tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778088340424548762024-03-05T14:45:03.241-08:00Evergreen BuildingsThe Building science of pleasant, comfortable, and energy efficient buildings
and its relationship to the problems of climate change and fossil fuelRichard W. Riegel Burbankhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11615009841127646814noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2577808834042454876.post-2755409460298283652008-07-08T10:38:00.000-07:002008-11-12T20:42:31.987-08:00Developing the Building Envelope Workforce and Infrastructure to Reduce Maine's Dependance on Energy<span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >With oil over $140/barrel and climbing and $4.70/gallon in Maine, I wanted</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" > to raise the alarm about a major component of heating costs in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state> that is within reach of being dra</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >matically reduce</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >d. It is in the area of the building envelope, otherwise known as “weatherization” or “tightening up” or “insulation”. However, despite a well </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >established understanding of the problem and how to fix it from a technical standpoint, there exists a massive lack of infrastructure </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state> and the nation to retrofit buildings. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Essentially, there is a huge problem with poor performan</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >ce of building envelopes in <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Maine</st1:state></st1:place>. I think it would be conservative to estimate that 1/3 of the total energy used to heat </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Maine buildings is wasted due to excess air leakage (infiltration) and poorly insulated surfaces. This has all been we</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >ll documented. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >The following Study by the LBNL details where the heating energy is going, including that to ascribe to infiltration. <o:p></o:p></span></p><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Residential </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Heating </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Loads<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://gundog.lbl.gov/dirpubs/44636.pdf">http://gundo</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://gundog.lbl.gov/dirpubs/44636.pdf">g.</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://gundog.lbl.gov/dirpubs/44636.pdf">lbl.gov/dirpubs/44636.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Commer</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >cial Heating Loads<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://simulationresearch.lbl.gov/dirpubs/37208.pdf">http://simulationresear</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://simulationresearch.lbl.gov/dirpubs/37208.pdf">ch.lbl.gov/dirpubs/37208.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >A good ov</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >erview of th</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >e “state of the art” on building air tightness is here: <a href="http://buildingairflow.lbl.gov/pubs/LBNL53356.pdf">http://buildi</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://buildingairflow.lbl.gov/pubs/LBNL53356.pdf">ngairflow.lb</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://buildingairflow.lbl.gov/pubs/LBNL53356.pdf">l.gov/pubs/LBNL53356.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.fire.nist.gov/bfrlpubs/build05/art007.html">A report</a> </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >by the National Institute of Standards has indicated that over</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" > 1/3 of the heating energy load is a result of infiltration and that c</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >ommercial buildings are no</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOH3PcypDseL4icyHZWlpE2nl205ZDESeiRZMHzAGVjDeoTL2nMbNR9dDH74LvBHHjgsoq5n6h9WiEk6aUUurg4974yTz0db5b_tkHjWADvd9ugsVtE685HViMpwHt8FUHDF4FrI11hL4/s1600-h/JBED_Winter07_coverLG.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 192px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOH3PcypDseL4icyHZWlpE2nl205ZDESeiRZMHzAGVjDeoTL2nMbNR9dDH74LvBHHjgsoq5n6h9WiEk6aUUurg4974yTz0db5b_tkHjWADvd9ugsVtE685HViMpwHt8FUHDF4FrI11hL4/s320/JBED_Winter07_coverLG.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220702243085225554" border="0" /></a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >t as tight as often thought. They stat</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >e that reducing air leakage to a target standard could result in savings of up to 36% in the coldest </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >climates. Much of that report is summarized in the Winter 2007 issue of the Journal of Building </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Enclosure Design <a href="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf" title="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf">http:</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf" title="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf">//w</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf" title="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf">ww.nibs.or</a></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf" title="http://www.nibs.org/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf">g/JBED/JBED_Winter07.pdf</a> on page 16. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >In the same issue, on pag</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >e 42, is a description of the adoption of air tightness s</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >tandards to fix the Carbon emissions problem and energy cost of leaky commercial buildings in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">UK</st1:place></st1:country-region>. There is a routine blower door testing of large commercial buildings in the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">UK</st1:country-region></st1:place> and retrofitting to meet standards.</span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" > <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">The Cost of Energy Waste from Building Envelope Deficiencies in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >In trying to quantify what constitutes 1/3 of the total heating cost of the state of <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Maine</st1:state></st1:place>, I refer to the following tables and <u>only </u>pull out the figures on “distillate fuel” which I take to be #2 heating oil. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Residential heating of 49.1 trillion Btu: <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/states/sep_sum/html/sum_btu_res.html">http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/states/sep_sum/html/sum_btu_res.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Commercial heating of 16.8 trillion Btu: <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/states/sep_sum/html/sum_btu_com.html">http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/states/sep_sum/html/sum_btu_com.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Total distillate fuel in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">M</st1:place></st1:state></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">aine</st1:place></st1:state> in 2005 according to these charts is 65.9 trillion Btu (49.1+16.8). There is 139,400 Btu in a gallon of #2 oil so this converts from 65.9 trillion Btu to 473 million gallons of oil. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >473 million gallons of oil @ $4.50/ gallon will cost Mainers $2.13 billion dollars. Burning a gallon of oil produces 22.38 lbs of CO2, burning 473 million gallons of oil produces 5.29 million tons of CO2. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >I would estimate conservatively </span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >that building envelope deficiency in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state> is about 25% of total heating energy. I have personally witnessed the obnoxious problems that many larger buildings have, new and old, and residences. Our residential clients have experienced dramatic reductions in energy consumption, some of them experienced reductions of about 40-50%! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Of the 25% reduction, I estimate that at about half of the reduction (12.5% of consumption) could be accomplished with improvement costs that would result in a 5 year payback or less (the low hanging fruit). The other half could reasonably have a 10 year payback at current prices. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Total Cost of Oil Consumption in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state>: $2.13 billion <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Estimated Reductions of 25% from building envelope improvements: $532 million<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Estimated Reductions of 12.5% defined as “low hanging fruit”: $266 million<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Cost of Low Hanging Fruit Improvements (payback of 5 years): $1.33 billion<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Estimated Reductions of 12.5% defined as longer payback: $266 million<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Cost of longer payback items (payback of 10 years): $2.66 billion<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i><span style="font-family:Arial;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><i><span style="font-family:Arial;">Total cost of improvements to achieve 25% reduction: $4 billion<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Based on these assumptions, there could be an astronomical investment in building envelopes in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state>, for which there is no infrastructure of contractors and workers to do the work. We need a massive expansion of skilled building envelope technicians in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state> and the nation. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Technical and Training Resources for Building Envelope<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >There is no shortage of information, research, and technical knowledge to support the effort, much of which is old knowledge published over a decade ago. There just needs to be an infrastructure. Here is a sampling of these resources. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Envelope Design Guidelines for Federal Office Buildings: Thermal Integrity and Airtightness (a NIST publication from 1993 detailing guidelines for the building envelope for the GSA)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.wbdg.org/ccb/GSAMAN/nist4821.pdf">http://www.wbdg.org/ccb/GSAMAN/nist4821.pdf</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Affordable Comfort (an organization devoted to advancing home performance, much of which deals with building envelope. They hold regional conferences for training these skills) Perhaps <st1:state st="on">Maine</st1:state> should host an Affordable Comfort conference ASAP to kick start the industry in <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Maine</st1:state></st1:place>. They have done some pioneering work in deep energy reductions of residential buildings as detailed in <a href="http://www.affordablecomfort.org/images/Events/26/Courses/1038/ThPM01_Wigington_ACI_Summit_White_Paper_11-28-07_Review_Draft.pdf">this white paper.</a> On page 28 they list things that local governments can do. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.affordablecomfort.org/">www.affordablecomfort.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Maine Home Performance (a program started in 2006 to train home performance evaluators, geared to residences and a whole house approach, essential to dealing with Maine’s older housing stock with wet basements)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.mainehomeperformance.org/">www.mainehomeperformance.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >MSHA has been working in the field of training “weatherization” for decades and may have resources to expand. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Building Performance Institute is a leading credentialing organization which has a published standard for a Shell Professional (otherwise known as a Building Envelope Technician or Specialist) <a href="http://www.bpi.org/documents/Shell_Standards.pdf" title="http://www.bpi.org/documents/Shell_Standards.pdf">http://www.bpi.org/documents/Shell_Standards.pdf</a> which is a great place to start. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.bpi.org/">www.bpi.org</a> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Saturn Resource Management publishes text books and guides including Residential Energy (used by Maine Home Performance and MSHA Energy Auditor Courses) They have recently published a Building Shell Field Guide <a href="http://www.srmi.biz/Bookstore.Professionals.Building_Shell_Field_Guide.htm" title="http://www.srmi.biz/Bookstore.Professionals.Building_Shell_Field_Guide.htm">http://www.srmi.biz/Bookstore.Professionals.Building_Shell_Field_Guide.htm</a>. which I have yet to see but have high hopes for it being a helpful training tool and guide. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.srmi.biz/">www.srmi.biz</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >British Resource Establishment (BRE) has been instrumental in implementing a testing and improvement of airtightness in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">UK</st1:place></st1:country-region>. They may be able to provide important technical development and support should <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state> adopt a serious plan on addressing leakage of large commercial buildings. They appear to be world leaders in this field.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.bre.co.uk/index.jsp">http://www.bre.co.uk/index.jsp</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Rick Karg of R.J. Karg Associates (an experienced trainer in energy efficiency for decades who has written weatherization standards for several states and is well qualified to guide the process of training and development of infrastructure. He is the lead technical trainer of Maine Home Performance and has been a trainer for MSHA’s energy auditor trainings. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.karg.com/">www.karg.com</a> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Growing the Workforce and Infrastructure<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >While there are many incentives for Mainer’s to invest in energy improvements (such as MSHA HELP loan program funds or just the high price of energy), there is almost no current infrastructure to effectively take care of this demand. There are existing insulation contractors but I would estimate that less than 25% are compentent in airsealing. Of that 25%, precious few have the standard tools to do it effectively (namely the blower door and infrared camera). <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >With my estimate of building envelope work that can be done cost effectively being about $4 trillion, <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Maine</st1:state></st1:place> is no where near being able to put a dent into this problem. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >A well trained building envelope techician must have the building science knowledge, diagnostic skills, and capability of performing work that results in energy savings. Training needs to be as rigourous as other licensed trades such as plumber, electrician, and heating technician. A building envelope technician is responsible for ensuring indoor air quality, adequate insulation, moisture control, and air tightness. It can involve everything from installing a sump pump to drain a wet basement, installing vapor barriers over dirt floor basement and crawlspaces, basement insulation and air sealing, attic air sealing, blower door guided airsealing, proper mechanical ventilation for kitchens and bathrooms as well as whole house air quality, wall and attic insulation, attic ventilation, etc. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >It is a surprise to many that tightening up a house involves more than weatherstripping and caulking. There is a so much more that needs to be considered to control heat, air and moisture to support the health, safety, and comfort of a buildings occupants while also ensuring the durability and efficiency of the structure. This knowledge base and approach is at the core of Home Performance with Energy Star. Since the laws of physics govern results of improvements, knowledge of building science is essential to design successful solutions consistent with the physics. This is high skill work.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >In order to develop this work force, the state’s educational system needs to be brought in, from the University to the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Tech</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Colleges</st1:placetype></st1:place> and Schools. However, the first problem to be solved is developing a way to train the trainers who will then need to train the technicians. The field is so new that building significant infrastructure will take time. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Incentives to Existing Contractors</span></b></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" > <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >Existing contractors, such as our company, are facing great hurdles for expansion to meet incredible market demand. Much of what our company faces is no different than any other company faces in the start up phase, financing, management, systems building, etc. Added to this problem is the prohibitive cost to self train in this pioneering field and to find and train new workers. Established trades such as electricians, plumbers, etc already have an infrastructure. Home performance contracting companies will need a workforce to expand. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >If the state invests significant resources to finance energy efficiency improvements with out an infrastructure to provide those services, they are in effect giving out reduced price train tickets when there are no trains in the station. Contractors need financing to grow their business to serve the public demand, to purchase the diagnostic equipment (blower doors and infrared cameras) to do high quality work, to train their workforce and develop systems. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">What about the Energy Auditors supporting Building Envelope Improvement<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >The efforts by MSHA and Maine Home Performance to expand the pool of energy auditors in this state is a very important step in diagnosing buildings and Maine and finding opportunities for savings. However, the diagnostic tools that auditors use to evaluate the home are essential to the improvement of the home. It is essential that these same advanced tools be available to the contractors creating the improvements. I have found from personal experience of both evaluating and fixing homes, that in the course of doing work, especially airsealing, initial conclusions in the audit phase where often quite different in the course of improvement work. Assumptions made turn out to be wrong. The workscope needs adjustment, sometimes dramatically, to reflect found conditions. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >The auditor, as consultant, could of course be brought in every time, and be available to test out at the end but the real success of an improvement lies with the technician installing the improvement. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >It is no different than walking into a modern hospital with modern equipment and getting diagnosed by a skilled doctor / surgeon and have surgery recommended. However, instead of the doctor doing the surgery, the patient gets referred to a list of uncertified people that do the surgery on the kitchen table without the high tech tools used in modern hospitals. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >BPI has a Building Analyst certification which corresponds to “energy auditor” as the basic level credential. A Shell Specialist (Envelope Tech) is a more advanced certification requiring the Building Analyst designation as a pre-requisite. It takes more specialized skill to actually achieve energy improvements than to diagnose them. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >It is really no different than an energy auditor finding that a heating system really needs improvement or replacement and the improvement work being done by a licenced heating technician. The auditor is essentially an energy efficiency reconnaissance professional, focused on identifying opportunities. Airsealing work, in particular, is something that most auditors simply don’t have direct, first hand experience in. For this reason, the most experienced people in diagnosing and fixing air leakage problems should be the ones doing the improvement. Therefore, they need the blower doors and infrared cameras, etc as well as the training to use them effectively. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >I would even go so far as to argue that MSHA or any other state funding source shouldn’t be financing air sealing work done by contractors that don’t have this equipment and training. Providing contractors with the equipment through leasing or financing or grants while also requiring them to use them and record air sealing improvement results would be a carrot and stick approach that would benefit Mainers by increasing the effectiveness of work done and paid for. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Conclusion</span></b></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p> <span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:10;" ><span style="font-size:100%;">With an energy crisis facing <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Maine</st1:place></st1:state>, it is a shame to ignore a major gap between significant portion of the energy problem and its solution. It is my belief that the building envelope improvement will</span></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:10;" ><span style="font-size:100%;"> emerge as one of the most significant sources of reducing energy usage for Maine.</span></span><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:10;" ><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span></span>Richard W. Riegel Burbankhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11615009841127646814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2577808834042454876.post-79469777579906512522008-02-26T21:00:00.000-08:002008-11-12T20:42:32.341-08:00New Record in Oil Prices in an Age of Climate Change and Peak OilA few hours ago, the <a href="http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i5TtajgUpSm7KY5jf-lCJGHBB-tAD8V293BG0">AP reports</a> that a new record was broken on oil price futures.<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">Light, sweet crude for April delivery jumped $1.65 to settle at $100.88 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. At one point in the session, prices surged as high as $101.15.</blockquote>The days of oil trading at over a $100/barrel are upon us and may be with us for the foreseeable future. How did this all happen? Many people have much to say on this topic. I'm fascinated by the charts that show how it creeped up on us. The following chart came from the <a href="http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip_crude.html">Energy Information Office. </a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/crprsptm.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 370px; height: 237px;" src="http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/crprsptm.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a>Yesterday the website <a href="http://www.maineenergyinfo.com/oil/index.html">MaineEnergyInfo.com</a> reported that heating oil prices are continuing to go up, citing a survey from the State of Maine Office of Energy Independence and Security which found the statewide average price for #2 heating oil to be $3.37 a gallon! This is over $1 more than it was last year at this time. I created my own chart of New England heating oil prices since I couldn't find one on the web.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvAO9IWgD_IdxHsbulHqyfkvSyP5kx2HeT-RDQWZcpyhOoMXzSub0QrqgImYsuKS2xIE_6UmxS8DFQAnELhJmr0jpunMKqh9UKiBFW1SFvUTQ4tsbcFLKwTwSEhdnE40JZj0g_5lDk90/s1600-h/Heating+Oil+Price.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvAO9IWgD_IdxHsbulHqyfkvSyP5kx2HeT-RDQWZcpyhOoMXzSub0QrqgImYsuKS2xIE_6UmxS8DFQAnELhJmr0jpunMKqh9UKiBFW1SFvUTQ4tsbcFLKwTwSEhdnE40JZj0g_5lDk90/s320/Heating+Oil+Price.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171433247613485570" border="0" /></a>When the figures are laid out there, it is plain to see why complacency in making homes more energy efficient was common in the the nineties. It was only a dollar a gallon! Big deal! Then by the early 2000's, the creep upwards began to become a steady trend. With each passing year, homeowners and building operators felt the sting of higher prices and thought "Gee, we got to do something about this oil bill!" but what? The next year, the process repeats itself. Now, in 2008 with prices having more than doubled in 5 years, it is definitely time to do something.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">2007 - The Year of Peak Oil, Climate Change, and Energy Efficiency</i></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><o:p></o:p><br />The year 2007 may well go down in history as the year that the world fully accepted the converging perfect storm of climate change, peak oil, turbulent energy markets, and the pervasive (but avoidable) waste of energy in modern civilization.</p><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Peak Oil and Oil Prices</span><br /><br />Many oil experts, such as Matthew Simmons, a major energy banker with a summer home in Rockport, Maine, think Saudi Arabia has or will shortly peak in oil production and points to the secrecy of Saudi Aramco on actual oilfield production records.<span style=""> </span>In an <a href="http://www.financialsense.com/editorials/casey/2008/0109.html">interview with Bud Conrad</a> published last year, he explains some of the background behind his assertions. It appears that the once vast oil fields of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Saudi Arabia</st1:place></st1:country-region> can no longer play their historical role as swing producer to relieve price surges in oil markets.<br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br />OPEC, in <a href="http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/6472">its meeting on September 11, 2007</a> raised production quotas by a token half a million bpd.<span style=""> </span>It is widely viewed as meaningless since they have already been claiming (without independently audited evidence) to be pumping 1 million bpd over its official quota of 28.5 mbpd.<span style=""> </span>So there is no price relief, just a shell game. It is <a href="http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hzLmYaco7xO_Pw3Uyt9PVP-3OLDw">reported by AFP</a> that OPEC is not going to do anything at it's upcoming meeting on March 5th.<br /></p><p></p><blockquote style="font-style: italic;"><p> New York prices of 101 dollars reflect widespread market expectations of a production cut by the OPEC crude producers' group, OPEC president Chakib Khelil said in a statement to the Algerian press on Monday.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Khelil indicated that the 13-nation Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would not increase production at a meeting on March 5 in Vienna, Austria, signaling output could be held steady or reduced.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">"Either we hold (output) steady or we cut in order to restore market balance and stability," Khelil said.<span style=""><br /></span></p></blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br />Every oil producer other than Saudi Arabia has pretty much always strained just in maintaining current production levels, let alone increasing production to relieve price escalation.<span style=""> </span>Now it seems that OPEC won't (some say can't) increase production right at the time when prices are most in need of relief. In fact, there is no incentive to do so since higher prices bring greater oil profits. In fact, oil companies like Exxon and Chevron are posting record profits (<a href="http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iyqhbREqQWI0VE1kowfNjvxDlcJwD8UHQ1DG1">see AP report</a>).<br /><br />The only reason Aramco was willing to sacrifice overproduction and long term damage to their massive oil fields to keep prices down in the 70’s was due to the lame duck liquidation strategy of American oil company owners with no vested interest in preserving an asset they would soon be surrendering to the new Saudi owners of Saudi Aramco in 1980.<span style=""> </span>After that, intense <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> political and economic pressure was brought to bear on the Saudi’s to keep oil flowing fast and cheap.<span style=""> </span>Now that the dollar is devalued and Saudi oil producers are resorting to extreme measures (they are pumping more water than oil, in fact) to maintain production in the now mature but once great oil fields, we are in new territory.</p><i style=""><span style="font-size:10;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><i style=""><span style="font-size:10;"><o:p></o:p></span></i> Bad US relations or government instability with top producers adds to the problem of price volatility. The existence and effects of peak oil are no longer an extremist idea in energy economics.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Climate Change<br /><br /></span>People of the world, and even Americans, are now paying attention to the harmful climate altering side effects of carbon based energy consumption.<span style=""> </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/science/earth/02arct.html?_r=2&fta=y&oref=slogin&oref=slogin">World scientists were shocked</a> last fall at last year’s summer thaw of the Arctic ice cap, which had the most dramatic drop in perennial ice since satellites have been photographing the region.<span style=""> </span>The New York Times has a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/10/01/science/20071002_ARCTIC_GRAPHIC.html">great website</a> with an interactive demostration of the ice cap over the past few years. This problem is compounded by the fact that the new open water areas now receive much higher solar gains than the reflective white ice, further exacerbating the problem.<span style=""> </span>What is in store for this summer's ice melt?<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.cascadecreativeservices.com/GH/images/Reuters_NASA_satimage_compare_Sept05_w_Sept07.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.cascadecreativeservices.com/GH/images/Reuters_NASA_satimage_compare_Sept05_w_Sept07.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />While Europe has been making great strides to reduce carbon emissions for decades, the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">US</st1:country-region></st1:place> has only recently put a focus on carbon reduction.<span style=""> </span>Now that <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> public opinion has come to accept climate change as real, dramatic shifts are occurring.<span style=""> </span>The movie, “An Inconvenient Truth” has raised consciousness as has the awarding of the Nobel Peace Price to Al Gore a few months ago.<span style=""> </span>In the film “11<sup>th</sup> Hour” Leonardo DiCaprio hosts a depiction of the problems of carbon emissions and fossil fuel depletion and solutions that our generation needs to implement to preserve our civilization.<br /><br />All the major 2008 Presidential Candidates have plans for CO2 reductions. <a href="http://www.barackobama.com/issues/energy/">Obama</a> and <a href="http://www.hillaryclinton.com/files/pdf/poweringamericasfuture.pdf">Clinton</a> have similar plans, well detailed on thier websites. <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/02/13/the_turning_point_on_global_warming/">McCain</a> has demonstrated leadership on Climate Change in his efforts in Senate<br /><br />Citizens, businesses, organizations, and local governments are increasingly taking the lead role without waiting for Federal government programs and regulations regarding carbon emissions.<br /><br />Former President Clinton’s foundation, the <a href="http://www.clintonfoundation.org/cf-pgm-cci-home.htm">Clinton Climate Initiative</a>, announced last May the creation of a global Energy Efficiency Building Retrofit Program. Siemens and the other three of the four largest ESCOs (Energy Services Companies) in the world – Honeywell, Johnson Controls, and Trane – have agreed to scale up their capacity to do large numbers of building retrofits across C40 partner cities that are participating in the program. They are to provide performance contracts financed by a pool of $5 billion provided by some of the largest banks in the world.</p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.architecture2030.org/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 139px; height: 139px;" src="http://www.architecture2030.org/images/icons/arch2030_int.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>The organization, <a href="http://www.architecture2030.org/home.html">Architecture 2030,</a> has lead the effort to make a difference in CO2 reductions by reducing the energy consumption of buildings by better design. Last month, they posted a webcast, <a href="http://www.architecture2030.org/faceit/index.php">"Face It"</a>, which highlights startling facts about buildings and energy. They point out that buildings are responsible for 48% of all the energy consumed in the US.<br /><br />With crude oil just now reaching over $100/barrel for the second time and complications in production and refining not expected to improve anytime soon, an unparalleled market force in is play, encouraging investment in energy efficiency measures.<br /><br />We all live and work in buildings. We already have the knowledge and technical know-how to do some thing about it.<br /><br />Lets FACE IT and DO IT!Richard W. Riegel Burbankhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11615009841127646814noreply@blogger.com2