This energy efficiency engineer uses his old Portland home as a test lab to cut his utility bills - OregonLive

This energy efficiency engineer uses his old Portland home as a test lab to cut his utility bills - oregonlive.com

Research engineer Edward Louie spends workdays in a lab studying ways for buildings and vehicles to be more energy efficient, and for real world experiments, he tests ideas in his 130-year-old Portland house. Over time, by converting from gas to electricity, and by taking advantage of cash incentives to install energy-wise products, he has improved his home’s comfort and air quality while eliminating gas consumption and saving money.

Louie works at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and volunteers to promote the benefits of high performing, healthy homes through Passive House Northwest, Solar Oregon and the Building Performance Association. In his spare time, he’s constructing a solar-powered tiny house on wheels.

During Portland’s sixth annual Sustainable Building Week, Oct. 9-14, people learned from experts like Louie that homeowners can use government and other incentives to upgrade their living space by installing energy-saving appliances, double-pane windows and enhanced insulation.

Renters heard about the Community Energy Project, Verde’s environmental investments, and financial assistance to switch to electric induction cook tops, window heat pump heating-cooling units and other efficient devices, like a heat pump clothes dryer, that can be moved to another home.

In Louie’s free webinar, titled “A Case Study on Building Electrification,” he detailed the improvements he has made at his house, some at no cost. When the old water heater started to leak in 2016, he replaced it with a heat pump water heater that came with a $150 rebate and a tax credit of $549, covering the entire $699 cost. And each month, he saves 25% compared to the electricity cost of the old unit.

According to Energy.gov, heat pump water heaters use electricity to move heat from one place to another instead of generating heat directly, making them two to three times more energy efficient than conventional electric resistance water heaters.

Other products Louie has installed not only use less energy, at less cost, to perform the task of the old equipment, but deliver added benefits. Since he replaced unvented gas heaters with Fujitsu’s highly rated 240v electric ductless heating and cooling system, the temperature inside his house is more consistent, and, for the first time, he has air conditioning. Another plus: He no longer battles chronic condensation that formed in the bathroom and corroded the metal light fixtures.

State and federal tax credits cut the price in half for the heat pump system. Although Louie’s winter electric bills are more than the natural gas bill it replaced, there are savings over the year.

Other upgrades: He switched his range from gas to induction cooking, which uses a copper coil underneath the cooking surface to generate electromagnetic energy. He said induction improves the air quality, offers precise temperature control and cooking speed, and allowed him to stop paying for gas service.

Louie also bought an energy-efficient heat pump clothes dryer. Before that, he hung his clothes to dry.

Most important, he sealed wasteful air leaks and he crawled into the attic to install better insulation. The $1,800 insulation cost was covered by an Energy of Trust of Oregon incentive.

Experts agree that upgrading insulation is one of the most cost-effective ways to lower consumption and energy bills. Adding insulation prevents drafts and outdoor air from reaching your living spaces, keeping your home cooler in the summer time and warmer in the winter.

Insulation also cuts the amount of time a heating or cooling system needs to run to maintain a comfortable temperature, which means it lasts longer. For more information on types of insulation, ways to weatherize your home and energy-saving DIY tips, visit energytrust.org/residential/DIY.

“Every home is different,” Louie told The Oregonian/OregonLive. “Everyone’s priorities are different. Solving the most pressing problem in your home first using an energy-efficient solution is the most effective path forward.”

Here are energy-saving tips from Louie, a building energy efficiency research engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. His career included evaluating the performance of more than 600 new homes in the greater Portland and Southwest Washington area.:

- Request a home energy evaluation in which an energy auditor walks through your home with an insulation-detecting thermal imaging camera to look for air leaks in walls, around doors and windows, and other places. Hire a professional auditor who will conduct a blower door test and, if there are ducts, also perform a duct leakage test. A home audit also evaluates indoor air quality, including radon, moisture, VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and other health and safety conditions.
- If exterior doors or windows are drafty, seal cracks using caulk or weatherstripping. Tighten seals around vents, window air conditioners, electrical outlets and recessed can lights, too.
- Switch to 100% light emitting diode (LED) lights if you haven’t already. Even T8/T12 tubes in fluorescent fixtures can easily be switched to LED, Louie said.
- Address moisture and pest problems in the home promptly such as a leaky roof or skylight, dry rot, mold or damage caused by termites, carpenter ant or water leaks.
- When air sealing and insulating a home, if possible, follow the ABC order of attic, bottom of the home (basement or crawlspace) and then conditioning system.
- Make sure the insulation contractor you hire understands air sealing, Louie said. Air leaks that result in air movement through insulation can reduce the effectiveness (R-value) of the insulation by as much as 50%. “There are many low-bidding contractors who will do almost zero air sealing before adding insulation to your attic,” he said. “If this is done, most likely the solution to get good attic air sealing is to vacuum out all the insulation and start over. Don’t make this mistake.”
- If you have ducts and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) equipment in the attic, don’t install new insulation until the ducts have been sealed and upgraded as needed. “Nobody likes to work on ducts and have to swim through insulation to do it,” said Louie.
- A heat pump water heater is recommended, but there is occasional noise similar to a dishwasher or dehumidifier when the water is being heated and the unit needs to be in a space with enough air volume ( 700 ft3 minimum).
- A heat pump for space heating and cooling works well in Oregon’s climate. “If your HVAC contractor tries to sell you a dual fuel heat pump claiming you need gas backup for heat, or electric resistance backup heat, look for a different contractor,” said Louie. “Modern heat pumps are more than capable of providing lots of heat in our mildly cold winters with very infrequent dips into single digit Fahrenheit temperatures.”
- Do not install a heat pump that is larger than you need. “Like cars, bigger heat pumps use more energy,” he said. “Get a heat pump that will be super-efficient for the 99% of the days in the year and be OK with wearing a jacket and socks for the 1% of the days it happens not be able to maintain the desired temperature perfectly.”

Cash incentives

The upfront expense of energy-saving improvements can be lowered by rebates and cash incentives and these changes can potentially reduce energy bills going forward. Oregonians can apply for home electrification and efficiency rebates funded through the federal Inflation Reduction Act starting in 2024, according to the Oregon Department of Energy.

Homeowners and renters can use the Inflation Reduction Act calculator from Rewiring America, a pro-electrification nonprofit organization, to estimate savings. Enter your zip code, household income and size, homeowner status and the calculator will estimate what rebates and tax credits are available to you.

The federal Inflation Reduction Act includes a tax credit of $150 per household for a home energy audit. You can find a private contractor, do a free online home assessment or schedule an appointment with a home energy adviser all through Energy Trust of Oregon ( energytrust.org, 866-368-7878).

For families with lower incomes, community action agencies and other organizations across the state offer free or affordable energy assessments and weatherization services. Portlanders can also sign up with ElectrifyPDX, a new nonprofit that aims to guide residents in their transition to all-electric.

Residents of Multnomah County, Washington County and, through the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, other cities and counties can get financial help when trading a wood stove or fireplace for an electric heat pump.

— Janet Eastman

jeastman@oregonian.com| @janeteastman

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