Julie Orr Design » Inside the Home

Home Energy Audits

Julie Orr — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 18:20:07 +0000

Who doesn’t want improved comfort in their home, a healthier living environment, and lower utility bills? As a sustainable landscape designer, I highly recommend this service as a starting point when you are ready to learn why your home gets too hot or too cold, why your utility bills are high, or what could be causing illness. Hiring an expert will also help you find ways remedy these issues and help you prioritize home improvement projects.

An energy audit is simple and easy. Most appointments are done in a few hours, complete with quick results and suggestions for repairs. Here are the steps to having your own home energy audit from the experts at Energy Beyond Design:

Gather Data

We learn about your home, including your concerns and goals, and details about its structure, systems and energy bills. During a 4-5 hour on-site analysis, our technicians use sophisticated equipment to measure the draftiness, insulation, electricity, fossil fuel use, and other factors that influence your home’s performance. We gather all the data necessary to diagnose the precise causes of energy loss, health problems, and discomfort in your home.

Data Analysis

By analyzing the data gathered on-site, we determine which repairs, upgrades, and other work will produce the best combination of comfort, air quality, energy efficiency, and affordability. We use computer modeling, extensive hands-on experience with Bay Area homes, and years of home performance training.

Action Plan

We will present you with an action plan including findings from the on-site analysis, and a prioritized series of steps that you can take to remedy your home’s performance issues. The action plan projects the changes in your home’s performance that will be accomplished if the suggested repairs, upgrades, and replacements are implemented.

Customized for You

The specific improvement options for your home are unique because every home is different. There may be several ways to accomplish similar performance goals, and we will discuss these with you to develop the best plan for your home. The finalized plan will be custom tailored to your schedule, budget and other considerations.

Conducting the Retrofit

By this point, we thoroughly understand your home and are ready to conduct a performance retrofit. We coordinate our expert retrofit teams to complete the upgrades on time and on budget. Typical retrofit work includes air infiltration sealing, insulation installation, duct system improvement, crawl-space vapor barriers, system tune-ups and replacements, window replacement, and solar. Performance testing is conducted during and following the retrofit to make sure our efforts are creating an efficient, healthy, and comfortable home.

To make an appointment or for more information please contact Energy Beyond Design at 1-866-455-4154

The Steps of a Home Energy Audit

Julie — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 20:04:59 +0000

A energy audit is simple and easy. Most appointments are done in a few hours, complete with quick results and suggestions for repairs. Here are the steps to having your own home energy audit from the experts at Energy Beyond Design:

Gather Data

We learn about your home, including your concerns and goals, and details about its structure, systems and energy bills. During a 4-5 hour on-site analysis, our technicians use sophisticated equipment to measure the draftiness, insulation, electricity, fossil fuel use, and other factors that influence your home’s performance. We gather all the data necessary to diagnose the precise causes of energy loss, health problems, and discomfort in your home.

Data Analysis

By analyzing the data gathered on-site, we determine which repairs, upgrades, and other work will produce the best combination of comfort, air quality, energy efficiency, and affordability. We use computer modeling, extensive hands-on experience with Bay Area homes, and years of home performance training.

Action Plan

We will present you with an action plan including findings from the on-site analysis, and a prioritized series of steps that you can take to remedy your home’s performance issues. The action plan projects the changes in your home’s performance that will be accomplished if the suggested repairs, upgrades, and replacements are implemented.

Customized for You

The specific improvement options for your home are unique because every home is different. There may be several ways to accomplish similar performance goals, and we will discuss these with you to develop the best plan for your home. The finalized plan will be custom tailored to your schedule, budget and other considerations.

Conducting the Retrofit

By this point, we thoroughly understand your home and are ready to conduct a performance retrofit. We coordinate our expert retrofit teams to complete the upgrades on time and on budget. Typical retrofit work includes air infiltration sealing, insulation installation, duct system improvement, crawl-space vapor barriers, system tune-ups and replacements, window replacement, and solar. Performance testing is conducted during and following the retrofit to make sure our efforts are creating an efficient, healthy, and comfortable home.

To make an appointment or for more information please contact Energy Beyond Design at 1-866-455-4154.

Act Now to Stop Holiday Junk Mail

Julie — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:36:23 +0000

I just received my Rethinker quarterly newsletter from RethinkWaste , our local waste management company that educates its clients on ways to reduce waste. I find their tips very helpful and often share them with my clients.

This got me to thinking about all the mail, advertising and catalogs that I never read. It’s not enough to just recycle anymore, what can we do to stop this?

Forty-one pounds…that’s the staggering weight of the 560 or so pieces of junk mail each adult American receives per year. Almost half of it remains completely unopened and unread before heading straight to the landfill. Sadly, recycling junk mail is especially difficult due to the high concentrations of heavy metals used in the inks. Year after year, boreal forests get wantonly turned into garbage as more than 100 million trees and 28 billion gallons of water are wasted in the production of junk mail. This whole frustrating process is perpetuated by everyone, from the USPS to credit reporting companies like Equifax and Experian, selling your name for three to twenty cents a pop to anyone in the market to buy it.

That’s why I was thrilled to see that the Rethinker has already published all the information I need to stop these unwanted solicitations. Since it can take many months to get your name removed from most mailing lists, the time to act is now to prevent the onslaught of holiday junk mail.

You can opt-out of unwanted mail easily by choosing from the many free services online such as:

To stop selective catalogs - www.catalogchoice.org

To halt mos direct marketing mail – www.dmachoice.com

To end credit card and insurance offers – www.optoutprescreen.com or call 1-888-5-OPTOUT

For a handy junk mail reduction kit – www.stopjunkmail.org

Go Green Without Going Red

Julie Orr — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:51:05 +0000

You don’t need to go into the red to “green” your home. As the sustainability movement goes mainstream, new materials and techniques allow you to build, remodel, redecorate or landscape without paying a premium. You can keep the green in your wallet while living in beautiful, environmentally-friendly surroundings if you know what to do.

Expertise is the key to saving you time, money and frustration. So, come meet the Green Dream Team, a group of experts that will provide you with tips on how to go green without blowing your budget. You will learn how the typical home owner can get the most for their money:

What changes most improve the energy efficiency of your home? How do you spot the biggest energy leaks in your house–and fix them?
What makes sense to do now, and what can wait for later?
What single thing can you do that will pay you back in just one year and only costs about $100?
What common problem is probably creating a health hazard in your home right now–and can be fixed without breaking the bank?
What common pitfalls happen when people “save money” on their green remodels?

Did you know that deconstruction can save you thousands of dollars over demolishing older parts of your home? Did you know that some environmentally sound materials are made locally? Do you know what the current trends in green building are?

Building green is going mainstream. You no longer have to pay a premium for green if you work with companies that know the inside story and can take advantage of techniques and materials that are no longer experimental.

The Green Dream Team members scheduled include:

Susan Davis of Spectrum Fine Homes (design+build, construction, interior design) and GreenPoint Coach (sustainability consulting)
Lorna Fear of Visual Cue Thermal Imaging (home energy savings)
Suzanne Emerson of Emerson Environmental (home performance audits)
Ted Reiff of The Reuse People (deconstruction)
Davide Giannella of Acadia-Architecture (sustainable architect)

Julie Orr of Julie Orr Design (sustainable landscape designer). Julie will be discussing easy ways to create a smart, beautiful and affordable landscape with ExpressGarden.com

Bryant & Deb Busalacchi of Signature Floors Hardwood Flooring
Shone Freeman of S.R. Freeman (framing contractors)
Evan Ellithorpe of Young Professionals (painting contractors)
Bobbie & Dennis Everett of The Wood Connection (locally made custom cabinets)

A green home is the ideal place because:

Green homes sell faster and command higher prices than traditional homes.
Green homes place less stress on the environment.
Green homes are healthier and more comfortable for the people that live in them.
Green homes cost less to operate.
Green homes are more inviting spaces to entertain in.

For all these reasons and more, you will want to learn the most effective ways to build and operate a sustainable, energy-efficient place to live. If you missed the first event, stayed tuned for future free lectures.

This meeting is sponsored by Green Making, the local website for building green homes.

Enviromental Tips from Frank Schiavo

Julie Orr — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:32:59 +0000

Back in the late 90′s during my first environmental studies class, Frank Schiavo became my hero. His teachings were clear and effective: we all had had the power through our choices to make a positive difference while we live on this planet.

After ten years, I had the opportunity to meet up with Frank again and visit his home. Although he has retired from teaching at San Jose State, he remains active in the environmental community by offering home consultations and tours of his our energy efficient home.

Here’s a brief excerpt from his most recent article (3/13/09) found in San Jose Mercury News (click here to read the entire article)

Surprise — the biggest energy user in your house is in your garage.

If you drive a gas-powered car it typically uses more energy in BTUs (or energy units) per month — any month— than your monthly PG&E energy use in BTUs. So you can realize significant energy savings simply by changing your personal behavior when it comes to your car:

Combine your trips for shopping and errands into a single loop instead of many singles;

Use VTA buses, light rail, and or/Caltrain for work commutes and other trips;

Carpool, bike, or walk if public transportation won’t work for you.

To make other changes at home, it helps to know where your energy — and energy dollars — are going: Heating and cooling account for 44 percent of energy consumed annually; lighting and appliances account for 33 percent; Water heating is 14 percent; and the refrigerator is 9 percent.

To be smart about energy savings, start with the most cost-effective methods and work your way down a list to more expensive ones.

Heating and cooling tips:

Set thermostat to 67 degrees

Dress warmly in cold weather

Install a programmable thermostat for your furnace

Change filters at the start of winter and again three months later

Weather-strip doors and windows

Install a high-efficiency furnace (80 to 90-plus percent efficiency); and insulate the house (R30 attic, R19 in walls and under floors — R in insulation refers to thermal resistance when heat travels through it).

Install thermal curtains

Replace single-pane windows with double-panes

Add a passive sun room along the south-facing walls of your home
Other ideas for keeping your home comfortable:

Open south- and west-facing window curtains during winter days for warming; close them at night.

Close south- and west-facing windows and window curtains during summer days

Open all windows on summer nights for cooling

If you have an air-conditioner outside, build a small shed over it to shade it; it will operate more efficiently and save you money.

Plant deciduous trees near south- and west-facing windows; they will provide shade in the summer and warmth from sunlight in the winter.

Paint your roof white with an elastomeric paint. This “cool roof”‘ will cool your attic and house in the summer.
Other ways to change your lifestyle:

Grow a garden and buy organic foods. You save energy, water, gasoline and won’t be consuming pesticides.

Compost food scraps and leaves.

Refuse to buy foods that are packaged in stuff that can’t be re-used or recycled.

Prepare your own meals — stop driving to fast-food place and eliminate fast food from your diet.

Turn off the TV more. It will reduce how frequently you hear about stuff you should buy, but really don’t need.

Frank Schiavo is an environmental home consultant. Although he passed away in the beginning of 2010, we honor his memory and will keep the spirit of his philosophies alive.