Home Energy Magazine has been publishing articles about residential energy efficiency for 30 years. Its goal has been to disseminate technically reliable and neutral information to the practitioners, that is, professionals in the business of home energy efficiency. The articles, editorials, letters, and advertisements are a kind of window on the evolution of energy conservation technologies, policies, and organizations. Initially, the focus was on audits and simple retrofits, such as weatherstripping and insulation. Instrumentation was sparse sometimes limited to a ruler to measure depth of attic insulation and a blower door was exotic. CFLs were heavy, awkward bulbs which might, or might not, fit in a fixture. Saving air conditioning energy was not a priority. Solar energy was only for the most adventurous. Thirty years on, the technologies and business have moved beyond just insulating attics to the larger challenge of delivering home performance and achieving zero net energy. This shift reflects the success in reducing space heating energy and the need to create a profitable industry by providing more services. The leading edge of the residential energy services market is becoming much more sophisticated, offering both efficiency and solar systems. The challenge is to continue providing relevant and reliable information in a transformed industry and a revolutionized media landscape.
This best-selling handbook is the most comprehensive and practical reference available on energy auditing in buildings and industry. Topics include energy assessment and computer software which will guide you in planning and carrying out a thorough and accurate energy audit of any type of facility, including electrical, mechanical and building systems analysis. Clear, easy-to-follow instructions guide you through accounting procedures, rate of return and life cycle cost analysis. Also covered is information on understanding your utility bill and using that knowledge to trim your energy costs. Loaded with forms, checklists and handy working aids, book is required reading for anyone responsible for conducting or overseeing a facility energy audit. Completely edited throughout, this latest edition includes a new chapter on investment grade energy audits and also a new chapter on retro-commissioning and energy audits. Revisions include new information on ISO 50001 and the Superior Energy Performance program plus a completely updated chapter on software.
The book “Building Energy Audits-Diagnosis and Retrofitting” is a collection of twelve papers that focus on the built environment in order to systematically collect and analyze relevant data for the energy use profile of buildings and extended for the sustainability assessment of the built environment. The contributions address historic buildings, baselines for non-residential buildings from energy performance audits, and from in-situ measurements, monitoring, and analysis of data, and verification of energy saving and model calibration for various building types. The works report on how to diagnose existing problems and identify priorities, assess, and quantify the opportunities and measures that improve the overall building performance and the environmental quality and well-being of occupants in non-residential buildings and houses. Several case studies and lessons learned from the field are presented to help the readers identify, quantify, and prioritize effective energy conservation and efficiency measures. Finally, a new urban sustainability audit and rating method of the built environment addresses the complexities of the various issues involved, providing practical tools that can be adapted to match local priorities in order to diagnose and evaluate the current state and future scenarios towards meeting specific sustainable development goals and local priorities.
Procedures for Commercial Building Energy Audits provides purchasers and providers of energy audit services with a complete definition of good procedures for an energy survey and analysis. It also provides a format for defining buildings and their energy use that will allow data to be shared in meaningful ways. This publication specifically avoids a "cookbook" approach, recognizing that all buildings are different and each analyst needs to exercise a substantial amount of judgment. Instead, Procedures sets out generalized procedures to guide the analyst and the building owner, and provides a uniform method of reporting basic information. Different levels of analysis are organized into the following categories:Preliminary Energy Use Analysis Level I Analysis "Walk-Through Analysis Level II Analysis"Energy Survey and Analysis Level III Analysis"Detailed Analysis of Capital-Intensive Modifications The book comes with a CD that provides more than 25 guideline forms, with explanatory material, to illustrate the content and arrangement of a complete, effective energy analysis report. The CD provides these forms in both PDF and Word format, enabling you to customize and print each form. For the downloadable version, the PDF of the book and the guideline forms are included in a single .zip file. You will need WinZip or an equivalent program to open the file. ASHRAE Research Project 669 and ASHRAE Special Project 56.
**Energy Efficiency Transforming Your Home into an Eco-Efficient Sanctuary** Unlock the secrets to slashing your energy bills, reducing your carbon footprint, and creating a more comfortable home with **Energy Efficiency**, the ultimate guide for homeowners committed to sustainable living. Dive into this comprehensive eBook and discover the fundamental principles of residential energy efficiency. Start with an in-depth understanding of what energy efficiency really means and the myriad benefits it delivers, from cost savings to environmental impact. **Chapter Highlights** - **Understanding Residential Energy Efficiency** Grasp the basic concepts and key metrics that measure your home’s energy performance. - **Evaluating Your Home’s Energy Use** Learn to conduct thorough energy audits and take advantage of smart meters to track usage and identify inefficiencies. - **Insulation and Sealing** Discover the vital role that insulation plays and explore various materials and techniques for sealing air leaks. - **Windows and Doors** Optimize your home’s thermal envelope with energy-efficient windows and weatherproofing techniques. - **Heating and Cooling Systems** Maximize comfort while minimizing energy use with efficient heating solutions and programmable thermostats. - **Water Heating** Explore advanced water heating options and techniques to reduce hot water consumption. - **Lighting** Brighten your home efficiently with LED lighting, motion sensors, and maximizing natural daylight. - **Appliances and Electronics** Choose the best energy-efficient appliances and reduce standby power consumption with smart home technology. - **Renewable Energy Options** Consider integrating solar panels, wind turbines, or geothermal systems to further cut energy costs. - **Behavioral Changes to Save Energy** Incorporate daily habits and engage your family in adopting energy-smart practices. - **Landscaping for Energy Efficiency** Utilize strategic planting, green roofs, and efficient outdoor lighting to enhance energy savings. - **Financing and Incentives** Navigate energy efficiency tax credits, utility rebate programs, and financing options to fund home improvements. - **DIY vs. Professional Help** Decide when to take on projects yourself and when to hire experts, backed by a cost-benefit analysis. - **Monitoring and Adjusting** Use energy management systems and analyze utility bills to continually improve your home’s efficiency. - **Case Studies and Success Stories** Get inspired by real-life examples and avoid common pitfalls on your journey to a sustainable home. Transform your residence into an eco-efficient haven with practical tips, expert insights, and clear guidelines. **Energy Efficiency** is your essential resource for a greener, more cost-effective future. Purchase your copy today and start making sustainable changes to your home!
Existing literature on energy audits consists almost exclusively of practical guides. This book looks at energy auditing from a scientific perspective. It discusses the nature of energy audits and provides a universally applicable data model as a basis for automatic processing of a large number of energy audits. Qualitative aspects of auditing are discussed in detail. The modeling enables an improved evaluation of subsidy programs for energy audits, but also a systematic and teamwork-oriented creation of energy audits.
Updated to include recent advances, this third edition presents strategies and analysis methods for conserving energy and reducing operating costs in residential and commercial buildings. The book explores the latest approaches to measuring and improving energy consumption levels, with calculation examples and Case Studies. It covers field testing, energy simulation, and retrofit analysis of existing buildings. It examines subsystems—such as lighting, heating, and cooling—and techniques needed for accurately evaluating them. Auditors, managers, and students of energy systems will find this book to be an invaluable resource for their work. Explores state-of-the-art techniques and technologies for reducing energy combustion in buildings. Presents the latest energy efficiency strategies and established methods for energy estimation. Provides calculation examples that outline the application of the methods described. Examines the major building subsystems: lighting, heating, and air-conditioning. Addresses large-scale retrofit analysis approaches for existing building stocks. Introduces the concept of energy productivity to account for the multiple benefits of energy efficiency for buildings. Includes Case Studies to give readers a realistic look at energy audits. Moncef Krarti has vast experience in designing, testing, and assessing innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies applied to buildings. He graduated from the University of Colorado with both MS and PhD in Civil Engineering. Prof. Krarti directed several projects in designing energy-efficient buildings with integrated renewable energy systems. He has published over 3000 technical journals and handbook chapters in various fields related to energy efficiency, distribution generation, and demand-side management for the built environment. Moreover, he has published several books on building energy-efficient systems. Prof. Krarti is Fellow member to the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the largest international professional society. He is the founding editor of the ASME Journal of Sustainable Buildings & Cities Equipment and Systems. Prof. Krarti has taught several different courses related to building energy systems for over 20 years in the United States and abroad. As a professor at the University of Colorado, Prof. Krarti has been managing the research activities of an energy management center at the school with an emphasis on testing and evaluating the performance of mechanical and electrical systems for residential and commercial buildings. He has also helped the development of similar energy efficiency centers in other countries, including Brazil, Mexico, and Tunisia. In addition, Prof. Krarti has extensive experience in promoting building energy technologies and policies overseas, including the establishment of energy research centers, the development of building energy codes, and the delivery of energy training programs in several countries.
This project focused on the use of home energy ratings as a tool to promote energy retrofits in existing homes. A home energy rating provides a quantitative appraisal of a home's energy performance, usually compared to a benchmark such as the average energy use of similar homes in the same region. Rating systems based on energy performance models, the focus of this report, can establish a home's achievable energy efficiency potential and provide a quantitative assessment of energy savings after retrofits are completed, although their accuracy needs to be verified by actual measurement or billing data. Ratings can also show homeowners where they stand compared to their neighbors, thus creating social pressure to conform to or surpass others. This project field-tested three different building performance models of varying complexity, in order to assess their value as rating systems in the context of a residential retrofit program: Home Energy Score, SIMPLE, and REM/Rate.
This book was written to give energy-involved professionals the tools they need to take their energy audits to the next level, and use them to accurately predict a building's future energy use and true savings potential. Going beyond the conventional energy audit, which can lead to projections which are frequently off by as much as 20%, this book provides detailed guidelines on how to use the new tool, the investment grade audit (IGA), which enables prediction of savings with much greater accuracy. Building on the traditional audit, the IGA requires the addition of a "risk assessment component" which evaluates conditions in a specific building and/or process and reduces the level of uncertainty as to how proposed energy efficiency measures will really behave over time. The authors have covered every aspect of the IGA, including risk management, the "people" factor, measurement and verification, financing issues, report presentation guidelines, and master planning strategies.
