Spark! Blog
SPARK! Energy Audits Underway: The success of CFLs 71 days ago
SPARK!‘s 25 Home Energy Audit and Improvement program is well underway. Twenty-five income qualified Charlottesville homeowners will benefit from the program, first by an energy audit that will tell us and the homeowner what can be done to the home to save energy. Then with the help of our professional contract auditors we’ll be able to work with the homeowner to identify measures to reduce energy consumption. SPARK! will also provide an initial investment of up to $1,000 and a crew of professionals and/or volunteers to implement the most cost effective improvements.
We are getting help from UVA undergraduates who are taking the course, “Engineering in Community Settings: Designing a Sustainable Future”. It has been fun. So far we have collected data and met with six homeowners. Until we get the professional audits completed, it is far too early to state the energy efficiency strategy we’ll undertake. In the meantime for three of the homes, the students and I changed out incandescent light bulbs with free CFLs provided by the City of Charlottesville. The homeowners seem quite pleased with this extra bit of service. A total of 17 bulbs have been changed thus far in just three homes. By the end of the pilot program we hope to have installed 175 CFLs in 25 homes.
What does this all mean in terms of energy savings? Assuming that we change out a 75 watt incandescent lightbulb with a 20 watt CFL, and each is used on average 2 hours/ day, 365 days a year, each will save the homeowner 40.1 Kwh or $4.54 every year of the 10 years the CFL’s expected lifetime. The other good news is with each CFL, there are 47 fewer pounds of greenhouse gas emitted each year. In total, just with the 25 home SPARK! pilot and the help of the city, there will be 8,225 lbs fewer CO2 emissions straying into the atmosphere, 70,175 Kwh of electricity saved, and Charlottesville families will save $794.50 each year. Over 10 years that is $7,940 saved. Not bad for an initial investment of $860 for the bulbs which is an annual return of 92%!
Put a Freeze on Deep Freezers? 41 days ago
In the process of performing our home energy audits, we came upon two deep-freezers that two different home owners were using. Our portable electrical meters determined that one freezer made in 1974 was drawing 274 watts. The other newer model was drawing 141 watts. With the price and scarcity of energy it made us wonder about the ultimate value of using these appliances. A deep freezer like a refrigerator will run on cycles and draw power when it needs it. If we assume the 1974 freezer will draw power 25% of the time, it will use just over 600 kWh annually. That equates to $67.81 and 766 lbs of CO2 each year.
Why use them? If the appliance and its use are managed properly, they can be a very useful. Consumers can purchase foods in bulk quantities for storage to help their budget, and to make it easier to juggle a variety of menu choices for their family’s tastes. For some of us it does not help with our budgets and lifestyles. Very often food is not managed very well in the freezer and spoils.
If you do decide to use one do the math before committing your hard earned dollars to buying one and using it. Buy an Energy Star rated appliance and check out various websites on how to make the best use of them.
