You don't need to really celebrate Energy Star's 'holiday', but we want you to be aware of the savings potential out there when you switch to an ENERGY STAR® certified heat pump water heater.
Heat pump technology is high-performing and super-efficient, so you’ll save on lower utility bills. Energy Star says "a family of four can save up to $550 annually and more than $5,600 over the product’s lifetime. Add tax credits of up to $2,000 and available utility rebates and the payback is almost instantaneous."* information from Energy Star Program If you currently have an old electric resistance water heater, you are just throwing away money on energy bills every month. If you have a gas water heater, just think how making the switch will help contribute to a clean energy future. Email info@SustainableWellesley for more information. The team at Green Energy Consumers is offering advice on heat pumps, electric cars, and more at their upcoming webinars. For specific Wellesley information (rebates, assistance, etc. watch this first).
We realize it's the summer and ironically we are talking about ice dams. Many of us have unfortunately experienced them, including Teri and Jamie Ebersole here in Wellesley. Over the last several years, they did piecemeal projects to protect themselves from recurring ice dam damage. However the dams highlighted to them the increasing severe weather due to climate change. Thus, when they decided to renovate their kitchen, they took a hard look at the resiliency of their home. In the end, they spent a fair amount of their renovation budget on aspects of their home that will make their family home more resilient.
What does that mean? Climate resilient buildings are built, or retrofitted, to withstand severe storms and natural disasters. The Ebersoles wanted their 1940 colonial – gone farmhouse – home to withstand extreme weather. They interviewed a few architects and builders and went with Wellesley’s Kraus Associates. After much research, and discussions with Abode and other energy efficiency experts, the Ebersoles now have a beautiful renovated, healthy and resilient home they are proud of. This all turned out to be a valuable investment as well. The last 2 months they have only paid $10 a month for all of their electric cooking, heating/cooling, driving, laundry needs! How are they doing this? They moved to electrical, high efficient systems, and fully insulated and weatherized their home:
They still have their gas-fired tankless water heater, since it was newish at the time of renovation, but that is the only gas in their home. They will likely replace it with an electric air-source heat pump water heater at its end of life. Since they have a family member with lung challenges, they are very happy to minimize the amount of unhealthy natural gas in their home. “We love our house and want to stay here a long time, so it made sense to make it healthy, resilient and sustainable for the long-term.” Curious who they used? See below:
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