3 common misconceptions about energy efficiency

Energy efficiency is increasing across the country, so it's been in the news a lot lately, and as with anything that's in the news a lot, there are many misconceptions floating around about it. These false ideas might seem harmless, but they can cost individuals and businesses a lot of money in lost energy savings. Don't be misled by these common myths about energy efficiency:

• Energy efficiency is the same thing as energy conservation. Many people confuse the two terms because they're so similar, but in fact they have completely different meanings. Energy efficiency refers to using less energy to produce the same amount of light or heat, rather than simply lowering the thermostat or turning off the lights. Because energy conservation can seem arduous to some people, especially when it comes to turning down the heat in the winter, this misconception can cause people not to look into energy efficiency when it might be able to save them money.
• Energy efficiency is expensive. While some of the up-front costs for installing energy-efficient technologies may be high, your energy savings will pay for them many times over within a relatively short period of time. Think of it as an investment that takes a while to pay off.
• You shouldn't install too much insulation in your walls because your house needs to breathe. Your house does need ventilation, but it should be coming through designated vents, not through leaks in walls. Insulating your home thoroughly is one of the best ways to reduce heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer.

If you're interested in making energy efficiency improvements to your home and don't know where to start, contact Alban Inspections to schedule a home energy audit today.

As you probably know if you've been trying to find ways to improve your home's energy efficiency, one of the main culprits in home energy loss is the windows. Switching out your windows with ENERGY STAR-certified energy efficient models can save you a large amount of money each year, and will also help you decrease your carbon footprint. Here are some things to know when making the switch to energy efficient windows:

• Try working with your current windows first. A lot of heat loss can be prevented by weather stripping, caulking or sealing ordinary windows. Before buying a whole new set of windows, it's prudent to test whether your own windows might be able to save you as much money as new ones.
• Use the ENERGY STAR climate zones. It's relatively easy to find the proper windows for your region by consulting their ENERGY STAR climate zone ratings. Basically, the country is divided into northern, north-central, south-central and southern zones, with more detailed maps available at the ENERGY STAR website. 
• Collect any rebates and tax credits that apply. In many regions, local utilities provide rebates on ENERGY STAR-certified products, and in some cases, you may be able to claim federal tax credits for making these purchases as well. These programs are intended to encourage energy conservation by promoting home energy efficiency.
• Hire a professional. If you're installing a whole new set of windows, unless you're trained in carpentry, it's probably a better idea to hire a contractor to take care of this task for you. 

If you're interested in finding out more about how your home can benefit from energy efficiency, schedule a home energy audit with Alban Inspections today. 

Our Virginia customers will be happy to learn that an independent study has confirmed the financial and environmental benefits of energy efficiency standards. The study, the first of its kind in Virginia, was conducted by the Virginia Tech Center for Housing Research and aimed to verify whether electricity usage and energy bills were actually lower in apartments that meet green building and energy efficiency standards. 

The study's results, while perhaps not surprising to people who have installed energy efficient appliances in their homes, were decisive. The researchers found that on average, residents of energy-efficient apartment buildings in Virginia save $54 per month on their electricity bills, which adds up to $648 per year.

This constitutes a significant increase in housing affordability for low-income people, especially families and seniors. A household making 30 percent of the Virginia median income, or about $23,250 for a family of four, would find energy efficient housing nearly 10 percent more affordable, according to the researcher's calculations.

Executive Director Robert Adams of Housing Virginia commented in the organization's announcement of the study, "Virginia has been a leader in encouraging energy efficiency in the affordable rental housing market and this study verifies the effectiveness of this strategy. The energy efficient design and standards add to the economic benefit that these lower income families and seniors receive. Every dollar not paid for utilities can go to other important family budget items, including food, transportation and healthcare."

However, people at all income levels can benefit from the savings associated with energy efficiency standards. To learn how you can make your home more energy efficient, contact Alban Inspections for a home energy audit. We will provide personalized suggestions for ways to decrease your home's energy use and save yourself money. 

According to the Feb. 18 "Today in Energy" report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, per-household use of energy in the U.S. has been on the decline since the 1980s due to advances in energy efficiency. The EIA analyzed data collected since 1980 as part of its Residential Energy Consumption Survey, and found that although American homes had grown larger and more numerous during this time, there had not been equivalent growth in overall energy use across the country.

Between 1980 and 2009, the total amount of energy delivered for use to U.S. households increased from 9.3 quadrillion BTU to 10.2 quadrillion BTU, but based on the growth in household size and number during that time period, a much larger increase might have been expected. By separating out the effects of different factors, such as weather and structural changes, from the data, the researchers determined that the energy intensity of each household had declined by about 37 percent since 1980, largely due to energy-efficient home technologies.

In all, improvements in energy intensity were able to offset about 70 percent of the growth in the number and size of households since 1980, and would have been able to offset even more if consumers had not increasingly preferred larger homes and more energy-using appliances and devices. The explosion in the sale of home computers happened during this time period, as did the birth of the McMansion and the large-screen TV. Without those developments, we would most likely be using less energy, collectively, than we did in the 80s. 

If you're interested in investigating energy efficiency options for your own home, contact Alban Inspections to schedule an energy audit today. We will give you suggestions for energy efficiency updates tailored to your particular home. 

How many electronic devices do you think are plugged in in your house right now? It may be more than you think. According to CleanTechnica, the average household has 25 devices plugged in at any given time, and these constantly plugged-in devices sap energy and cause your bills to go up, even if they're turned off. The power that these devices consume while switched off but plugged in is referred to as "vampire energy", or standby power. Here are the worst energy vampires in the home:

• Computers and printers: It takes a lot of energy to keep your computer and printer plugged in and ready to use. For older computers, it actually takes more energy to power down every night rather than using sleep mode, but this problem has been fixed in newer models, so shut down your computer every night.
• The microwave: Your microwave actually probably uses more energy in total to power its digital clock than it does to cook food, based on how much time it spends actually cooking compared to the time it spends in standby mode. Other appliances with digital clock faces, such as coffee makers, are also guilty of this. Plug all of these appliances into the same power strip so that you can easily turn them all on and off at the same time.
• The TV and cable box: About $2 billion is spent each year in America to pay for standby power for cable boxes alone, and television sets waste even more energy, using about 1,400 kilowatt hours of standby power annually. Connecting your TV and cable box to a power strip and turning it off when you're not using it can save you more than $150 per year.

To schedule a home energy audit to see where your home's energy efficiency can be improved, contact Alban today. 

The solar industry is booming everywhere, with studies revealing that solar power is now cheaper than natural gas in some cases and that solar energy systems add an automatic premium to home prices. The state of Virginia is no exception. Virginia utility company Dominion Virginia Power is planning to construct several large-scale solar projects, reaching a total of 400 megawatts of new electric capacity by 2020. At their top capacity, these installations are expected to provide enough energy to power 100,000 Virginia homes. 

The company plans to invest about $700 million in the new project and is currently in the process of selecting sites to build on throughout the state. Each site has to be carefully evaluated for environmental factors such as the slope of the terrain and the ease of connecting the site to the existing power grid. 

"If we are going to build a new Virginia economy, we must be leaders in the energy economy of the future. Dominion has shown a strong commitment to solar energy development, and I am proud to work with them to expand renewable generation in Virginia and diversify the Commonwealth's fuel mix," said Governor Terry McAuliffe in a statement. 

In addition to these projects, there is legislation coming down the pipeline at the 2015 Virginia General Assembly that would promote the growth of the utility-scale solar industry in the region. It's being sponsored by David E Yancey (R-Newport News), who commented positively on Dominion Virginia's announcement, saying it was a cost-effective and efficient way to expand the presence of the solar industry in Virginia.

If you're a northern Virginia homeowner who's looking to make energy efficiency improvements to your house, contact Alban Inspections for a home energy audit today. 

The Energy Independence Act, passed in 2007 with the goal of reducing the federal government's dependence on foreign energy sources and encouraging the development of renewable energy in the U.S., is starting to bring about some real results. According to U.S. Energy Information Administration data, the federal government used less electricity and liquid fuels in 2013 than it has in any year since 1975, when record keeping on federal government energy use began.

With more than 500,000 buildings and 600,000 vehicles to fuel, the U.S. government is the largest consumer of energy resources in the country. Therefore, various politicians have called upon federal agencies to "lead by example," as President Obama put it in a speech announcing his energy plan. Under the Energy Independence Act, government agencies are required to reduce their energy consumption per square foot by 3 percent each year, and by 30 percent in 2015 compared to 2003 statistics.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the government curbed its energy use by 21 percent in 2013 as compared to 2003. However, the government still has a way to go to meet its own goals. An Obama administration executive order requires federal agencies to cut their greenhouse gas emissions and get 20 percent of their energy from renewable sources by 2020. Even the military is getting involved, with the Navy working toward its own goal to draw half of its energy from renewable sources by 2020 and the military requisitioning biofuels for the first time ever in 2014. 

If you want to reduce your energy consumption in your own home, a good place to start is with a home energy audit from Alban Inspections. Contact Alban for more information on home energy efficiency today. 

The bathroom is the source of a lot of the water and electricity used in a household, so it provides a good chance to save a lot of energy by trying a few simple strategies. Water and energy use are inextricably linked, as it takes a substantial amount of energy to transport water to your home, and any time you use hot water, your water heater is using energy to heat it. People also perform a lot of cosmetic tasks, like drying their hair, that use electricity in the bathroom. Here are some ways to reduce your bathroom's water and energy use:

• Avoid battery-powered devices. Devices that use a battery for power take more energy to charge than equivalent appliances that plug directly into the wall. If you have an appliances that has to charge between uses, only charge it the required amount, making sure not to leave the charger plugged in when not in use.
• Use low-flow toilets. Flushing the toilet uses the largest amount of water of any single act in the home. On average, a family of four uses over 880 gallons of water per week to flush the toilet. Installing a low-flow toilet is one of the best things you can do to save water in your home.
• Use low-flow shower heads. While traditional shower heads use 2.5 gallons of water per minute, low-flow shower heads use an average of only 1.5 gallons per minute. Low-flow shower heads are designed to create the same level of water pressure using less water, so don't worry about getting less clean if you make the switch to a low-flow head.

To look for possible sources of energy efficiency in your home, contact Alban Inspections for a home energy audit today. 

Keeping a compost pile is a great way for your family to green your home by reducing your contribution to landfills and supplying yourself with a nearly infinite source of organic fertilizer. Although home compost heaps do require some maintenance, they are relatively easy to take care of.

Here are a few maintenance tips to help you make sure your compost pile works to your advantage:

• Combat bad smells. A bad smell can be a sign that your compost isn't decomposing properly. Add straw or grass clippings to the pile and turn it well if it's giving off a strong smell. If it's too soggy, add dry leaves to counteract the amount of water in the pile. 
• Keep it small. Smaller pieces of plant matter decompose more quickly and are less likely to attract the attention of scavenging animals who will be tempted to dig through the pile to get at them. 
• Turn the pile. Turning, or digging through the pile to expose different parts of it to the air, is needed to aerate the compost and provide oxygen to the bacteria that are contributing to the decomposition process. Turning the pile will help to alleviate any strong odors you may be smelling from your pile as well.
• Water the pile. Water is essential for the decomposition process, but just enough to make the pile moist, but not wet. Over-watering the pile can lead to the death of the bacteria you are trying to encourage. It can help to make a small dent at the top of the pile for easy measuring and absorption.

If you're trying to adopt a greener lifestyle, contact Alban Inspections for a home energy audit today. We will show you where your home's energy efficiency can be improved. 

Gathering around the fireplace while the snow howls outside, telling stories and drinking hot cocoa — what could be better in the winter? Unfortunately, your fireplace serves not only as a source of heat and family togetherness, but also as a major source of energy loss. Don't worry, though — you can increase the energy efficiency of your fireplace with these simple tips:

• Install a chimney damper/flue sealer. Warm air rises, so if you have a fireplace with an open chimney, you'll likely lose much of the heat you want to stay in your house to the outdoors. To keep it indoors, install a top-sealing chimney damper or flue sealer at the opening of the chimney. This should form an airtight seal that will keep your hard-earned heat inside the house.
• Install a fireback. A fireback is a metal plate placed at the back of a fireplace to protect the wall and radiate heat back into the room. Installing firebacks will help you use the heat from your fireplace more efficiently to heat your home.
• Install a fireplace heating system. Another way to more efficiently use the heat from your fire is to install an air circulation heating system that pulls cool air into the fireplace from the room, then blows it back out warm. 
• Upgrade to a gas fireplace. A wood fireplace may have more old-fashioned charm, but a gas fireplace is easier to clean and maintain, plus it releases less potentially dangerous soot into the air of your home and creates more radiant heat that can be used in place of other heat sources.

For more advice on how to improve the energy efficiency of your home, contact Alban Inspections for a personalized home energy audit today.