Echewing worry over the Mayan apocalypse, many New Jersey residents are taking matters into their own hands, saving money and reducing their carbon foot prints, so there wont be anything like an environmental apocalypse.

Families, businesses, and institutions have been adopting cheaper and greener energy systems. Indeed, Wikipedia reports that New Jersey is second nationally in total number of homes and businesses that have solar panels installed.

Here are two brief stories of residents who have made the switch. The stories of business and institutions that have changed over will follow in the next column.

Hedy DiSimoni, a Princeton planning analyst for a manufacturer, wanted to renovate the house she and her two daughters live in. One of her reasons for doing so was to lower her energy bills by making the house tighter and possibly by changing energy systems.

Having heard of the possible benefits of solar power, she began calling contractors who install the panels. She wanted to hear not only their overall price but what services they included, such as applying for approval to the state and township and yearly maintenance. She notes that it is important not only to shop around for the right installer but also to make sure the installer uses the best solar panels.

(One SREC certificate is earned for every 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity generated, and those certificates can be sold directly or through an intermediary back to electricity suppliers, primarily utility companies. The selling price varies widely depending on demand and supply.)

Interest-free loans for this upgrade are also available from the NJ Clean Energy Program, with payback due in 10 years. She pointed out that the township will continue to inspect her system two to three times a year, primarily the metering, while her installer will continue to provide yearly maintenance.

Her goal in installing the solar panels has been reached; she has substantially reduced her electricity bill, and the SRECs offer further income to offset the remaining cost.

William Wolfe, a Princeton architect who has designed or co-designed many local residential, commercial and institutional buildings, including his own handsome borough home, first became intrigued by solar heating as a Princeton University undergraduate taking a drawing course that investigated the effects of sun and shadow on buildings.

Passive solar heating and the shading of windows by overhangs were two of those effects that he eventually incorporated in his designs. He went on to earn his masters in architecture at the university, then worked for a local design firm before forming his own partnership.

Read the rest here:
SOLUTIONS: Residential solar heating is catching on

Water heaters can chew up significant energy dollars. In fact, behind heating and cooling your home, the water heater is likely the second biggest energy hog in your home. However, you can lower the amount you spend onheating water by employing three easy tips to lower the demand year-round:

When you lower your water heaters energy demands, youll start seeing the savings immediately.Geisel Heating, Air Conditioning and Plumbing can help you with these energy-reducing projects. We service Medina, Lorain and Cuyahoga counties in the Greater Cleveland area. Please contact us for more information.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about water heatersand other HVAC topics,download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Geisel Heating, Air Conditioning and Plumbing services Western Cleveland. Visitour website to see our special offers and get started today! For those Do it Yourselfers who would rather take control of your own indoor comfort, you can shopour online store for replacement parts, products and accessories!

This is a sponsored post. The content above is not directly affiliated with The Gazette, or it's parent and sister entities.

In order to comment, you must agree to our user agreement and discussion guidelines. You must be registered and logged in to post a comment. If you aren't already registered, click here. If you are registered, click here to log in. Need help? Email Us.

Read this article:
Water Heaters Eating Up Your Energy Budget? 3 Tips To Reduce Spending

LORAIN Up to 70 trees on Oberlin Avenue are scheduled to be removed to install water lines as part of a road improvement project.

A doomed tree is seen along Oberlin Avenue in Lorain. (CT photo by Evan Goodenow.)

Before the trees are removed, city officials want to hear what citizens think the trees should be replaced with. Public input is being sought when Downtown Review Board members meet 6 p.m. Thursday at City Hall.

Were going to wait to see what the public thinks before going in that direction, Mayor Chase Ritenauer said Monday. The other issue, too, is, when removed and when the water lines are there, what goes back there?

Ritenauer said a city ordinance forbids bushes or shrubs being planted where the trees are removed. He said city officials need to determine how literal the ordinance is.

Lorraine Ritchey, co-chairwoman of the Charleston Village Society, a neighborhood improvement group, said she understands the removal is necessary, but said it will damage the streets image with visitors.

Economically and aesthetically its a loss, she said. I understand we have to have water lines and sewers (but) its just sad.

Renee Dore, Charlestons other co-chairwoman, said she recalls FirstEnergy Corp., removing 14 trees in her 2nd Street neighborhood in 2007 to make way for power lines.

I was just absolutely devastated, she said. My street has never been the same.

Dore said FirstEnergy initially planned to cut 19 trees but negotiated with neighbors to reduce the number. Dore said she is upset the city hasnt discussed the removal more with residents.

See the rest here:
Up to 70 Oberlin Avenue trees to be removed

Homeowners who invest in a geothermal heating and cooling system receive savings not only at the time of installation but well into the future. The system reduces energy consumption, lowers utility bills and increases home resale values.

How it works

A geothermal home comfort system taps into the abundant source of free solar heat energy stored in the earth and uses a series of pipes (called an earth loop) buried in the ground to move that heat into the home during cold weather and remove it during warm weather. This same heat energy can be used for a radiant floor system or domestic hot water heating.

Lower taxes

Homeowners who install a geothermal system before Dec. 31, 2016, can take advantage of a federal renewable energy tax credit that offers a tax incentive of 30 percent of the installed cost of the system. In addition, the credit is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2009, and can be used in combination with utility rebates and other tax incentives, where available, to make geothermal systems more affordable than ever.

Improved economy

Once installed, the system significantly reduces energy consumption, saving homeowners as much as 70 percent on their heating and cooling bills throughout the year. Because geothermal systems use the free renewable supply of energy found in the backyard, the use of geothermal reduces U.S. dependency on foreign oil while encouraging energy production in the United States and helping to create jobs in renewable industries.

Less pollution

Meanwhile, homeowners can reduce their carbon footprints. Thats because geothermal systems do not emit carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide or other greenhouse gases that are considered major contributors to environmental air pollution.

More money and time

Go here to see the original:
Tap into solar heat energy

CONCORD, N.C. --

CONCORD, N.C. -- In an effort to be more competitive with other utility providers, Concord will now offer rebates for customers who install high efficiency heat pumps in their homes.

Concord City Council members approved the rebate program unanimously at their meeting on Thursday, following some debate over the programs merits. Concord will offer a rebate of $400 per unit for efficient heat pumps installed in new or existing homes.

The cost of power has been going up, said Electric Systems Director Bob Pate. People have been seeing increases. Were not unlike Duke and co-ops and Electricities. They have heat pump programs.

The program rebate resembles what Power Agency cities such as Monroe, High Point, and Gastonia are offering their customers, according to Concord officials. Union Power does not offer a rebate but they offer to finance the total replacement cost of a more energy efficient heat pump. Duke Energy offers a rebate program for higher efficiency heating and cooling equipment.

The program is a way to help lower the customers cost with an added benefit of helping to lower the citys peak demand during the summer, city officials said.

Approximately 56 percent of the energy use in a typical American home can be attributed to heating and cooling, making it the largest energy expense in the home, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Heat pumps are considered a good energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air conditioners for climates with moderate heating and cooling needs, according to the Department of Energy.

Heat pumps use electricity to move heat from a cool space into a warm, making the cool space cooler and the warm space warmer.

They move heat rather than generate it. The most common type of heat pump is an air-source heat pump, which transfers heat between your house and the outside air. Households that heat with electricity can reduce their electricity use by 30 to 40 percent by using a heat pump, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. High efficiency pumps also dehumidify better than standard central air conditioners, lowering energy use while increasing cooling.

Read the rest here:
Concord rebate plan turns up heat on utility competitors

SAN MATEO, Calif., March 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pythagoras Solar, provider of the industry's first solar window to simultaneously deliver energy efficiency, high power density and optimized daylighting, today announced its participation and contribution of solar window technology to the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) Building Technology Showcase, a first-of-its-kind research and demonstration building for sustainable technologies in the City of Boston's Innovation District. Pythagoras Solar is one of 35+ partners contributing a combined total of $2.7 million in advanced building energy technologies and services for the new "living laboratory."

"We are delighted to incorporate Pythagoras Solar's innovative solar window technology into our facility," said Fraunhofer CSE Building Energy Efficiency Group Leader Kurt Roth. "Building-integrated solar PV is an important technology for commercial construction, and we're excited to enter into a partnership with Pythagoras to benefit from and help refine the technology's energy production potential as well as impacts on lighting, heating, and cooling."

"Pythagoras Solar is excited to contribute its technology to the Fraunhofer CSE Showcase to help raise awareness for sustainable innovations and in particular solar window technology," said Udi Paret, VP Marketing and Business Development, Pythagoras Solar. "We are proud to have our technology demonstrated alongside industry leaders, such as Guardian Industries. Together, we can show that products that truly stand to change the way buildings are built are available today. Forward thinking building developers and architects can now see our solar windows in action firsthand and better understand how they can turn facades into energy generating assets."

Pythagoras Solar's Photovoltaic Glass Unit (PVGU), or solar window, provides significant and simultaneous benefits including energy efficiency, optimized daylighting, and high density solar power generation in a standard double-pane window form factor. This PVGU is easy-to-install, designed to meet advanced building codes and standards, can be optimized for a variety of uses and offers attractive economics with a typical ROI of 3-5 years. The first products are designed for curtain wall and skylight applications. Currently, Pythagoras Solar is shipping products for commercial projects and starting to deliver on a full pipeline of projects across the United States.

"In addition to making the Building Technology Showcase the premier research and demonstration laboratory for clean energy technologies, we are committed to making the building a venue where everyone -- from seasoned architects and construction executives to students still deciding their future career paths -- can visualize the performance and potential of the technologies incorporated into the building," said Nolan Browne, Managing Director of Fraunhofer CSE. "Our goal is to present the information in innovative ways that engage visitors and create demand for these energy-saving systems and sustainable products in the market."

For more information please visit http://cse.fraunhofer.org/bts.

Industry Partners Contributing to the Showcase:Controls and Building Management:Siemens Cimetrics OutSmart Power Systems

Interior Products / Systems:Dorma ThyssenKrupp Elevator nora systems, Inc DuPont Curava Artaic

Envelope:Guardian Industries Pythagoras Solar Roxul Cooley Group Dow Corning Erie Architectural Products

Solar Energy Systems:Schueco USA TIGI

Go here to read the rest:
Pythagoras Solar Announces Solar Window Technology Contribution to Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems ...

CROSSVILLE Students in the building construction technology program at Tennessee Technology Center at Crossville have completed the 2015 Energy Star Concept Home and are ready to show their work to the community.

A dedication is set for noon Friday, followed by an open house during the weekend, coinciding with the annual Home Builders Association of Cumberland County Home Show.

"We know this is the first net-zero home in the county," said Steve Lane, instructor. "It may be the first in the state."

Net zero home means that, over the course of a year, the home will produce more energy than it uses. That's accomplished through a combination of energy generation with solar panels and energy efficient technology and building practices.

A 4 kilowatt solar system has been installed at the home's location across the street from the TTCC campus on Miller Ave. That will stay at the site and allow TTCC to be a Generation Partner with the Tennessee Valley Authority.

"We're the first Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) facility to be a Generation Partner," explained Lane, who said TBR and TVA lawyers had to work out several points in the standard contract that would allow a state facility to take advantage of the program.

As a Generation Partner, TTCC will sell all of the power produced by the solar panels back to TVA at 12 cents greater than the current energy price.

The solar array will allow students at TTCC to learn how to install and care for solar panels. They can also change the tilt of the array and perform experiments.

Another unique feature is the geothermal heating and cooling system, donated by Water Furnace. One was installed in the classroom and the other in the student-built home. TTCC students are training on installing, de-installing and servicing the geothermal units.

The city of Crossville partnered with TTCC to dig 300 linear feet of trenches about five feet deep. Tubing was buried in the trenches and coolant is circulated through the tubing to provide a heating or cooling source for the home.

Read the original here:
TTCC students build net-zero energy home

You get home from work on a Tuesday evening. Sensing your arrival, your home turns on the lights in the living room and kitchen. You stop by the bathroom and step on your Internet-connected scaleit absorbs your day's activity levels from a clip-on fitness monitoring device, then logs them on a website along with your sleeping activity and health history.

After making dinner, you sit down in front of the TV and tell it you want to buy a series you heard about on the way home from work. It responds to your voice, and in a few seconds downloads the entire first season over a gigabit connection. The series automatically downloads to your tablet, too, so you'll have it available on the go tomorrow.

We've been sold on such technological visions for years, but they always seem to be "three to five years" out. The tech we do get never seems to work quite as seamlessly as the futurists suggest. And yet we're still making remarkable technical progress; networking in general, and the Internet in particular, have only begun to transform our homes. Here are five basic technologies that will soon prove crucial to our networked livesand none are mere fantasies. The core technologies exist; shipping products exist. They just need to make it into more homes before the effects are truly felt.

A lucky few communities have already managed to line up gigabit home Internet connections: Google's projects in Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas, EPB's network in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Sonic.net's plans for San Francisco.

Gigabit fiber connections remain the technological equivalent of Evil Knievel stunt-jumping a row of buses. Such speeds are more entertaining than practical for most, but content on the Internet will only continue to grow in size and quality. The Internet connection provides the baseline bandwidth that makes all of home network uses possible.

But getting gigabit Internet into the house does little good if you can't share it. To that end, groups like the Wireless Gigabit Alliance are already at work transitioning gigabit connections to WiFi. By focusing a concentrated signal from router to connected device, or "beamforming," the IEEE 802.11ad WiGig specification will allow data transmission speeds of up to 7Gbps. Qualcomm plans to start making 802.11ac chips soon that will give mobile and desktop devices access to 1.3Gbps WiFi speeds.

Faster WiFi can't come soon enough: a lot of our personal Internet business is currently conducted through smartphones (thus 3G and 4G connections). Carriers are straining under the load, capping data and throttling "unlimited" connections. We can expect more carriers producing devices with technology that makes offloading to WiFi as seamless as possible.

Another new standard, 802.11u, streamlines the process of switching between 3G and WiFi. Instead of presenting users with a long list of inscrutable SSIDs, 802.11u lets devices see and automatically connect to active WiFi, thus offloading activity from the cellular data connection. Of course, this requires public, trustworthy WiFi, like the one managed by the city of Chattanooga. They're rare today, but will likely become a necessary supplement to the cellular networks struggling to keep up.

There's a lack of transparency in the power usage of most homes. Power comes in, it gets used, and you get a bill. The "how" and "how much" of what happens in between are difficult to determine. But a range of technologies and devices are setting themselves up to make the whole life-cycle of energy more visible and easier to control.

For example, the Nest Learning Thermostat received a lot of buzz last fall for its ability to adapt automatically to users' habits and temperature preferences. Leave the house at 8AM everyday? The Nest detects your routine and learns to stop heating or cooling the house unnecessarily. Come home for an impromptu lunch, nap, or Skyrim session? The Nest detects that too, and starts warming or cooling the house to your ideal temperature.

Visit link:
Feature: The five technologies that will transform homes of the future

The city of Tybee Island recently used an energy grant to install a geothermal heating and cooling system underground next to city hall. Now the city is in line to receive an additional $90,000 from the state for the heat pumps needed to make the system work, but not everyone digs the idea.

City Councilman Paul Wolff said the system which uses the constant temperature of the Earth to heat and cool will reduce costs by about 40 percent. That will be in addition to the reduced energy use from other grant-funded improvements, including the installation of foam insulation, efficient lighting and programmable thermostats, Wolff said.

The only cost to the city would be about $525 worth of staff time to prepare the request for proposals and move out the old heat pumps, he said.

But council member Wanda Doyle said city halls current heat pumps should not be replaced until necessary and the systems installation and use will likely take more staff time than Wolffs projections.

I have never seen a number of how many staff hours have been spent that were never included in the grant, she said.

The original $300,000 grant was used to make improvements to city hall and three other city buildings. The energy savings derived from the improvements are supposed to be invested in a fund that will pay for additional projects such as the geothermal systems completion.

So far, about $2,100 saved during the first quarter of the fiscal year has been invested, said City Manager Diane Schleicher.

The council will vote on whether to accept the grant during tonights meeting.

More:
Geothermal, showers on Tybee agenda

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

From the company that brought you the first full line of smart grid-enabled appliances, GE is now launching additions and enhancements to its innovative suite of Brillion home energy solutions and laying the foundation for an energy-saving connected home.

Weve leveled the playing field by providing a product that communicates a homes continuous real-time energy consumption to consumers without a smart meter, said William Paul, product manager, home energy, GE Appliances. Our new Whole-Home Sensor connects to the consumers electrical panel and allows them to understand their energy consumption without waiting for their electricity provider to install a smart meter.

Whole-Home Sensor: The new Whole-Home Sensor, an integral part of home-energy solutions, is being used in several utility test pilots, including test homes in Warner Robins, Ga., as part of Flint Energies recently announced pilot project. It will be available broadly in the second quarter of this year.

The sensor sends consumption data from large 240-volt applications, such as a panel box or pool pump, to the homes Nucleus energy manager, which then communicates that data to a consumers existing smartphones or personal computers helping them make smarter energy choices.

Knowledge of whole-home energy consumption provides consumers with insights into their electricity costs before the bill arrives; offers them feedback on electricity-intensive activities, such as water heating; and allows them to quantify the benefits of their personal energy-efficiency efforts.

Smart-Plug Controls: On a more granular level, GE is also adding Brillion-enabled Smart Plugs, which act as sensors for electronics and non-smart devices that plug into standard 120-volt outlets. These sensor plugs communicate with the Nucleus energy manager, enabling consumers to track electrical usage by the outlet for most 120-volt appliances and devices.

These sensors turn any standard 120-volt consumer good into a smart home capable device. The sensors can be moved from device to device, enabling the consumer to perform an audit of their electrical appliances and electronics or to monitor them continuously for ongoing feedback providing critical insights to help consumers reduce energy consumption.

Energy data and energy monitoring are GEs first steps toward a fully connected home, Paul said. We fully expect to expand our products beyond energy, bringing more convenience and control elements to the consumer. The beauty of having built-in communications features in our products means that we can also add functionality that makes peoples lives easier.

More Connected Communications Features: GEs Brillion-enabled thermostats help consumers easily adjust heating and cooling schedules from their Nucleus software interface and alter household temperatures and operating modes remotely from their iPhone.

Read the original here:
GE Unveils More Brillion™ Ideas for Consumer Energy Savings