Super Insulated
Property
- Owner:
- John Starr
- Type:
- Residential
- Address:
- 285 Lehan Rd, Bethlehem, NH 03574
- Size:
- 3,000 sq ft
- Event Participation:
- NESEA Green Buildings Open House 2013 Host
Technology
- Type:
- Energy Efficiency
- Installed:
- September 1984
- Size of System:
- 3000 sf kW
Financial Details
- Gross Cost of System:
- $10,000
- Net Cost of System:
- $10,000
- Additional Financial Notes:
- I heat the house with 2-2.5 cord of seasoned hardwood burned in a woodstove. At an estimated 26 million BTU/cord, that works out to somewhere around 20,000 BTU/sf/yr. I live in climate zone 6, somewhere around 8k heating degree days. At $250/cord, I spend about $600/year for space heating. I recently had an energy audit performed, and the blower door test indicated a 2.2 air change per hour at 50 pascals.
Professionals & Suppliers
- Energy Auditors:
- Building Alternatives Inc
What You Need to Know
Description:
House basement is insulated to R30 in the walls and under the floor, and the upper floors and ceiling are insulated to R-60. Insulation is on the outside of the concrete so the basement walls and floor act as thermal mass. Most of the glazing is on the south side.
Other Benefits:
Low heating costs, house that stays warm by itself on a sunny day, and a house that stays cool in the summer if you keep it closed up.
Maintenance Requirements:
No moving parts. No maintenance. After 30 years some of the internal parts of the wood stove needed to be replaced.
Efficiency or Sustainability Improvements:
1. Added drainback solar hot water system recently. It has reduced water heating costs by 60%, and is now providing some space heating via radiant tubing in the basement floor 2. Added 11KW PV array to roof this year. No annual figures yet, but all summer the meter has been going backwards.
My Motivation:
Solar Hot water: reduce energy bill; get good figures on actual savings in my microclimate. PV: Price finally got down to where this might break even; develop good numbers on actual generation in my microclimate.
Advice:
A well insulated house will save you money over time, and needs no maintenance. You do need to install a heat recovery ventilator if you get the house tighter than 5 air changes per hour at 50 pascals, and you ought to be able to achieve < 3 ACH50 with very little effort.
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