Home Energy Briefs: #1 Building Envelope

This Home Energy Brief focuses on the building envelope. It provides guidance for making improvements to a residential building envelope. One of the key features of an energy efficient home is a tight and properly insulated building envelope. Improvements such as adding insulation, sealing air leaks, and improving window features provide simple and affordable measures that often do not require a professional contractor. A typical homeowner may invest $1,000 on his home’s building envelope, but he can save up to $300 on energy bills each year and enjoy year round indoor comfort. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #2 Lighting

This Home Energy Brief gives an overview of steps to take in making your home lighting more energy efficient while maintaining and improving lighting quality. Improving the efficiency of your home lighting can not only reduce your electric bills, it can also improve the atmosphere, comfort, and safety of the room, as well as your ability to see. Recommended measures include replacing incandescent bulbs with more efficient CFLs, installing dedicated fixtures, using controls like dimmers and sensors, incorporating tasklighting and daylighting, and getting rid of dangerous halogen torchieres. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #3 Space Cooling

This Home Energy Brief focuses on space cooling. The Brief covers the issues of heat gain, passive cooling, and space cooling systems. Using a conventional air conditioning system is often the most expensive and energy intensive way to cool a home. If you are buying a new air conditioner, first consider reducing heat gain in your home through passive cooling measures and increasing ventilation with low energy fans. Then consider investing in more expensive cooling systems like evaporative coolers, heat pumps, and air conditioners. If you already have an air conditioner, properly maintain it so that it runs at peak efficiency. Always look for the Energy Star label when purchasing new cooling systems. The price tag may be a little higher than on non-Energy Star units, but you will pay off your investment every time you use the equipment. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #4 Space Heating

This Home Energy Brief serves as a guide for home-heating options. It covers the topics of heat loss and passive heating; the efficiency, maintenance, and costs of heating systems; and what you should consider when purchasing a heating system. Investing in space heating systems is an expensive and long-term decision. The first step is to determine whether (and where) your home loses heat through its building shell. The second step is to improve the efficiency of your existing heating system, especially if it is a furnace, a boiler, an installed in-space heater, or a heat pump. When purchasing a new heating system, think about your climate, the size of your home, your budget, and local utility and fuel costs; and make sure you weigh the cost of investment against the long-term costs to operate the system. This version was last updated in 2006.

Home Energy Briefs: #5 Water Heating

This Home Energy Brief covers water heating. The Brief goes over storage tank heaters, demand water heaters, solar thermal water heating, heat pump water heaters, and drain-water heat recovery. You can save money immediately by changing how you use your hot water, for example, by lowering the temperature on your hot water tank, using cold water to wash your clothes, and/or insulating your hot water heater and pipes. Installing new and more efficient technologies and devices can also help save money. Such technologies and devices range from efficient showerheads and aerators to the installation of new efficient water heaters, heat pumps, solar water heaters, or drain-water heat recovery systems. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #6 Cleaning Appliances

This Home Energy Brief focuses on cleaning appliances. The Brief covers cold water washing, efficient dryers, and dishwashers. Dishwashers and clothes washers and dryers all use a lot of energy and water and are responsible for a significant portion of the average household’s energy bill. Often, this warrants a change in the equipment being used and/or the habits of those using the equipment. By utilizing the advice in this Brief, you can potentially save up to 50 percent of the energy and water used by washing equipment, without lowering the quality of the service the appliance provides. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #7 Electronics

This Home Energy Brief focuses on electronics. This Brief covers energy efficient office equipment and Energy Star appliances, power management for computers, standby mode, paper use, and the life-cycle cost of electronics. Great economic and energy savings can be found by simply changing our patterns of use with electronic devices. Turning a piece of equipment off or unplugging it when it’s not in use is the easiest way to save energy and money. In addition, Energy Star product listings are a great place to look for energy efficient devices. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #8 Kitchen Appliances

This Home Energy Brief discusses kitchen appliances. The Brief covers the following topics: food and the impacts of what we eat; the electricity use of refrigerators and freezers; cooking appliances; and food waste. Having an energy efficient kitchen means understanding the energy consumption of the appliances in your kitchen, the energy life cycle of the food that comes into it, and all of the wastes that leave it. No matter what your lifestyle is, there are numerous energy efficient practices that you should consider. This version was last updated in 2004.

Home Energy Briefs: #9 Whole System Design

This Home Energy Brief focuses on whole system design. The Brief covers the application of whole system design to a building envelope, building materials, and the cost and financing of whole system design. The Brief introduces the synergies that exist between thermal mass, windows, and other components of passive solar design. This process of working through whole system design can be applied to other projects. This version was last updated in 2004.