Energy Star Homes America Press Release

ENERGY STAR Initiatives Push Systems Approach
     11/06/01

   The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Department of Energy (DOE), who jointly manage the ENERGY STAR program, are kicking off two major initiatives to promote energy savings in existing homes. One is aimed at improving the envelope of the home while the other focuses on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (HVAC). Both programs will place heavy emphasis on a systems approach.

   ENERGY STAR Home Sealing, being launched this month, is designed to educate consumers about the energy savings and increased comfort that air-sealing, insulation, and high-performance windows can provide. EPA will distribute information on both do-it-yourself and professional retrofits, highlighting the role of energy professionals and insulation contractors in diagnosing and solving problems.

   While the initial focus of Home Sealing will be on consumer education, starting with a Web site launch and release of a video press release this month, the program also aims to grow the base of contractors who are qualified to upgrade envelopes to ENERGY STAR specifications. For this part of the effort, ENERGY STAR hopes to work cooperatively with existing systems contractor training programs, such as those run by Advanced Energy (Raleigh, North Carolina) and the Kansas Building Science Institute (Manhattan, Kansas).

   The ENERGY STAR performance specifications for ceiling, wall, and floor insulation are based on climate and the type of heating source, and are in line with the R-values recommended by the Department of Energy. These are keyed variously by climate zones or by ZIP codes, and are product-neutral so far as the type of insulation used. The air-sealing spec is set at an ambitious .5 air changes per hour (ACH), which would be verified by a blower door test. According to information on the program's new Web site, 80% of the windows in a home must meet or exceed the ENERGY STAR windows criteria. In southern (mostly cooling) climates, non-ENERGY STAR windows are permitted only on the north side of the home or in locations with permanent shading.

   EPA's Doug Anderson, who manages the Home Sealing program, tells *Energy Design Update* that ENERGY STAR managers are acutely aware that indoor air quality can suffer if air sealing is done and new windows installed without regard to ventilation levels. "The program specifications include minimum ventilation levels in line with ASHRAE [American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers] recommendations [ASHRAE 62-1999] and also require combustion tests once the retrofit work is completed," Anderson says. Anderson says that homeowners who meet Home Sealing specifications can save up to 20% on heating and cooling costs while increasing their comfort.

HVAC from a Systems Standpoint
   ENERGY STAR is also promoting a systems approach for residential HVAC retrofits. One key part of that, now being finalized for a formal program launch in February, is the new ENERGY STAR Ducts Specification program, which establishes performance specs for duct tightness and insulation. "This is a whole new way of looking at the HVAC system in an existing home," says Mia South, ENERGY STAR's program manager for ducts. "ENERGY STAR has been labeling high-efficiency furnaces, air conditioners, programmable thermostats, and other individual components for several years now. But homeowners who think only in terms of the efficiency of individual components may not be getting what they paid for, because of energy losses through poorly insulated, poorly sealed ductwork."

   South tells *Energy Design Update* that ENERGY STAR has just finished testing residential ducts at several hundred houses in six different climate areas across the US to verify installation, performance and maintenance specifications for duct tightness and insulation. These specs were developed in cooperation with the Council for Energy Efficiency, which produced "Specification of Energy-Efficient Installation and Maintenance Practices for Residential HVAC Systems" and the National Association of Technicians for Excellence.

   The ENERGY STAR duct specification will call for existing homes to reach a minimum of 85% duct distribution efficiency (plus requirements for airflow, sealing materials, and combustion safety.) The ENERGY STAR specification for duct insulation in existing construction says that supply and return ducts, plenums, and distribution boxes located in unconditioned spaces should be insulated to at least R-6. (The spec is R-8 for new homes.) Inaccessible parts of the distribution system are exempted, as are ducts that are already thermally insulated to R-4 or greater, because it's not cost-effective to add duct insulation at that point. Ducts in conditioned spaces need not be insulated except to prevent condensation on duct surfaces. Insulation used for this purpose should have a vapor barrier on its surface closest to the outside.

   The EPA has developed new Web sites that include calculators to help consumers decide if they are good candidates for envelope or ductwork retrofits. The sites also have various tools for weatherization and HVAC contractors who want to use ENERGY STAR as a marketing platform. Visit http://www.energystar.gov/homeimprovement and http://www.energystar.gov/ducts. To learn more about how you can use ENERGY STAR Home Sealing as part of your business to offer savings to homeowners, contact Doug Anderson at Anderson.Doug@epa.gov or +1 202 564 3532. To learn more about the duct program, contact Mia South at +1 202 564 2209.

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