Old House Made Green
by Ewald & Wendy Fuchs
Karl Hanzel, a participant in last year’s Boulder Tour of Solar and Green Built Homes, posed a conundrum and corollary question: “The future is about retrofitting existing structures; how can we make what we already have work better?” Indeed, existing residences impose constraints on remodeling such as roof orientation, location of trees, materials used in original construction, etc. We encountered each of these, among others, during our search for, and subsequent purchase of, a home in the Newlands neighborhood that would meet our family’s location and downsizing criteria.
As a UCB engineering professor, and given my research and teaching focus on sustainable/renewable energy sources and conservation, our remodeling followed suit in many aspects.
Top priority was to have a photovoltaic array that generates more electricity than we consume. Taking into account the shading effect of neighboring city trees, the nominal output power was limited to 6.15kW, generating on average about 700kWh per month. Our out-of-pocket cost considering federal and state tax rebates was about $21k, resulting in a payback period of approximately 20 years if we use all the electricity generated, which we have not thus far. While the payback period is long, and there are some efficiency and potential damage losses that require maintenance and insurance to mitigate (such as snow, dust, and pollen accumulating on panel surfaces, liability of vandalism, etc.) we feel much better contributing to the solution more than to the problem of energy consumption – kicking in towards the greater public good, as it were.
To reduce the use and cost of natural gas for existing forced-air heating, we have a wood-burning insert in the original brick living room fireplace, and a free-standing woodstove in the family room. Both exceed the EPA air pollution standards currently employed by the City.
Our general contractor, Ed Ranegar, recycled and reused materials, and reworked the roof carpentry to comply with current building code and engineering specifications prepared by our design engineer, Bill Wilkinson, for accommodating the weight and design of the solar panels. Ed also added skylights in strategic locations, increased/improved attic and ceiling insulation, and had cellulose insulation blown into the exterior walls. All the windows are energy-efficient, and the porch and patio have Therma-Tru fiberglass exterior doors.
We discovered early-on that the exterior siding and floor linoleum and tile contained significant amounts of asbestos. Homeowners tend to just cover these surfaces and subsequently neglected to mention this on the seller’s disclosure form. We just couldn’t live with such deception, and opted for full EPA-approved asbestos abatement.
Energy-saving outdoor features include some xeriscaping, “grasscrete” driveway, vegetable garden in which we compost, and a clothesline, which reduce our watering bill, heat absorbed by concrete, trash, and use of dryer, respectively.
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We recycle paper, plastic, glass, and metal; use canvas bags for shopping; and always commute to work and most errands by bus, leaving our car in the garage on average six days a week.
Our house has caused some of the neighbors to follow or consider photovoltaic suit, and it is shown to University students in Electrical, Mechanical and Civil Engineering as a model of old made greener.
THE FACTS
Contractors
- Ed’s Carpentry, Inc. | General Contractor
- High Plains Landscaping & Irrigation | Landscape Design
- Namaste Solar Electric | PV System
- RMCS Surveying & Engineering, LLC | Architect
Energy Features
- 6.15kW grid-tied PV system
- Fiberglass blanket insulation and blown-in cellulose insulation in the walls (R-19) and attic (R-38)
- 13-SEER air conditioner to coordinate with existing furnace
- CFL bulbs and fluorescent tubes
- Low-e, gas filled, double-pane windows
- Programmable thermostat
- Energy Star appliances: dishwasher, water heater
- Wood stoves to EPA air quality standards
- Use of clothes lines
Green Features
- Fiber-cement exterior siding
- Low VOC water-based finish on floors
- Low VOC paint used throughout house, interior and exterior
- Reused cement blocks and lumber from basement bomb shelter
Water Features
- Xeriscape
- Drip irrigation
- Smart irrigation controller
- Pervious pavement
- Strategic placement and height of trees
- Low-flow plumbing fixtures: toilet, washing machine, dishwasher
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