Yesterday on a plane flight, I got the question about how to determine how someone could find out how their energy use compares to others. Although it’s a bit simplified, we’ve posted ENERGY STAR’s Home Energy Yardstick which can compare your home’s energy efficiency to similar homes across the country. It only takes a few minutes with 12 months of your utility bill information (either month-by-month or total) and some basic information about your home (such as zip code, age, square footage, and number of occupants). If you don’t have your bills, contact your utility for a 12-month summary. The yardstick will generate some basic recommendations.
You can also try out the GreenHomes America “Interactive Home Energy Savings Calculator” to play with different improvement scenarios and get an idea of how much you could save. Of course, this is just a general sense of the possibilities, and to get the best set of recommendations to lower your energy bills and more your home more comfortable, you should get a comprehensive home assessment with a full set of diagnostics.
Thanks,
Mike
Tags: energy-efficiency, home energy, home improvement, rating
