by jboullion | Jun 14, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
TVs, computers, others leach energy and money
In one of the first studies of its kind, energy researchers in Madison have uncovered a simple way that most consumers can save on their electric bills: pull the plug.
The researchers set up more than 700 in-home metering devices in about 50 homes to monitor the proliferation of electronic devices in our homes, and how they affect our energy use.
Thirty years ago, federal data shows, a typical home had about three plugged-in devices. The new study shows our wall sockets are jammed, with each home hosting 30 or more devices. All told, computers, printers, televisions and other devices account for 15% to 30% of a home’s total electricity use – about 20% on average, the study found.
The Energy Center of Wisconsin study was able to quantify the impact of having so many devices plugged in and ready to go – sometimes on, sometimes off, and sometimes in standby mode.
Case in point: Home computers that are left on around the clock in some cases suck power even when they’re sitting idle.
“Most computers are set up to turn the monitor off after about 20 minutes,” said researcher Scott Pigg. “So we turn it on and use it and walk away and come back into the room and see the monitor’s off. We think: ‘Well, my computer is managing its power and it’s shut down.’
“What they don’t realize is that two-thirds of the electricity draw is the thing that’s sitting on the floor – not the thing that’s sitting on the desk,” he added. “And the only visual indication that you have that computer’s on is a little fan noise and a little green light somewhere.”
A step as simple as changing the power management settings on a home PC will take less time than running to the store and buying another energy-saving light bulb, Pigg said.
by jboullion | Jun 14, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Focus on Energy:
(June 14, 2010) – Mobile home residents in the Dunn County area may now qualify for a free home energy evaluation and free energy-efficiency improvements. This initiative, called the Mobile Home Duct Sealing Pilot, is part of Focus on Energy’s Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® Program. It is being offered to mobile home residents who purchase their gas or electric heating from utilities who participate in the Focus on Energy Program, including Xcel and We Energies. The pilot was designed to create cost-effective energy savings in mobile homes by testing for and correcting a certain set of inefficiencies, primarily leaky duct work. All testing and work is free to eligible mobile home owners, and the entire process can be completed in one day.
The Mobile Home Duct Sealing Pilot, like the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program, uses the most advanced, state-of-the-art equipment to test homes, identify problems, and implement recommended improvements. Duct sealing and other improvements are then tested to ensure the work meets program standards. Partnering consultants and contractors delivering the pilot were selected through a competitive bidding process.
What Mobile Home Residents Can Expect
The first step is to schedule an in-home evaluation with the area’s selected consultant – Aaron Riendeau of St. Croix Energy Solutions. Riendeau can be reached at 715.220.4818.
Riendeau will inspect the heating and cooling systems of the mobile home, identify energy-related problems, and implement the recommended improvements, such as sealing ducts to reduce air leaks. These improvements can provide significant energy and cost savings, as research has shown that, in most cases, duct leakage is the number one source of energy loss in mobile homes and a major source of comfort complaints. Once the work has been completed, Riendeau will retest the mobile home’s systems to ensure the improvements were effective.
Because this is a pilot project, there is no charge to the homeowner. All that is required of the homeowner is to sign a release form so Focus on Energy can perform the work and obtain the following information:
• Records of energy usage before and after the work is performed
• Permission to anonymously use the homeowner’s experience in reporting the pilot’s results
Learn More
For details on scheduling a mobile home energy evaluation, call Aaron Riendeau of St. Croix Energy Solutions at 715.220.4818. To find out more about the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program, visit focusonenergy.com.
by jboullion | Jun 11, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Andy Rathbunin the Pioneer Press, Minneapolis & St. Paul:
A local physician is building a house in Wisconsin without a furnace — it won’t need one.
Rising over the St. Croix River Valley, the 1,940-square-foot, three-bedroom home will use solar power and the latest in energy-efficient construction. Designed to let in the maximum amount of sunlight, its walls are 11 inches of insulated concrete surrounded by 11 inches of exterior foam insulation.
In extreme cold, electric heaters in the floors can help warm the entire house.
“On the coldest, cloudiest days of the winter, we’ll need the equivalent of like 2,500 watts, which is basically a couple of handheld hair dryers,” said Dr. Gary Konkol, who is building the one-of-a-kind home in the town of Hudson, Wis.
Once completed, Konkol’s house will be carbon-neutral — that is, it will produce at least as much electricity as it consumes.
The home will also be a “passive house,” a highly insulated type of construction reducing heating and cooling needs 90 percent to 95 percent and overall energy consumption 70 percent to 80 percent, said Katrin Klingenberg, executive director of the Passive House Institute US.
While there are tens of thousands of such buildings in Europe, there are only about a dozen in the U.S. certified as passive homes, Klingenberg said. Konkol’s home will be the first in Wisconsin and the first of the kind in the country to also be carbon-neutral.
by jboullion | Jun 10, 2010 | Uncategorized
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by jboullion | Jun 10, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an editorial in the Sheboygan Press:
We don’t yet know the final solution to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, so we surely don’t know the final cost of the cleanup and the restoration of the fishery and the beaches.
But what we should know by now is that offshore oil drilling will have to be more closely monitored in the future. We should also know that we have to make a deeper commitment to reducing our dependence on oil — foreign and domestic.
The Disaster in the Gulf, as the now nearly two-month-long oil spill is being called, should be the wake-up call of all wake-up calls. It should spark bold action — in the offshore drilling regulatory process and in weaning the U.S. from oil.
President George W. Bush said in 2006 that the U.S. was “addicted to oil.” Yet today, we remain as hooked on oil and gas as we were then — and, like any addiction, it can be destructive. We are seeing its effect now in the Gulf of Mexico.
Although the U.S. needs to reduce its reliance on oil, there is no way to go “cold-turkey.” Our economy relies heavily on transportation — delivery of goods and services and people getting to and from jobs.
Oil, along with coal and natural gas, is also used to generate electricity and heat our homes. Many of the consumer goods we use have a base in petroleum.
In recent years, due mainly to the slowdown in the nation’s economy, the demand for oil has slowed in the U.S. It is still growing in much of the rest of the world, particularly China.
But rather than simply returning to oil as the main source of fuel, there needs to be a plan to move the U.S. economy forward while also reducing the use of oil. We’re taking baby steps today to find alternative sources of fuel. It’s time to think giant leaps forward.
