New Company

Good day!

It's been a while since the last post - much to talk about on limited time.

HzG has left his previous company to forge out on his own, enabling a bigger focus on energy performance and customer service. It has been quite a ride getting started - from departing a group that HzG had been with for 4+ years, to discovering more about people, to re-energizing.

The first few weeks saw HzG battle collusion, bad-mouthing and loyalty. The loyalty piece blew the collusion-bad mouthing combo OUT of the water. HzG has to thank everyone that listened and understood. OK, enough about that...

BIG things happening in Ohio in 2009. It appears that the energy budget will be increasing by up to 40%, enabling HzG and crew to provide additional comfort and savings to that many more people. The biggest issue moving forward is the ability of the various government programs to meet the demand. In order to get more people service, there needs to be more inspectors - and the state is in dire need of inspectors. Hint to anyone that suffered a layoff in this past year - contact Weatherization agencies and inquire about becoming an inspector (fair salary, paid training).

Take care all - and we'll touch base again in the new year!

Bouncers and Coolers

Greetings!

Jekyll here...

This week, hZg ran into a scenario where I wanted to punch someone in the eye-socket. My crew lead calls me from a job site concerning a distressed client. This client was threatening him (a poor choice, for my crew lead was an ex-bouncer - however one of THE nicest guys you'll know).

Due to final blower door numbers not hitting target, the lead investigated an area of the house where air could be felt moving. The lead lifted a drop ceiling panel, having dust drop from the air onto the kitchen counter top and the dishes in the strainer. The husband (aka Control Freak of his Wife) shouted "What ARE you doing?! You're making a mess out of the kitchen and now my wife has to do the dishes AGAIN!"

Poor "F-in" baby. This house was no castle, however we put homes in better condition each time we leave than when we arrive. We also stay at every home and search until our target numbers can be achieved. I told my crew lead (who was wise enough to call me from outside of the house, out of earshot) - "You are the bouncer, I am the cooler. Be nice until I tell you it's time to not be nice." One of my all-time favorite lines. The crew lead got the point (and pictured me, bald hZg with a mullet - that seemed to lighten the mood) and explained to the male Helen Keller that not only will we clean the kitchen but we'd do the dishes again - once we solved the air leakage problem. It made the guy semi-happy to know that my crew lead groveled - once again "Be nice, until it's time to not be nice."

Moral of the story - some people just are pieces of...not-so-nice-humanity. Treat them fair and as if they were just having a bad day. If this doesn't work...punch them in the eye-socket.

Drop Down Attic Stairs

So you think that you've done an excellent job of insulating your attic? Please...If I have to hear a homeowner say one more time, "I did a great job insulating my own attic - but I haven't noticed a difference..." I think I'll puke.

Professionals (not the guys that show up straight from Hee Haw) know what they are looking for in an attic. Air sealing, proper insulation values, calm seas...(another topic, another day).

hZg has been invited into many a proud homeowners' attic to view a job well done. The home owner pulls down the drop down staircase and I immediately know they are full of themselves for no other reason than bad gas.

If you can pull down your drop down staircase and see directly into the attic, there is an excellent percentage the "weekend Tim Taylor" forgot to insulate the hatch. This is a MAJOR insulation bypass, sure to cost the homeowner lots of money.

For brevity - there are insulated drop down stairs, but none have the proper R-value for an attic space. The best solution is the coffin hatch. This is a "coffin shaped" box that surrounds the folded up drop-down stairs. It has an R19 value on the sides and an R38 value on the top. When the drop down stairs are pulled downwards, you see the bottom of the coffin. Once climbing the stairs, you then must remove the lid of the coffin prior to gaining access to the attic. This lid is not only insulated, but weatherstripped as well.

So just when you think you know what you're talking about...think again. hZg will be polite to you and as long as you understand and agree - there'll be no repercussions...however...if you don't agree, there's always a blog to vomit on you...

Refrigerator Air Coils

Today, hZg was left a note from our biweekly house cleaners. Yes, if there's one chore that Mr. and Mrs. hZg despise, it's housecleaning. Plus, we're keeping the economy going...yeah, that's the ticket...

Anyway, the note stated that if we cleaned the coils of our side-by-side refrigerator, we'd probably extend the life of the fridge, as well as save energy.

The NERVE of this simpleton telling hZg about energy and appliance life extension. What does SHE know...? Well, she knows alot.

So, after I retrieve the shop vac from the dungeon, er, basement, I proceeded to examine what she thought was a bit of dust. Low and behold, my allergies kicked into high gear upon the site of the dust bunnies. I think I filled the shop vac. I guess I was due. The last time I vacuumed the coils on the fridge was, let's see, um...never? However, we did buy the unit new - 11 years ago.

Point of the story is? Listen to what everyone tells you; perform what you think is correct. This person was wise regarding the appliance extension - the energy savings is still out for debate - however it does indeed make sense that when an appliance is operating at peak efficiency, money will be saved.

That's it for tonight. Sleep tight, and don't let the dust bunnies bite.

I'm Baaaaaaackkkkkkk

It's been quite a year...quite a bit of analysis of not only the wonderful home market, but myself as well.

Moving forward as hZg blogs, you'll see the true nature of the beast: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I've discovered that I truly love to help people, while despising them at the same time. Quite a battle, huh...?

The business atmosphere has been ever changing. While the economy is currently down, energy savings is up even more than it has been in the past. Grant funds are readily available; middle class people are taking the brunt of the hit, however do not qualify for said funds. Upper class; well, it costs quite a bit to fund the energy supply of the McMansions.

This past year I have been able to travel to various locations across this country, keeping an eye out of unique ideas in energy conservation. I've had the opportunity to work with people from all walks of life; shared values, laughed at theirs...unless of course they agreed with me. Have had a plethora of injuries which opened up new doors to business success. Have hired some absolutely great people to work with; have hired some that I wondered out loud, "Was I on heroin that day of hiring?"

With all this being said, you can expect to see regular irregular posts forthcoming. I will touch on true life energy stories; true life success stories; true life "I hate people" stories (and yes, to Mr. Ms. Anonymous - it DOES work for me); stories of business ventures; stories of regulations that are utterly ridiculous; basically, stories...

Please be advised; while there will not be cursing in this blog, there will be a great fair share of Jekyll & Hyde spewing. You may think I hate people (sometimes I do...) However, if you're smart (and not a complete idiot), you will see the best intentions come through. Whether you agree with them, that's up for debate...and I will be more than happy to debate with you. Heck, you may even change my mind.

Oh, that's funny...

House Diagnostics

Greetings!

Since the last episode with the shoulder, the other one became separated due to protecting the injured one. Guess one truly shouldn't spar when injured, no matter how confident they are...

For the last 3 days, HZG has been in a House Diagnostic course. What is House Diagnostics? It is the determination of air leak zones. To truly determine a good reading, the contractor / inspector should have...a blower door ($3,000) and a TI-86 pre-programmed calculator ($300). Or...the contractor needs to be seasoned enough to visually inspect / crawl through attics and crawl spaces.

While the class was interesting and true to the subject, the main instructor emphasized that it is a TOOL, not the end all be all. There were several methods to determine the percentage of leakiness, one more valuable to the other due to the potential error of 200 CFM's. For those that are not in with the jargon, too bad - I'm tired and going to give you a brief description. The maximum amount the state allows for a zone to be leaky is up to 200 CFM's. This means that if you had a reading of 150 and good the day of the test, the monitor could go out an get a reading of 350 - and you'd both be right.

So while the course further emphasizes the value of an air tight shell, once again it comes down to the skill level of the contractor.

Bottom line? Don't believe for one second that the average Joe is an inspector - ask for credentials!

Old Theories in Weatherization

Today's client was from the old school. She knew she had a problem, but didn't want to hear what was correct to fix it.

A cute little house sitting on a lake - however in need of proper weatherization. The attic was was for the most part floored and small, with one section open joist. There was about 2" of cellulose in the floored (loose floor board) section, and the same in the open joist section with stacks of fiberglass just sitting in various locations.

I recommended removing the floor boards so that a proper R38 could be installed, and the fiberglass be used elsewhere. The immediate response was, "The floor boards are necessary to walk in the attic (although they were loose, dangerous - and no one will ever go into this attic again.) The fiberglass is really good where it's at (yea, stacked four feet high in one location.) I explained what I would do if it were my house and why...however I truly don't think she was convinced.

I told her that I believe her ridge vent wasn't enough ventilation for the attic and that I would check the proper measurements upon getting back to the office. She immediately said that she has 3 roof vents in addition to the attic. I didn't see any, and offered to go up on the roof. Upon getting back down, I explained that she had the best invisible roof vents I've ever seen. Now she is starting to become a believer...

Lastly, her bathroom fan was vented into the attic - not to the outside. She swore see saw the vent on the roof. I explained she probably saw the soil stack - and I verified that as well while on the roof. I explained that she should have the fan vented directly to the outside. Her response was "I only use the fan on occasion. I really like letting the steam filter into the house for comfort."

I was tired at this point of teaching, but I proceeded on. Did I mention that this whole time she must have stated 20 times that she doesn't have a lot of money?

Well, I think she finally believed me (it helps when you give home owners tips to do on their own.)

We'll see if you can teach an old dog new tricks...

Forcing the LAZY to use bathroom fans

Hello from the injured HZG. Had a cortisone shot in the shoulder and the pain was great enough to shut me down for a while. It was enjoyable doing groundhog attic inspections (where you pop up your head). Seriously though - if I saw something, I had my lead techs with me to crawl. Hopefully back at it tomorrow.

Today's topic is the latest and greatest for lazy people. It's the motion detector bathroom fan. For indoor air quality, bathroom fans should be used for every bathing event, running from the time the water runs to 10-15 minutes after exiting the bathroom. In the HWAP programs, we would install fans on switches that you KNOW were never turned on. How do we know? The follow up post-installation reviews showed the majority of the time, the fans were not in action.

With this being said, we found a way for as little as $30 (up to $100 for electrical work) - a motion detector could be put in. This detector is set for 15 minutes connected to the fan, so that when someone is entering the room and leaving the room, the fan remains on for 15 minutes.

The only complaints we receive are from the people that are just using the bathroom to, well, go to the bathroom. Based on some of the bathrooms we've smelled lately, this isn't necessarily a bad idea...

Energy Savings in Utah

Greetings!

Back from visiting relatives in Utah - boy what a difference climates can make. When the low there is the high here (Ohio) - you can imagine the energy requirements may be different.

Utah is one growing place. If you're getting into the home building or fence erecting business - start in Utah - the economy is booming.

Each home has air running full time. The insulation is fair at best, with an R-30 average at best in the attic. There were also retro-fitted air conditioners located on the roofs (causing damage to the shingles, I might add. Very strange to look at (almost like a water tank on the roof.) Speaking of water...while the insulation was a small concern - the water supply is what frightens HZG.

Every yard appears to have a sprinkler system. With the boom in home building occurring, the demands of water will continue to rise. Global warming has affected the snow volume, which then affects the water volume.

I hope the Utah planners have this one figured out...

Ceiling Fans in Conjunction with AC

Recovering from the heat / freeze headache that has developed today - you know, when you go from a chilled environment of 68 degrees into 91 degree heat, back into, back out of...you get the picture...HZG had the idea to write about energy savings and AC. The following paragraphs were lifted from another article and tweaked accordingly. The bottom line is still the same...

Circulating fans include ceiling fans, table fans, floor fans, and fans mounted to poles or walls. These fans create a wind chill effect that will make you more comfortable in your home, even if it's also cooled by natural ventilation or air conditioning. Ceiling fans are considered the most effective of these types of fans, since they effectively circulate the air in a room to create a draft throughout the room.

If you use air conditioning, a ceiling fan will allow you to raise the thermostat setting about

4°F with no reduction in comfort. In temperate climates, or during moderately hot weather, ceiling fans may allow you to avoid using your air conditioner altogether. Install a fan in each room that needs to be cooled during hot weather.

Ceiling fans are only appropriate in rooms with ceilings at least eight feet high. Fans work best when the blades are 7–9 feet above the floor and 10–12 inches below the ceiling. Fans should be installed so their blades are no closer than 8 inches from the ceiling and 18 inches from the walls.
Larger ceiling fans can move more air than smaller fans. A 36- or 44-inch diameter fan will cool rooms up to 225 square feet, while fans that are 52 inches or more should be used in larger rooms. Multiple fans work best in rooms longer than 18 feet. Small- and medium-sized fans will provide efficient cooling in a 4- to 6-foot diameter area, while larger fans are effective up to 10 feet.

A larger blade will also provide comparable cooling at a lower velocity than a smaller blade. This may be important in areas where loose papers or other objects will be disturbed by a strong breeze. The fan should also be fitted to the aesthetics of the room—a large fan may appear overpowering in a small room.

A more expensive fan that operates quietly and smoothly will probably offer more trouble-free service than cheaper units. Check the noise ratings, and, if possible, listen to your fan in operation before you buy it.

When buying window fans, look for the ENERGY STAR label. Fans that earn the label move air 20% more efficiently, on average, than standard models.

Well, I tweaked it less than I thought. Bottom line - use ceiling fans in conjunction with AC - and save money...

Top 10 worst insulated attic...

Today HZG encountered one of the top 10 worst insulated attic jobs. While the old home was immaculately kept, the attic was, let's say, interesting...

Here's the list of issues; you be the judge...

1) Attic door was not insulated. There was simply a 3/8" piece of plywood

2) Upon entering, there was 1/2" of vermiculite at the bottom of the the joist area

3) On top of the vermiculite was 1" of Styrofoam shells and peanuts - not a solid blanket.

4) Scatter throughout was 1" of fiberglass batting - maybe one run for every 5 runs

5) On top of this concoction was plastic - over the ENTIRE attic

6) A chimney chase that was 2' wide around the entire perimeter, traveling 2 floors

7) Light fixtures that you could see into the room below

Besides this, the attic was fine.

The client was very understanding and is excited to have the issues corrected. Me too...

Floored Attic Consequences

One of the consequences of having a floored attic is the lack of insulation. The typical attic joist is 6", meaning an R19 insulation value.

The plus of a floored attic is a storage space for items you may NEVER see again. The negative is the loss of energy. Due to the need for an R38 in attics, you are losing half of the energy you could be saving.

If you do not need the storage space...I'm talking NEED...HZG recommends removing the floorboards and replacing with the R38. You'll be amazed at how much you'll save...

Psycho Clients

Today, HZG encountered another "Psycho Client from Hell." That's putting it mildly.

This will be more of a rant than a blog - however if you think this is you - PLEASE do not torture other people that come to your home.

From the moment the crew stepped in the house to perform work until the moment they left - this client was always less than 2' away. We typically do not mind someone watching us work, but this lady asked question after question after question. Again, we do not mind people asking questions. However, it was THE SAME question each time. "Why are you insulating the walls? X3". "Why are you putting a weatherstrip on my door?X3". You get the idea.

This lady not only would follow us around, but she carted her oxygen tank along with her...while smoking a cigarette. She must have gone through 3 packs.

Lastly, in order to perform the final blower door we had to put the home into winter operating condition - close all windows, doors, etc. You'd have thought that we had started a riot. "It's too hot in here to be doing this." "How much longer, the house is filling up with smoke - I'm on oxygen you know."

This was a modern day version of "Psycho."

I think I'm done now...

Simple Energy Efficient Tactic

Sometimes saving energy is easy...too easy. Today's topic is about window shades.

Window shades not only prevent people from seeing in your home, it also prevents sunlight - a warmer in the summer and a cooler in the winter. Here's an easy rule of thumb...

Summer

Keep your shades down in the east until noon, down in the west after that. This tactic will keep the heat out of your home during the day and keep it cooler naturally.

Winter

Keep your shades up in the east in the morning and up in the west in the afternoon. This tactic will allow the sun's warmth to enter your home and aid in keeping it warm.

Easy-speezy.

Concrete Patios - The Big "No No's"

Concrete patios are great. They come in various colors, textures and designs. When installed correctly, the value - emotional and monetary - go up. When done poorly, the costs of maintaining your home can skyrocket - and value can be lost.

What could go wrong with a patio? Well, the biggest "No No's" are..."Don't assume that your patio is sloped correctly" and "Don't assume that your patio is installed against your home correctly."

The first No No is the slope. Ensure that when a level is place on the patio that the slope is AWAY from your home. If it is not, you will have basement issues - end of the story. Walls were not designed to have water pool on them.

The second No No is the attachment, or lack thereof. The patio should not be attached to the house; it should be free floating or sitting on a pre-installed ledger. Too many times HZG has gone to a home with basement water issues only to discover that the water is entering through a rebar penetration. Some contractors actually popped holes in the basement block to install the rebar so that the patio would be levered. What these contractors did not realize is that they created a pathway for water to enter. Once a block is stained, it's stained.

That's it for this ramble...

Dirty Ducts

Before you decide to hire a company to come out to clean your ducts due to all of the dust in the air, it will be useless unless you prevent the dust from accumulating again in the future. Per Energy Stars website, the preventative maintenance should be the following:

1) Use the highest efficiency air filter recommended by the manufacturer of your heating and cooling system.
2) Change filters regularly.
3) If your filters become clogged, change them more frequently.
4) Be sure you do not have any missing filters and that air cannot bypass filters through gaps around the filter holder.
5) When having your heating and cooling system maintained or checked for other reasons, be sure to ask the service provider to clean cooling coils and drain pans.
6) During construction or renovation work that produces dust in your home, seal off supply and return registers and do not operate the heating and cooling system until after cleaning up the dust.
7) Remove dust and vacuum your home regularly. (Use a high efficiency vacuum (HEPA) cleaner or the highest efficiency filter bags your vacuum cleaner can take. Vacuuming can increase the amount of dust in the air during and after vacuuming as well as in your ducts).
8) If your heating system includes in-duct humidification equipment, be sure to operate and maintain the humidifier strictly as recommended by the manufacturer.

Remember, treat the cause, not the symptom.

Building Tightness Limits

Otherwise known as the BTL...hold the mayo.

The building tightness limits (BTL) show how tight, well, the building is. When a weatherization contractor air seals a home and runs a blower door, there is a number that is very important that when you exceed it - additional steps must be taken.

Each home has a different limit based upon size of the home, number of occupants, pets, weather they smoke (occupants, no pets) and other moisture sources. When a home gets too tight, the indoor air quality takes a turn for the worse. Imagine if you will being in a room that has a window that's open all the way. Then imagine if you will 3 people in the room, one of the people smoke, there's a dog and an aquarium. Now, one last time, imagine if the window is shut so that only 1" remains open. Is the indoor air quality better or worse?

Duh, it's worse. What could be done (besides opening the window back up)? Introduce an exhaust fan. This aids in the recycling of the air.

The key to exhaust fans shall come in a later writing. It's time for HZG to go to "get thrown" training.

Educational Day - House Diagnostics

Every so often, one needs to sharpen his skills and learn something new. It's no different for HZG.

Today, we are meeting with the State Monitor to review house diagnostics. While we will be attending the full blown training in July, this is more of a "one on one" session.

What is house diagnostics? It's making sure the house is first of all, healthy. Any work that we do must keep the house healthy. This involves backdrafting, room pressures, CAZ areas, etc. The second part is making sure that the house is communicating as a system - sealed appropriately around the thermal envelope.

Today is more of a day to learn through the eyes of someone with just as much experience, if not more...

Will update you if any "nuggets" are had...

Energy & Art

Today's blog isn't a blog at all. It's an interesting link to a website - part of which goes to show American environment, energy and human waste. Pretty amazing stuff...

http://www.chrisjordan.com/current_set2.php?id=7

It's remarkable what can be created into art...

Tuckpoint before Treating

Before doing any work around your basement walls (such as insulating, waterproofing, etc.), make sure to tuckpoint the block.

Tuckpointing is the recementing of mortar joints that have come apart over time.

In a crawl space that we just finished, we tuckpointed for a good 2 hours. Since we were going to adhere insulation board to the block, we first had to do whatever we could to stop the air flow as well as prevent as much potential water breach as possible.

If you use a hydraulic cement, the mortar will dry much more quickly. However, we still suggest waiting a full 24 hours for the best cure.