Solar House 1 is full of state of the art technology, but just as important to the house's overall energy efficiency is all of the smaller things we have done. These smaller things are the first things you should do to make your home more energy efficient. Below is the way we recommend that you should tackle the large task of making your home more energy efficient one step at a time.

The Practice, Planning, Action method ensure that a homeowner makes the most of every renovation dollar spent.

I.     Practices

a.      Design: Ideally, energy efficiency is woven into the design of a structure. There is no more effective tool to combat inefficiency than good design.

b.      Operation: Making changes to the day to day use of a building can be an inexpensive way to improve energy efficiency. Properly programing thermostats setpoints and removing phantom power draws are great examples of ways to improve.

II.    Planning

a.      Establishing a baseline: Being able to check your progress is important for any job and is especially important when making your house more energy efficient. We recommend gathering up three years of utility bills to use as a comparison to future lower bills!

Note: Three years should avoid any weather anomalies.

b.      Return on Investment: Figuring out when an improvement will pay for itself is normally the best way to decide what to do first. While not an exact science combining ROI, amount of savings, and external influences like a pending kitchen renovation should help you decide where to start.

III.    Action

a.      Weatherization/Insulation: In most cases our homes are leaky and lack proper insulation. See the DIY tip of the month to learn how to seal your house then go check your levels of insulation. Check out this site to see how much you should have.

b.      Appliances/Windows- Replacing appliances and windows can have a large impact on your energy bill. Your savings will depend on what and how you use your current windows/appliances. Before buying it is key to research what is available at www.energystar.gov It is how we selected our appliances!

c.      Renewable Generation- Finally, once everything else is done it is time to add some generation. Remember there are many options (solar PV, solar thermal, wind, geothermal) and deciding what is for you will take time. Do your research and have fun knowing you have an energy efficient home!

DIY Tip of the month- Stop Air Infiltration!

We have spent hours taping, caulking, and filling every gap, crack and hole in Solar House 1 to prevent all air infiltration that would result in wasted heating and cooling. Preventing air infiltration can reduce your heating and cooling loads by as much as 20% and is a relatively easy do it yourself project. Watch this helpful video and then go get started!