New Solar Skylights by VELUX

*30% solar tax credit may apply to skylight and installation cost.


For more information or contact information visit Forrest Glover Design

Occupancy Sensor Switches

I recently installed occupancy sensors in my pantry, workshop, bathroom closet, and upstairs bathroom.  I don't normally leave a room with the lights on, but it has been a pleasant change to have the lights turn on and off automatically.  Who knew such a quick and easy upgrade would be so exciting?  Occupancy sensor switches can be install where the current light switch is in about ten minutes.  Please be sure to work safely around electricity and call an electrician where required by law.

If you or your children have a habit of leaving the lights on, you can save a lot of energy by installing these simple switches.  Closets, bathrooms, laundry rooms, garages and children's rooms are great places to install occupancy sensors.  Sensor are available in many price points and options.  Most include adjustable settings for length of time the light is on.  Others include dimmers and on/off override switches.  There is a great selection of switches from $15 - $50.  Dimming an incandescent bulb by just 10 percent can save up to 20 percent on energy and greatly increase the life of the bulb.

Home Energy Savings

Advanced Framing

Optimum Value Engineering (OVE) or advanced framing is a framing technique developed in the 1970s.  It can reduce the amount of lumber used for framing by 20 percent and preforms better thermally.  

• Instead of 2x4s 16in on center, the building is framed with 2x6s 24in on center.  This allows for more insulation and less thermal bridging through the studs.
• Corners are framed with two studs rather than four.
• Headers eliminated in non-load bearing walls and sized according to their specific load in other walls.
• The foundation generally calls for poured slab on grade to reduce wood for first floor framing.
• Floors are framed with I-joist.
• Roofs are built with trusses, eliminating a significant amount of wood used in conventional framing.
• Insulation rigid foam is applied to the exterior plywood to further reduce thermal bridging

When building a new home or adding an addition, consider advanced framing to save framing cost and create a space that is less expensive to heat and cool.

Poor framing technique:

For more information or contact info visit Forrest Glover Design - Home Remodeling.

Understanding Window Energy Ratings

Buying new windows for your home can be expensive and intimidating.   Understanding the Energy Performance Ratings can make the process less painful while adding comfort and energy savings.  There are four main measurements to look for when shopping for new windows: U-value, solar heat gain coefficient, visible transmittance, and air leakage.  But what do these numbers mean?

U-Value is a measurement of the heat flow through the window.  It can be compared to the R-value (resistance) in insulation though it is the opposite.  A lower U-value means less heat is transmitted through the window.  U-value = 1/R-value.  A window with a U-value of 0.33 would have a R-value of 3.  A lower number provides more insulation.

Solar Heat Gain Coefficient is the ratio of solar heat gained by the window compared the amount of solar energy hitting the window's surface.  The measurement is a number between 1 and 0.  A SHGC of 1 indicates 100 percent solar gain while 0 indicates no solar gain.  It is best to develop a window strategy with different SHGC for different windows.  West-facing should be avoid but when they are used,  the SHGC should be very low to avoid over heating the home in the afternoon.  South-facing windows should have a high SHGC to allow low angle winter sunlight in to heat the home passively.

Visible Transmittance is the measure of how much light the window transmits.  The number is also between 0 and 1.  The higher the number, the more light allowed to pass through the window.

Air Leakage is the measure of cubic feet of air leakage per minute per square foot of window.  Windows with air leakage less than 0.3 cfm/ft2 is recommended.  Casement windows generally preform better than sliding windows in air leakage while fixed windows perform the best.

"Air leakage siphons about half of an average home's heating and cooling energy to the outdoors each year.  Air leakage through windows is responsible for much of this loss."  -Paul Fisette Energy-Efficient Building

Simple Savings - Window Treatments

Ideally after your retrofit is complete, your house will have dual paned windows with UV filtering glass in the right places.  Window replacement is quite expensive and is generally the last step in a phased remodel.  The whole low hanging fruit and bang for your buck idea.  In the meantime, there are first steps to help you stay comfortable and save energy.

Well designed window treatments can go a long way to cutting your energy and saving you money.  Heat moves to cold, so depending on the situation or time of year, you will use different strategies.  Thermal lined drapes or roman shades are best for keeping the heat in during the winter.  Open them up during the day to let the sun warm the room and close them tight after the sun goes down.  There are special thermal lining products on the market and an additional flannel interlining can increase the insulation.  In the summer, it is best to keep the sunlight off of the window rather than block it once it in inside.  Outdoor solar roller shades, permanent overhangs, or deciduous plants can help block the summer heat when well designed.

Nest Thermostat

Genius is the ability to reduce the complicated to the simple.

The new generation of thermostat is here.  There is wait list for the Nest thermostat.  It took about two weeks to receive an invitation to purchase.  Nest programs itself to help you save energy.  It even included a sensor to turn off when you leave your home and can be turned on through your smart phone.  Nest cost $250 and can easily be installed by a homeowner.

LED Lamp Review - PAR20

At Forrest Glover Design, we have become increasingly interested in the use of LED retrofit lamps.  They use a fraction of the energy of incandescent lamp, use current fixtures, and often better light quality.  Since we also love using original artwork in our designs, there is the added bonus that LEDs are UV free and will not fade the art.

Buying LEDs has put me in a more cautious mood when buying the lamps however.  PAR20 LEDs cost around $25 compared to $5-10 for their Halogen counterparts.  They also last around 20 years so you want lamps that you are happy with.  We have tried four different lamps in a dark hallway of our studio with vivid pieces of art. 


Good

Philips - R20 LED

The Philips R20 is everyone's least favorite.  It is very dim and has an unexpected blue tint for its 3000k color rating.  The lamp is also quite long and sticks out of the standard fixture for PAR20 lamps.

 Better

GE - PAR20 LED

We tried the GE PAR20 in two different color temperatures.  The 2700k has a warmer light than the 3000k which is bright white.  Of the two, most liked the 2700k light better.  That said, the light has as pink tint to it rather than yellow that is associated with incandescent lamps.  It very pleasant and was my favorite until we tried the Philips PAR20 LED.

NOTE:  Most people do not like the color of 4100k lamps.  If you are not lighting offices for increased worker productivity, stay away from them.

Best

Philips - PAR20 Led

There are a few reasons, this lamp is our favorite.  The main being its shape.  We were all very excited about the GEs but there are a lot of fixtures that they do not fit in.  The Philips PAR20 is so close to the shape of the halogen it is replacing, that is even fits into wire clip fixtures that used to be so popular with track lighting.  The color is also a beautiful yellow with a nice halo around the lighted surface.  Compared to MR16s, that are often used to light artwork, the LED PARs have such a smooth transition from light to dark that I think many people will prefer them.

Purchase LED replacements as your incandescent lamps burn out, and you will be making any easy start to greater energy efficiency and lower bills.  In our area of Northern California, the payback for switching to a LED PAR20 lamp is about one year when used 4 hours a day.  Over the lifetime of the lamp, you will save around $400 in lower energy usage and lamp replacement.  That's even if the price of energy does not increase within the next 20 years.

Quick Fix - Shower Savings

The great thing about beginning to retrofit green is there are often many easy and inexpensive changes that can make a big difference.  We will talk about water circulation systems in a future post.  Before you take on a larger project, its nice to take small steps.  In the shower, you can save water and energy by installing a shower shut-off valve.

Danco Valve

The valves cost between $5-10 and the project takes 30 minutes to complete.  After installation, simply turn the water off at the valve while shampooing, lathering or shaving.  Complete instructions are available at Lifehacker.  This can cut your water and energy use significantly without having to rush your shower.  It is often overlooked that, even if you are not in a water sensitive area, using less hot water also contributes to big energy savings.

For added water savings, collect water in a bucket while the shower heats up.  This clean water can be used to water houseplants or vegetable garden.