Minor tweaks save major bucks

When Walter and June Massey moved to a 2,700-square-foot townhome at West Village in Smyrna in April, they were amazed that their utility costs were less than half of what they paid for utilities at their 1,500-square-foot apartment.

Like many home buyers these days, the Masseys sought out homes with energy-saving features.

“We try to be very green in the way we live, and it was appealing to move into a green community. The energy-saving measures at West Village sounded nice, but we had no idea of the benefit,” Walter Massey said.

Monte Hewett Homes, builder at West Village, builds all its homes to environmentally friendly EarthCraft House standards and meets or exceeds Energy Star standards in each home.

EarthCraft House is a voluntary green building program of the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association and Southface. Products and homes that earn the Energy Star certification from the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency must meet strict energy-efficiency guidelines.

The Masseys’ home has separate high-efficiency heating and cooling units for each of the townhouse’s three floors, programmable thermostats and energy-saving insulation that makes it possible to heat their living room with the gas logs.

John Durland didn’t know much about energy-efficient homes until he worked on Beazer Homes’ eSMART program, which includes energy-saving standard features the home builder estimates can save the average homeowner $500 a year on energy costs.

When he bought his townhome at Dresden Creek, the first thing he did was replace all but three light bulbs in the townhome with energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). Then he programmed his thermostat to use less energy when he and his wife are at work.

“I’ve had programmable thermostats in the past but I never got around to programming it. Today, with energy costs being what they are, I felt the need,” said Durland, who works with Beazer’s national vendor program.

He added ceiling fans in some of the rooms and reports that he’s comfortable when the thermostat is set in the mid-70s and the ceiling fans are on.

However, he warns, leaving the ceiling fan on when no one is in the room wastes energy because the moving air doesn’t cool the room, it just makes it feel cooler.

Additional energy-saving measures the Durlands initiated include purchasing an Energy Star refrigerator and washer and changing out the aerators in the faucet to low flow to reduce water usage by about 30 percent.

Alan Dubovsky and Andrew Perlstein relocated to Atlanta from Washington, D.C., last year and purchased at townhome at Heatherton in Roswell, a Monte Hewett community.

“We were hesitant to move into a home that was three times the size of our apartment, but the energy costs are about the same because of all the energy-efficiency measures,” Dubovsky said.

The programmable thermostat helps them be efficient with cooling during the summer. In the spring and the fall, the huge windows, designed for cross-ventilation, keep them cool.

“I’m amazed at how little the air is on because it cools the house quickly and goes off for hours. The insulation is so good that last winter, we felt little need for heat,” he says.

Other ways to save energy

You don’t have to purchase a new home to save energy, according to Robert Reed, sustainable community design director at Southface.

> One of the quickest ways to save energy is to replace your old appliances with Energy Star appliances. New, energy-efficient appliances will begin to pay for themselves almost immediately, he added.

“It is amazing how efficient appliances are today when compared with those that are just a few years old,” he said.

Depending on the appliance and model, Energy Star appliances use 10 percent to 50 percent less energy and water than minimum government requirements.

> Homes often lose energy through the gaps in the thermal envelope, and homeowners can alleviate the problem by checking the areas around the perimeter of the house and crawl space and filling in any gaps with insulation.

Tray ceilings are frequently a culprit when it comes to energy loss, he added.

Look in the attic where the tray ceiling is and if you see wood or drywall, it’s an indication that you need more insulation. If it’s a big area, staple insulation bats over the gaps. If it’s a small area, use insulation foam. Both are available at hardware and home improvement stores.

> Programmable thermostats when used properly also can save energy costs, Reed said. They are particularly effective if you have a heat pump, but they are an inexpensive way to cut down on your utility bills in any home, he added.

> Changing out your ordinary incandescent light bulbs for more energy-efficient CFLs is one of the simplest and most effective ways to save energy and money. The bulbs are 75 percent more energy efficient than normal household bulbs, last eight to 10 times longer and save about $30 in energy costs over the life of the bulb.

> With the holiday season approaching, Reed recommends substituting LED lights for old-fashioned lights.

“They are a lot more long-lasting and efficient,” he said.