Fresh AIRE

30 days and counting: Federal Energy Efficiency Tax Credit Expires

Is your furnace or water heater are on the fritz? Are you are thinking of insulating your attic or making other energy efficiency improvements? NOW IS THE TIME TO ACT!

The federal tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements are set to expire at the end of next month. The credits offer consumers 30 percent, or up to $1,500, off the cost of new HVAC systems, insulation, water heaters, roofs, windows, doors and biomass stoves. But Arlingtonians must act quickly because the work has to be started and tax credit applications submitted by Dec. 31.

The improvements can only be made to existing homes that are used as primary residences. New construction and rentals do not qualify.

Since there are only 25 shopping days until Christmas and 3 until Hanukkah, there is still time to give the gift that keeps on giving this holiday season.   So if you think you might not have time for a home improvement project, or you were unaware of the credits, there is still a small window of time to act.

Learn more here:

ENERGY STAR Federal Tax Credit

 

TIME for New Energy-Saving Strategies

Being a reader of Time, I was nerdishly delighted to receive the latest issue featuring ‘The 50 Best Inventions of 2010’.  Flying cars.  Sarcasm detection.  (No, really.)  The first synthetic cell.   A road-straddling bus.  The list goes on, and every mind-blowing item beckons that age-old question, “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Especially exciting to me were all the advancements that have been made in energy savings, so indulge me as I describe a few things I’ll be adding to my holiday wish list.  Deep Green’s Underwater Kites have the ‘power’ (sorry) to generate energy by tethering kites affixed with small turbines to the ocean floor.  Seawater is denser than air, so the ocean’s currents have the ability to generate even more power than wind.  The (almost) waterless washing machine largely utilizes reusable, stain-absorbing nylon beads in lieu of water and uses 90% less water in all compared to your average washer.  Electric-car charging stations may not be too far off here in Arlington.  Coulomb Technologies is developing a system of utility-connected charging stations in public places.  Lastly, my personal favorite is the power-aware cord.  Wires are imbedded around cords to produce light relative to how much electricity is being drawn off the grid by a given device.  The more power is being used, the brighter and faster the blue spirals.  The idea here is that if your home looks like the interior of a Techno club, you might be inclined to unplug a few devices not is use. 

Those are just a few developments that are catching my attention, but what about you?  Are there any energy-saving inventions of 2010 that you’re excited about?

KILL VAMPIRE LOADS!

Slay phantom loads that drain your energy dollars. 

Surprise! Your appliances use electricity and cost you money even when they are switched off. The same is true for your stereo, coffee maker, microwave, clock radio and other electronics. Yes, even chargers for cell phones and MP3 players may siphon energy when plugged in - even if they're not charging a thing!

A "phantom load" is any appliance or electronic gadget that uses energy even when turned off. Some people call them "vampire loads" because they suck, literally, small amounts of power 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

Check out these specific examples that may be draining money from your wallet.  

The good news is that you don't need garlic or a wooden stake to ward off these energy vampire loads.  Simply checkout a Kill A Watt from any County Library.  This device allows you to see  what your appliances are actually using when they are off and calculate what they are costing you annually.  

This worksheet is useful to quantify all of the plug loads and their vampire loads. This is a worthwhile exercise for any homeowner, tenant, parent, or prospective science fair project submission.

Once the vampire loads have been identified there are many solutions.  The easiest is to unplug devices that are not in use.  Put other devices on a power strip and turn them all off when not in use.  It's just that simple.

Now go out and kill those energy vampires!

 

Solar “Barn Raising", First of Many

Congratulations on a job well done to ACE Board Member Dan Conant for a successful launch of the pilot Solar Raisers program this past weekend. This achievement has been anticipated by several localbloggers and the installation was also covered in TBD.com,Sun Gazette, and ArlNow.com.  We would be remiss if we didn’t highlight this housing success too.

Solar hot water heating is one of several technologies that have a relatively fast payback for single-family homeowners. When volunteers help to coordinate, schlep, and install the system the price for installation drops to about $2,300 after tax rebates.

County Board Chairman Jay Fisette was one of the willing voluteers that helped to install a solar hot water system as part of this pilot.  Many more volunteers and homeowners have expressed interest.  The County congratulates ACE and we look forward to watching many more solar systems go up throughout Arlington.

If you are interested in volunteering or having a solar system installed.  Please contact ACE board member Dan Conant at (571) 243-0745 or e-mail conantd@gmail.com

 

Community Energy Plan Town Hall -- October 21st -- 6-9pm

I'm sure you saw our recent post about our Community Energy Plan project  and heard about the first Energy Plan Town Hall back in April. The Community Energy Plan process is now more than half over and NOW is your time to get involved!

It's easy as 1,2,3 to get involved:

1.    Visit the Arlington Community Energy Plan website  
2.    Review the Summary of Preliminary Recommendations 
3.    Attend the October 21st Community Energy Forum  

Mark you calender now and plan to attend this event which will help shape Arlington's energy future.  Do you have an opinion on energy intensity of local food, how your condo can go green,  how sustainable redevelopment can occur in Crystal City or Columbia Pike? If so, then we want to hear from you.

 

If you aren't familiar with Arlington's Community Energy Plan, this project will establish energy goals and strategies for the entire County over the next 40 years. This project will ultimately result in an energy plan that addresses the places where we use energy in our community – in homes, shops, offices, public buildings and other institutions – and offer strategies to:

• Enhance Arlington’s economic competitiveness
• Ensure reliable and affordable energy supplies
• Demonstrate the County’s long-term commitment to environmental responsibility  

 

 Mark you calender and join us on October 21st!

 

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Resources:

Arlington Community Energy Plan Website

October 21, 2010 - Community Energy Forum, 6pm-9pm.
Wakefield High School, 4901 S Chesterfield Road, Arlington, VA 22206

 

Read some of the buzz below to see what the community is saying.

Washington Post    Urban Trekker     Vimeo     TBD    ArlNow   Sun Gazette

 

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Smart Meters come to Arlington!

Smart meters have made their way from rumor to reality here in Arlington as part of Dominions Smart Grid pilot. More than 32,000 customers in the Northern Virginia area getting smart meters installed.  See the chart below to see the breakdown of meter installation across the region:

       Customers by Municipality  Installation Timeline

• City of Alexandria:        4,115              Jun-Oct
• Arlington County:        19,221              Jun-Oct
• Fairfax County:            4.499               Jun-Nov
• City of Falls Church:     4,969               Jun-Oct

What is a smart meter and why is it important?  

Smart meters are the next generation of electricity and gas meters. They will bring about the end of estimated bills and meter readings, and provide Arlington resident and Dominion with accurate information on the amount of electricity being used. Smart meters will empower Arlingtonians to make choices on how much energy they use. 

This pilot will help Arlington residents in a few ways.  It will allow for wireless remote meter reading.  Previous meter reading required a truck to drive down your street to get your meter data.  Put simply, remote meter reads will reduce the number of vehicles on the road, fuel used, and pollution. That's a good thing all around.

The smart meter deployment will also allow Dominion to  remotely turn meters on/off and notify them of power outages, which would come in handy these days with so many epic storms in the region.  

The ultimate goal is to create a grid that manages electric equally between the peaks and valleys of use, increases reliability, manages the rising cost of electricity, and reduces the associated environmental impacts.  Smart meters won't solve all of the issues plaguing extraction, production, transmission, storage, and use of electricity in Arlington.  But it can be one part of the solution.

Learn more on page 35 of this link about Dominion's Smart Meter pilot program, and see how Arlington County's Community Energy Plan is shaping up to transform our energy future.

More Resources:

Arlington's July Community Energy Plan Presentation - http://www.arlingtonva.us/departments/DES-CEP/CommunityEnergyPlan/documents/file77584.pdf

Dominion's Smart Meter Program - http://www.dom.com/about/conservation/about-smartmeters.jsp

Temper(ature) Tantrums

With the coming days’ temperatures expected to approach 100°F, it’s undoubtedly a challenge to stay cool without blasting the AC.  Being new to air conditioning myself, it has been quite the struggle balancing my need to stay cool in balmy Arlington while satisfying those energy efficiency cravings.  Thus, I’d like to share my personal tale of how I cooled down my sun-kissed apartment.

 

After abandoning my first method to stay cool sans AC (heavy whining/tantrums), we tried turning the AC on sparingly (while at home and awake) and keeping the curtains drawn to banish direct sunlight.  This worked great most of the time, but on days when the sun and temperature were unyielding, the curtains were no match.  I’d arrive home to a sauna, an overheated, miffed cat, and giant cacti that had only weeks ago been humble succulents.  Something had to be done.  There had to be a way of keeping the place livable during the day without electrifying it.  

 

Internet sleuthing and a trip to a home repair store provided some promising options, one of which really did the trick for our abode: window film.  At first I was skeptical that a thin layer of grayish plastic would work, but with a receipt in tow, I stuck the film on our most sun-worshipping windows.  Success!  The film provides a pleasant, barely-there tint, blocks up to 99% of the sun’s UV rays, reduces heat gain through the windows, and will (fingers crossed) help stave off some AC reliance.

 

So that’s what worked for us, and I’m pleased as punch with the results.  How about you?  What has worked in your home to help cool things off without cranking the AC?

Ceiling Fan Tip

This post originally ran back in 2007, but given the onset of summer weather, is worth bringing back.

Rule of Thumb #5 - Your Couch Doesn't Care

Ceiling fan tip. Ceiling fans do not cool the air. However, they do cool you.  Ceiling fans work by moving air around.  Humans feel more comfortable in the heat when the air is moving. You've probably noted that you can sit outside on your deck in 82-degree weather and feel terrifically comfortable, but 82 degrees inside your house is uncomfortably warm. That's because outside the air is moving, and it makes you feel cooler.

So inside your house you can feel cooler, too, by using fans to move the air. Then you can turn up the thermostat a couple of degrees and save on air conditioning. It does absolutely no good, though, to leave a fan on in a room where there are no people. In fact, it's counterproductive, because the fan is using electricity and providing no benefit. Your couch does not care that the fan is on, and it does not feel any cooler. It's true: I asked it.

So use your ceiling fans to keep you cooler, but turn them off when there are no people around to keep cool.
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Steve Offutt,
Oh, and hey!  If your ceiling fan has lights, change them out for more efficient CFLs too.

The Gas-powered Alarm Clock

Remember a couple months ago when ENERGY STAR shut down their entire labeling program? You know, the gas-powered alarm clock that achieved an ENERGY STAR label. 

Well, the program has started back up again as of April 16th, 2010.  Wonder what changed? See links below…

EPA/DOE Joint Press Release

EPA/DOE Joint Letter to Administration

EPA Letter to Manufacturers

Highlights –

• All electronic submissions will require staff review of lab reports showing product meets criteria.
• Self-testing is acceptable until the end of the year, after then the plan is for all products to be tested in a 3^rd party accredited lab. 
• All manufacturers will soon be required participation in an ongoing verification testing program to ensure continued compliance.
• Stricter rules on use of the ENERGY STAR logo have been implemented.

It's worth noting that ENERGY STAR already had been doing off-the-shelf spot check testing on labeled products and found that 98 percent of the products comply with ENERGY STAR criteria.  Also worth noting is that the company that manufactures gas-powered alarm clock is fictitious (as is the alarm clock), created by the GAO to show how vulnerable the program is to fraud. However, with more organizations and communities specifying ENERGY STAR in purchasing policies and development policies, this scrutiny couldn't have come at a better time.  Here's to hoping we won't see anything like Tropical Thunder Appliance's "Air Cleaner" on the shelves at Home Depot.

Fresh AIRE TIP: Ward Off the Energy Vampires

TVs, video & DVD players, cable boxes, phone chargers, laptops, cameras, handheld devices and other electronic equipment waste huge amounts of energy. When these devices are left plugged in or in standby mode they use about 40 percent of their full running power. To avoid excess drain, plug these energy “vampires” into a power strip and turn it off when not in use.