Tips
Energy Saving ROI’s
Nest Thermostat
$249 at Amazon
A couple of weeks ago I discussed the Nest Thermostat. (See that article here.) One of the questions I have when I see something like this is whether there is return on investment (ROI) or in the case of green technology, is it Green That Saves Green?
According to Remodeling Magazine a programmable thermostat has a payoff in 1-10 years depending on the thermostat installed and the situation in which it will be used. I’ve included some bare bones excerpts here, but for the complete article, check out page 40 in the November 2012 issue of Remodeling Magazine here.
Programmable Thermostat – Materials: $50-$350, Labor: 1-3 hrs, Estimated ROI: <1yr – 10yr
Low Flow Faucets & Fixtures – Materials: $1-$500+, Labor: 15 min – 4 hrs, Estimated ROI: <1yr – 5yr
Tankless Water Heater – Materials: $1,500-$3.500, Labor: 4-8 hr, Estimated ROI: 5yr – 15yr
Air Sealing – Materials: $50-$6,000, Labor: 4-40 hrs, Estimated ROI: <1yr – 8yr
Insulation – Materials: $200-$10,000, Labor: 4-100 hrs, Estmated ROI: 5yr – 15yr
On Demand Circulation Pump – Materials: $50-$150, Labor: 4-6hrs, Estimated ROI: 1yr – 2yr+
* The labor estimates above do not include travel time.
Nest Thermostat
It’s pretty well known that an easy way to save energy (and money!) is to turn your thermostat down. To do this without being there, the choice has always been the programmable thermostat. These come in several varieties with the ultimate being a seven day programmable stat which allowed you to program different settings for weekdays and weekends. The problem has always been the programming. Even on the best of these units, it wasn’t easy.
The Nest Thermostat has eliminated the programming part of this equation by introducing a learning mode. Yes, it saves time and money by learning your household patterns and programming itself.
On top of the self-programming features, if you have a wireless network, the device can be accessed from the web through your computer or smart phone. Forgot to set it to vacation mode before you hit the road? No problem. Making a quick trip up to the cottage and want it warmed up or cooled off before you get there? Easy! Wake up in the middle of the night with that bad feeling about pipes freezing at the cottage? Log on and check it out!
Now in it’s second generation, the Nest thermostat is sleek and stylish. It doesn’t look like your typical thermostat and it catches your eye with it’s cobalt blue face and reflective metal surround. The second generation has added more compatibility with different types of heating and cooling systems, it has reduced the depth of its profile and it is still available for $249 at Amazon.com Not exactly a cheap device, but it does a lot!
Lennox offers their Icomfort Wi-Fi touchscreen thermostat which takes advantage of remote monitoring as well. It provides the accessibility, but not the learning functions or the accessibility to as many other heating and cooling systems available with the Nest. It’s not quite as stylish in my opinion. It is also more expensive, listed at $299 at Bonanza.com
In either case, in the long run, I think this is Green That Saves Green. If you aren’t using a programmable thermostat and by starting save $20 per month, you will have it paid off in a couple of years. From there on it is money back in your pocket.
USB Charger in Duplex
More and more of our “gadgets” are dependent on USB connections for charging devices. (This is an update to a previous post on the U-Socket. Since then I’ve found a couple of other better known suppliers with different solutions to this need.) Cooper Wiring Devices has developed a USB charger within a duplex that can be installed in homes or commercial facilities. (Shown at right) The device has dual USB charging ports rated at 2.1A. The device is UL listed. It replaces a standard duplex.
Pass & Seymour has their own version, but in their version, you lose one electrical outlet. You can see their version here.
ColorSnap Follow-up
When I talked about ColorSnap from Sherwin Williams here a few weeks ago, I said I would try it and let you know what I thought. I’ve been doing WAY more painting than I would like to this summer, working on a house renovation. I’ve been mainly using Sherwin Williams paint.
I decided that this would be a good test on the ColorSnap App which I have on my Droid Razr Maxx. The app has you take a picture and you are able to touch the screen in the picture area in order to select the color within the picture you would like to match. (Just a side note, the camera on my Razr is good enough that I use it pretty much exclusively for job site photos and most of the pictures that have appeared in this blog over the last four months.)
ColorSnap Image
Note the flash Hot Spot at the left
You would think I could take a picture of a wall painted with a Sherwin Williams paint and be able to get a match, right? No such luck. First, it was difficult to get a picture that was representative. Anyone that has taken a flash picture knows you get the “hot spot” of the flash and everything else fades out from there. Where in that picture do you poke with your finger to get the color? Second, the app brought up just one color. I had no way of relating that. Maybe the actual color was only one shade different. With all the variations in the Sherwin Williams color fan, not including the variations that come from the selection of finish, I have trouble discerning the match at times when I put the color chip against the wall.
I tried a couple of times on several walls and was unsuccessful. I could also get different colors depending on how I took the picture or where I poked the picture with my finger. I will say that this application has a lot of potential. I will also say that it’s not there yet.
Air Deflector
I was called by a client that rents an office with cubicles. A woman in one of the cubicles was complaining about the air conditioning blowing down on her. I was a little surprised about this since the vent was directly over her head and the vent had a ceiling deflector that should have distributed the cool air away from her. But as always, the client (or client’s tenant) is always right.
The initial request was to close off the vent. I was hesitant to do this since that would tend to change the balance of the system which we had struggled for months to get right. We did a little research and found an air deflector at 1800ceiling.com
I installed the deflector and while doing the installation I checked and there was enough slack in the flexible duct work to move the diffuser two feet to the side. (After checking with the adjacent cubicle dweller to make sure she was okay with that.) So far, so good. A satisfied tenant and thus a satisfied client.
I am a little concerned that this may be a temporary solution. The diffusers are placed near the windows since that’s the area area where the most change in temperature occurs. Since this tenant is apparently slightly cold blooded, she may well be too cold this winter once the HVAC system switches over to heat from AC. That is a nice thing with this deflector though. It will be as easy to remove as replace. It is light weight as well, so the easy storage solution will be to just place it above the ceiling on the grid until it is needed again.
