Residential Energy Management Robert Scott Frazier Ph D

Residential Energy Management Robert Scott Frazier, Ph. D. , PE, CEM. Assistant Professor, Renewable Energy Extension Engineer Biosystems & Agricultural Engineering Oklahoma State University (405) 744 -5289

Energy Savings in the Home • This is a broad topic with many options • You are not expected to be the expert • We take two days to train utility people how to do home energy audits (and they are already doing them!) • Energy saving in the home requires the homeowner to take on the responsibility of knowledge • However, you can provide some good information to get customers started

Home Energy Resources • One of the best - Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings: Online Guide (ACEEE) • My website (discussed later) has this on-line guide • Look at the “Things You Can Do Now” in the guide link • You might be able to answer a simple phone question just from the guide • Regardless, you will want to steer the customer to the website so they can learn for themselves

Home Energy Savings Basics • Customer should keep in mind 80/20 rule • Basically this rule implies that we should concentrate on the “important few” at first • Example: Spending lots of money on efficient lighting may not have the biggest return (may not even be close) • Sensitize the customer to this important part of energy management

Home Energy Savings Basics • Another strategy may be a matter of doing various small things that, by themselves, don’t make a huge difference but put together, the effect may be noticeable • Which strategy is better? • Up to the customer – but I like “saving more” • Lets help the customer determine where the most energy savings are…

Energy Use in the Home • Lets take a look at where the energy in a typical home is used • This gives us a clue as to what the “important few” are • The only catch is that sometimes it is an associated problem that is driving an “important few” device • Example – poor insulation makes super efficient heater run more

Home Energy Priorities

Space Heating and Cooling • In Oklahoma I estimate the heating and cooling costs closer to 50% of the yearly electric and gas costs • Electronic devices are a distant second at about 16% of home energy costs • Tied for third are water heating and lighting at 11% each of the total utility bills • The last major user is refrigeration at about 8%

Prioritizing • Based on the break-down of energy use – where would you recommend looking for energy savings? • What do most/many homeowners do to try to start saving energy?

Heating and Cooling • Heating and cooling equipment and how it is operating should probably be the first area of investigation • Besides the furnace and AC units themselves, other parts of the home affect the operation of these devices • Kind of a chicken and egg thing…

Building Envelope Hidden air leaks cause some of the largest heat losses in older homes. Common air leakage sites include: • • • Plumbing penetrations through insulated floors and ceilings Chimney penetrations through insulated ceilings and exterior walls Fireplace dampers Attic access hatches Recessed lights and fans in insulated ceilings Wiring penetrations through insulated floors, ceilings, and walls Missing plaster Electrical outlets and switches, especially on exterior walls Window, door, and baseboard moldings Dropped ceilings above bathtubs and cabinets

Building Envelope Insulation is your primary defense against heat loss through the house envelope. However, putting insulation into a house after it is built can be pretty difficult. If there isn't any insulation, the best option is to bring in an insulation contractor to blow cellulose or fiberglass into the walls. • Attic. Adding insulation to an unheated attic is easier than insulating existing walls and is likely to have a greater impact on comfort and energy use. If there is no floor in the attic, simply add more insulation between the ceiling beams, either loose fill or unfaced fiberglass batts. • Insulation that has settled has lost much of its insulation capability

Building Envelope • Windows and doors: About one-third of the home's total heat loss usually occurs through windows and doors. If existing windows have rotted or damaged wood, solid aluminum frames, cracked glass, missing putty, poorly fitting sashes, or locks that don't work, you may be better off replacing them. • If windows are generally in good shape, it will probably be more cost-effective to boost their efficiency with inexpensive products purchased from your local building supply or hardware store.

Windows 1. The quickest and cheapest option is to seal all window edges and cracks with rope caulk. 2. Another solution is to weatherstrip windows and doors with a special lining that is inserted between the window and the frame. For doors, weatherstrip around the whole perimeter to ensure a tight seal when closed. Install quality door sweeps on the bottom of the doors if they aren't already in place. 3. If you plan to stay in the house for more than a few years, install storm windows. These come as plastic films you affix to the existing window, or a removable piece of glass that inserts behind the existing window. 4. Finally, prevent radiative heat gain and loss in the summer and winter by installing insulating curtains or drapes on the interior.

Heating Systems Proper maintenance can have a big effect on fuel bills and should be performed on a routine basis. • Clean or replace air filters and registers. Kind of a “Duh” item but still ignored • Tune up your system. Oil-fired systems should be tuned up and cleaned every year, gas-fired systems every two years, and heat pumps every two or three years. • Seal your ducts. In homes heated with warm-air heating, ducts should be inspected and sealed to ensure adequate airflow and eliminate loss of heated air. It is not uncommon for ducts to leak as much as 15 -20% of the air passing through them. And leaky ducts can bring additional dust and humidity into living spaces. Thorough duct sealing costs several hundred dollars but can cut heating and cooling costs in many homes by 20%. • Check for wasted fan energy. If your furnace is improperly sized or if the fan thermostat is improperly set, the fan may operate longer than it needs to. If you're getting a lot of cold air out of the warm-air registers after the furnace turns off, have a service technician check the fan delay setting.

New Heating System? • Dollar savings from every $100 spent per year on Heating • AFUE is type of “Efficiency” for heaters

Word Of Caution • There is a rash of advertising about specialty electric heaters (made by Pennsylvania Dutch or something…) • Folks, these are just electric resistance heaters, the same as inexpensive electric heaters you an buy anywhere… • Electric resistance heating is about the most expensive type of heating to operate • To add insult to injury – these “specialty” heaters are not cheap to purchase • If used to heat a home – can double or triple electric bills

Air Conditioning Reduce Need for AC First: • • • Insulate and tighten the house (not too tight…) Get rid of inefficient appliances Consider "cool" exterior finishes Shade or improve windows Cool with air movement and ventilation – Ceiling fans cool by creating a low-level “wind chill” effect throughout a room. – House fans. Unless home is in a very humid climate, installing a large fan in your top-floor ceiling can be a very effective way of cooling the whole house down without central AC.

Air Conditioning • Go to more efficient unit…

Air Conditioning • Savings are about 7. 5% for every increase in 1 SEER point • For example: A 20 year old AC unit may have an actual SEER of about 8 • If we go to a SEER 14, we could see savings of about 45% in yearly AC costs • If the cooling costs for a particular home were about $1, 000 per year with the old unit – this would drop to $550 per year, a savings of about $450 per year

Thermostat Controls • Setting the temperature a few degrees down (or up in summer) for extended periods can save energy • Easily done with programmable thermostats

Water Heaters

Lighting • Make Use of Natural Daylighting Rearrange furniture to maximize daylight useful for reading, cooking, or other work. Also consider painting your walls a lighter color so that light is reflected back into the room and not absorbed into the walls. • Reduce Background Light Levels and Rely More on Task Lighting Concentrate light just where it's needed by keeping ceiling lights turned off and by using smaller track lights and table or floor lamps. • Switch to Compact Fluorescent Lamps: This is the simplest way to shave significant amounts off lighting electricity bills.

CFL Lighting Savings

Wind and Solar Power • Another topic altogether… • However, we first must make the home as efficient as possible to lower the need for expensive renewable energy • That is precisely what we have been describing…

Too Much Information!! • My personal energy website has much more on energy topics: – Home Energy Guidebooks (make copies for customers) – Calculators (Customers can do “what if” studies) – Sections on Renewable Energy (Wind, solar, etc. ) – Sections on Farm Energy

http: //bioen. okstate. edu/Home/robert. frazier/index. html Or… just look me up on the OSU Biosystems Engineering Faculty webpage's

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