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I know you don't want to believe it but
pretty soon, you'll be starting up the air
conditioner. But did you know that with a
well ventilated attic, your AC won't have to
work as hard? Let me explain.
Hot air has a lower density than cool air.
That's why hot-air balloons rise. Of course,
if the space above the hot air is hotter, it
won't rise. That's one of the reasons Summer
Hot Air Balloon shows happen early in the day.
The same principals apply in your home. Like
it or not, hot air in our homes rises and the
energy carried by that hot air escapes
through the ceiling. In the winter that's
generally a bad thing, in the summer, that's
a good thing. A good thing, that is, if the
energy has somewhere to go. Unfortunately, if
your attic is as hot or hotter than the rooms
below, that energy can't go anywhere so your
air conditioner has to take care of it.
To give that energy a place to go, your attic
should be well ventilated. This is usually
done with passive vents in the ridge, gables
or soffits. But on the hottest days, passive
ventilation isn't enough. Unfortunately, up
until now, active ventilation required a grid
powered fan (and the costs that go with it).
Sunrise
Solar offers a line of solar powered,
thermostatically controlled attic vent fans.
The fans come in sizes for attics up to 1200
square feet (of attic floor space), 1200 to
1500 square feet, and 1500 to 1800 square
feet. The fans are
thermostatically controlled so they only run
when the attic is hot. There are also
fans for flat roofs or gable installation.
The installed prices range from $758 to $928.
To make matters better, installation of
these fans qualifies you for a 30% federal
income tax credit on the cost of the fan.
A Cooler attic, less work for your AC, and a
nice tax credit. If you
are interested in a
solar powered attic fan, give us a call at
978-567-9463.
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TED is a new resident at our home. He is a
nice resident. He doesn't say anything, he
just sits on the counter, reflecting -
reflecting our
home's electricity use. He also allows me to
drive my family crazy.
TED stands for The
Energy Detective. TED is a
device that hooks
into your home's main service panel and tells
you (by radio signal) on a moment to moment
basis, how much
electricity you are using. It also keeps
running totals for the day, month, and year.
(Click on the image for a larger version and
note both the kilowatts of instantaneous
power usage (0.610 kw or 610 watts) and the
cumulative kilowatt-hours usage of 7.5 kWh).
It took only a short while for the
Durrenberger family to get along with TED and
understand what he was telling us. In fact,
within minutes, my son and I were shouting
across the house, "What does it say now?" as
we turned lights and appliances off and on.
What have we learned so far? At its peak, the
clothes dryer uses about 3,500 watt of power
(ouch). Also at it's peak, the dishwasher
uses about 2,000 watts. Late at night, when
everyone is in bed and the computers are off,
the house uses between 350 and 650 watts
(refrigerator off/on). Unless, of course, your
progeny left the lights on in the
workshop ;-).
After just two weeks, we've gotten
a feel for how much power the house uses and
can tell when something unusual is running.
That's when I get to annoy the rest of the
family - I'm quite certain I sound like my
father when I shout, "Why are we using so
much power?!"
As Bill Hewlett (of Hewlett Packard) once
said, "You cannot manage what you cannot
measure... And what gets measured gets done."
TED allows us to measure our electrical usage
in real time so we can manage that usage. TED
is changing the family's behavior.
If you are interested in TED for your home
it's $139.95.
If you don't want to venture into your
electrical panel our electricians can install
it for a small fee.
(Note: TED does not work with homes that are Net
Metering with a solar or wind electric system
but they are working on one that does). To
order call 978-567-9463.
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If we've done electrical work on your home,
then you've probably met Jonathan Williams.
Jonathan is one of our electricians and he
just passed his Master Electrician License
Exam. He passed his exam one day shy of his
23rd birthday. Smart kid. When you see him,
congratulate him. Jonathan is a graduate of
Assabet Valley Regional Vocational Technical
School.
Along with the work of installing renewable
energy systems, Jonathan regularly performs
electrical work like service upgrades,
detached building electrification, and
sub-panel installation for our customers.
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I was please and surprised to receive the
following notice from Constant Contact:
"Congratulations! As a 2008 Constant Contact
All Star, you're part of a select group of
customers and business partners. We're proud
to recognize your efforts to effectively use
email marketing in 2008 to connect with your
customers and members."
As you may know, Constant Contact is the
service I use to distribute this newsletter.
I've been quite happy with their product and
just signed up for my fourth year. Wow. Time
flies.
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Use rechargeable batteries, Add insulation, turn down your thermostat, disable your doorbell, reduce waste, use a fan instead of an air conditioner, turn off the lights, switch to compact fluorescent bulbs, put computer gear on a power strip and turn it off at night, unplug unnecessary appliances, ventilate your attic, walk instead of drive, ride a bike, group your errands, inflate your tires, grow your own food, eat locally-produced food, recycle, use your most efficient vehicle, get a hybrid vehicle, wash your clothes in cold water, buy less packaging, use a clothesline instead of the dryer, drink tap water, print with narrower margins, use both sides of the page, buy less, compost, install a renewable energy system...
Thanks for Reading The Energy Miser,
 Mark Durrenberger
New England Breeze, LLC
phone:
978-567-WIND (9463)
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