"Pat, I think you and I agree on a LOT of things.
One thing I don't want to see is more…"
Asset Rating with the Home Energy Scoring Tool
The White House announced this week a new initiative to boost home energy efficiency. This is the culmination of the Recovery Through Retrofit plan, funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Key components include the Home Energy Score Program, under which U.S. homeowners will be able to get low-cost energy surveys that rank a home's efficiency on a scale of one to 10 and get federally insured loans for upgrades under a companion program called PowerSave. All of this is coupled with new workforce guidelines and training offerings to ensure that home improvements are done well.
Central to the initiative is the new Home Energy Scoring Tool.
Cathy Zoi, Acting Under Secretary of Energy, explains the tool, which helps
homeowners understand how home energy systems perform. Using the tool,
consumers will find out how their home compares with others and how much
money they could save by adding insulation, sealing air leaks or making
other upgrades.
In 2010, the U.S. Department of Energy (Department) tasked the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to develop this new tool within the Home Energy Saver suite. The resulting tool provides the first national asset rating method that allows all USA regions to opt into a simplified and standardized energy assessment process that complements existing advanced home energy audit methods.
The Scoring Tool is designed to provide a rapid low-cost opportunity assessment of a home's fixed energy systems (also known as an "asset rating") and provide the home owner with general feedback on the systems that potentially need more detailed attention from certified home performance diagnostics and weatherization professionals (such as those engaged with RESNET, Building Performance Institute, and the Affordable Comfort Institute).
The Scoring Tool has been designed to support the existing marketplace for energy analysis tools and services by providing a substantially lower-cost "entry level" assessment (but not a formal work scope or cost estimate), which can help the service provider establish the potential for energy savings and the value of a more comprehensive investigation and retrofit recommendation report. For a typical home, an experienced assessor can complete a Scoring Tool analysis in under an hour, while a comprehensive follow-up assessment could take several times that long.
Figure 1
Also developed within the Scoring Tool are Application Programming Interface ("APIs") services, which third-party energy software developers can use to embed the Home Energy Score methodology into their products and business processes.
More info:
Evan Mills & Norm Bourassa
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
Views: 277
Comment
-
Comment by Evan Mills on November 10, 2010 at 9:55am -
David - Yep. I recall seeing a survey of RESNET providers indicating that the average cost was just a hair under $500, with of course a significant range above and below that.
-
Comment by David Parker on November 9, 2010 at 10:04pm -
This new MPG/home national rating program sets a new price point (less than 1 hour, less than $150) that energy auditors can offer existing home owners to benchmark their home and give basic recommendations for energy upgrade improvements. I think that more complete energy audits that include duct testing, combustion appliance analysis, and utility bill analysis can be offered at a higher price point ($400-700) but most people are not willing to pay for these additional services.
-
Comment by Evan Mills on November 9, 2010 at 1:00pm
-
Glen - I'm on the same page, and did put some thoughts below your blog - http://homeenergypros.lbl.gov/profiles/blogs/the-government-and
-
Comment by Glen Gallo on November 9, 2010 at 11:44am -
I was possibly a little harsh in my blog earlier. With new information we can make new decisions. After following the link and looking at the surface of the program I am a bit more optimistic. This looks like a step in the right direction.
- ‹ Previous
- 1
- 2
- Next ›
Home Energy Pros
Home Energy Pros was founded by the developers of Home Energy Saver Pro (sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) and brought to you in partnership with Home Energy magazine.
Latest Activity
tedkidd commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Robert Shiller Says Retrofits Are Never Worth It!"Bob B.
Buying a home is a good investment because it is forced savings more than a good…"
Joe Huang posted a discussionWhite Box Technologies launches Web-based weather data for building energy simulations
White Box Technologies is pleased to announce under agreement with ASHRAE the launch of WBT Weather…See More
Tom Delconte commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Lykans $29, Vampires $0 !"Bill: these are available for free at www.freeenergy.com . Just ask for Jen Guarater! I…"
Joseph Lamy commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"My life changed when I got 'ductalatored' - became familiar with proper sizing guides for…"
Judi Lyall joined allen p tanner's group
Energy Auditing Equipment for Sale, Trade or to Purchase
Discuss the pros and cons of the equipment you are interested in prior to purchase. Post equipment…See More
Judi Lyall replied to David Starrett's discussion I am looking for a good IR camera in the group Energy Auditing Equipment for Sale, Trade or to Purchase"Hi there
I am selling my equipment and have a great Fluke TIR for sale for 3600.00
If…"
William H Nickerson commented on Tom Delconte's blog post Lykans $29, Vampires $0 !"66 watts a/sec -3960 w/min 237600 w/hr 5702400 w/day …"
tedkidd commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"I think Tom is busting your chops Jim. The "drivel" part may not have been well…"
Tom Maides commented on Jim Gunshinan's blog post The Universe Is Made of Stories"Some of the best scientists of the previous 1000 years were also leaders in the Church. Aside…"
Laurie DiDonato posted an eventHERS Rater Training in Massachusetts at Maki Building Center
June 3, 2013 to June 8, 2013
6-Day HERS Rater Training- The first step to becoming a HERS RaterLast Week To Register!Your Cost…See More
© 2013 Created by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
You need to be a member of Home Energy Pros to add comments!
Join Home Energy Pros