Environmentally friendly ways to heat and cool buildings are becoming more popular as Americans seek to reduce their carbon footprint and, lessen the country’s dependence on foreign oil. Alternative energy solutions like solar power are usually more costly than conventional technologies. However, in many cases, adding solar or another alternative energy source to existing conventional equipment can be a practical solution that saves energy and money at the same time.
Reducing the amount of power needed to heat and cool a building leaves a smaller load to control. This may allow one to economically control their building’s climate through alternative means.
Using energy from the sun to control the temperature in a building makes more sense now than ever before. Solar thermal technology converts radiation from the sun into usable energy for space heating and it can even be used to cool commercial buildings through the use of absorption chilling technology. Solar water heaters can supply hot water whenever you need it, even in the middle of winter. Most solar water heaters are used in conjunction with a traditional gas or electric heating system.
The first step in reducing energy consumption is determining current situation. How much power does the building currently use? How does that compare to similar structures in the area? A good starting point is to get a free assessment from a company certified by the federal government’s Energy Star program, a joint initiative of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.
The Energy Star contractor collects data about the building and reviews recent bills for electricity, natural gas or other energy sources. These figures are entered into special software that rates the building for energy efficiency. This provides a baseline that enables the contractor and building owner to judge the success of the changes they make.
The contractor creates a customized plan to help the building owner reduce energy consumption, based on what he observed during the initial inspection. It’s important to keep the owner’s budget in mind and to recommend solutions that offer the most return on investment. For example, replacing the entire air conditioning system may not be a practical alternative, but inspecting and servicing it on a regular schedule will maximize its efficiency. If the lighting system is inefficient, the owner may see a significant improvement by changing to a different type of light bulb rather than switching out all the fixtures. Replacing all the windows might be cost-prohibitive, but adding solar shades may be an economical alternative. Other low-tech solutions include adding insulation or weather stripping.
The contractor may even point out opportunities to heat and cool the building using free energy. In cold weather, you can use the outside temperature to cool the water for air chillers instead of using refrigeration. Air-side economizers can bring in ambient air when it’s cool, instead of using air conditioning.
Modern technology can control the schedule of all the mechanical equipment and make complex systems work together more efficiently. Putting an outside thermostat on a heat pump that has auxiliary heat strips can save energy by preventing the heat strips from engaging unless they are really necessary, which is usually when the outside temperature dips into the 30’s. Even something as simple as switching to programmable thermostats with more options can result in cost savings.
Once improvements have been made, it’s important to monitor energy usage on a regular basis. This allows an answer to identify problems and fix them before they cost any more money.
Finding out a building’s rating on the Energy Star scale and making efforts to improve can even be helpful when it comes time to sell the property. If the building rates high enough to be certified as an “Energy Star Building,” the owner can advertise the fact that the building uses less energy than comparable structures this can be a big selling point.
While no one can predict how much power will cost in the coming years, government efforts to mandate more “green” power generation will certainly come with a price tag. Providers of electricity may soon be required to invest in building new plants based on alternative energy sources and to transport that energy to consumers. While we can’t control how power is generated or how these costs are passed on to consumers, we can be proactive by reducing our power consumption today.
