Beyond simply identifying the sources of energy use, an energy audit seeks to prioritize the energy uses according to the greatest to least cost effective opportunities for energy savings.

The Activity of Energy Audit

The activity of the energy audit cover inspecting the energy flows of a facility (it can be home, building, etc), list and calculate all energy consumption where it is used, then provide list of actions needed to reduce the consumption while improving human comfort, health and safety.

The person who performs energy audit called energy auditor. They can be just an ordinary people who have enough information to perform energy audit or a well trained and certified energy auditor by an Energy Audit Training / Institute.

The Objectives of Energy Audit

Here are some objectives when doing energy auditing:

• Identifying the quality and cost of various energy inputs
• Assessing present pattern of energy consumption in different cost centers of operations.
• Relating energy inputs and production output.
• Identifying potential areas of thermal and electrical energy economy.
• Highlighting wastage’s in major areas.
• Recommend appropriate energy conservation, operation, and maintenance procedures.
• Note current and potential health and safety problems and how they may be affected by proposed changes.
• Implementation of measures for energy conservation & realization of savings.

Level of Energy Audit Service

Three common service level of energy audit are preliminary audit, general audit, investment-grade audit. The actual tasks performed and level of effort may vary with the consultant providing services. See the detailed scope of work to ensure which level will meet your specific needs.

Preliminary Energy Audit

The preliminary energy audit is a simple energy audit that involves minimal interviews with site operating personnel, a brief review of facility utility bills and other operating data, and a walk-through of the facility to become familiar with the building operation and identify glaring areas of energy waste or inefficiency.

So, when to do preliminary energy audit? The answer is when you want to do:

• Energy audit for major problem areas only
• Quick estimation of implementation cost
• Quick estimation of potential operating cost savings
• Quick estimation of simple payback periods.

Preliminary Energy Audit level is not sufficient for reaching a final decision on implementing a proposed measures, but adequate to prioritize your energy efficiency projects and determine the need for a more detailed audit.

General Energy Audit

The general energy audit is a more complete site energy audit, extension of the preliminary energy audit described above by collecting more detailed information about facility operation and performing a more detailed evaluation of energy conservation measures identified. The general energy audit process requires:

• Utility bills are collected for a 12 to 36 month period to allow the auditor to evaluate the facility’s energy/demand rate structures, and energy usage profiles
• Additional metering of specific energy-consuming systems is often performed to supplement utility data
• In-depth interviews with facility operating personnel are conducted to provide a better understanding of major energy consuming systems as well as insight into variations in daily and annual energy consumption and demand.

General Energy Audit will be able to:

• Identify all energy conservation measures appropriate for the facility given its operating parameters.
• A detailed financial analysis is performed for each measure based on detailed implementation cost estimates, site-specific operating cost savings, and the customer’s investment criteria.
• Sufficient detail is provided to justify project implementation.

Investment-Grade Energy Audit

The investment-grade energy audit is a comprehensive audit, detailed audit, maxi audit, or technical analysis audit, expands on the general energy audit described above by providing a dynamic model of energy use characteristics of both the existing facility and all energy conservation measures identified.

The building model is calibrated against actual utility data to provide a realistic baseline against which to compute operating savings for proposed measures. Extensive attention is given to understanding not only the operating characteristics of all energy consuming systems, but also situations that cause load profile variations on both an annual and daily basis. Existing utility data is supplemented with sub metering of major energy consuming systems and monitoring of system operating characteristics.

When Investment-Grade Energy Audit is required?

In most corporate settings, upgrades to a facility’s energy infrastructure must compete with non-energy related investments for capital funding. Both energy and non-energy investments are rated on a single set of financial criteria that generally stress the expected return on investment (ROI). The projected operating savings from the implementation of energy projects must be developed such that they provide a high level of confidence. In fact, investors often demand guaranteed savings.

Angela Sapp, Florida. Hundred Dollars spent for utility bills a month used to be the norm at Angela’s house, although she often tell her children to turn off the lights and set the winter thermostat to the recommended degrees. “For years I didn’t know why my utility bills were so high,” she said. (Spotted by one of the florida times)

Sapp and her family are among million of homeowners and renters that are shock after receiving their monthly utility bills, especially during periods of extremely hot or cold weather. Even after accounting for additional heating or cooling expenses, homeowners may find themselves wondering where all that electricity actually went. Knowing precisely where your utility services go is one key to reducing utility bills. Some people have little idea just how many appliances and devices are currently drawing power in their homes.

One way to reduce your utility bills is to do home energy audit in your home. The main purpose of a home energy audit is to analysis the home energy consumption and come up with the recommendations to eliminate wasted energy and by that lower your monthly utility bill.

Of course you can hire an Energy Auditor to do it for you. Energy auditor will help you inspecting the energy flows of your home, list and calculate all energy consumption where it is used, then provide list of actions needed to reduce the consumption while improving human comfort, health and safety. The cost of energy audit is start from $100 per hour for the basic level audit, and $400 – $600 for advance level audit.

If you feel that it’s too expensive to hire energy auditor expert, you can also learn home energy audit by taking comprehensive home energy audit training at your home. Basicly it cover 10 core modules such as residential lighting, water, cooling, insulation, electronics, appliances, and more. It can save more than 30% energy consumption on average home.

Visit here for more information on energy audit training price and suitable course for you.