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By Susan Dykhuizen—Robert W. Ross Building Contractor Inc.
How many of us have seen that shiny new vehicle on the car lot and yearned to buy it? It would be great to have, everything would be brand new, and we would look really great in it. However, reality sets in and our pocket book or our banker tells us we may need to consider something more economical. So we settle for a used vehicle. The used vehicle runs great, we spend a considerable amount less then we would on a new one and in the long term are very satisfied with the purchase.
Similarly, who of us wouldn’t love to have the shiny new house with all the green bells and whistles built in? However, for now we settle to stay in our existing home, or we opt to buy one of the great priced existing houses on the market.
At Ross Construction, we have seen an up tick in the amount of remodel requests. The customer isn’t always concerned about being green in the eco-friendly sense; they are usually more concerned with having more of the green stuff in their wallet when the project is finished.
The meeting with the customer regarding their project usually goes something like this. “We’d really like new kitchen cabinets and counter tops, new flooring would be nice too. Oh, and could you squeeze in a home theatre as well? And oh, could you do that for $20,000?” Okay, so maybe I’m exaggerating a bit. Bottom line is new insulation and a new energy efficient heating and cooling system are just not nearly as sexy as new countertops.
We like to guide the conversation as follows: “Wow, those are some amazing remodel ideas. How old is your furnace? How much insulation is in your attic? Let’s look at your windows and doors a minute. Did you know about the energy rebates that are available for upgrades to certain items on your home?” By asking questions, the customer tends to become more engaged with the reason to our questions. From there, we can help guide them in pricing some maybe not so sexy options. We can help them look at the operating cost of their home over the long term versus just the bottom line budget for the remodel itself.
Here are some options we like to suggest on a remodel.
1. Seal the envelope of the home—the average home has over 2,000 lineal feet of cracks and gaps. This is equivalent to having a window open in your house—all year long. Energystar.gov has an excellent DIY guide to sealing and insulating penetrations.
2. Upgrade your insulation—numerous homes around the Valley don’t have insulated rim joists and/or attic insulation is inadequate. For a several hundred dollars you can save this each month in reduced energy costs.
3. Windows—25% of energy lost through a home is through its windows. More energy efficient windows may be in order or just sealing around existing windows properly.
4. HVAC Systems—How old is the existing system? What is its efficiency? Are the ducts sealed and well installed? Is the unit sized properly? What rebates/tax credits are available? Do we need to add mechanical ventilation to the home? These are just a few of the items to look at regarding the HVAC system.
5. Appliances and Lighting—20-30% of energy used in homes is used by appliances and lighting.
The owner may want to upgrade to Energy Star rated appliances. Energy Star rated appliances can use 10-50% less energy than none rated models. Especially big energy guzzlers are refrigerators, freezers, hot tubs, and clothes dryers.
Consider changing lights to Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL) or LED’s since these can last up to ten times longer than traditional incandescent lighting. If can lights are being used they should be the air tight variety or LED cans.
6. Water Waste Reduction—consider dual flush toilets, front loading clothes washers, low flow faucets and fixtures, and hot water circulation pumps.
7. Other Items—consider low VOC paints, flooring, wall coverings and furniture. Choose products that will last or products that are salvaged or recycled.
Your customer probably won’t show all their friends their new furnace or insulation at their “We survived the remodel party”, but they will probably be grateful that you opened their eyes to the possibilities of ways they could make their home more eco-friendly and save them some green in the long run.
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