Saturday, April 18, 2009
Cruising throught the Internet, I spotted something appropriate to this time of year when we are thinking "spring cleaning." Of course, cleaning means chemicals which means eyes moving away from Green. So this article I spotted talks about painting, yes house painting where the chems can fill buckets. Check this out and let the author know that his Green bucket is empty. Perhaps he could add some discussion about how to keep it all Green. Here it is -- about how to choose a house painting contractor.
Friday, April 10, 2009
There are many, many ways to make a home greener-perhaps so many ways, that it is easy to become overwhelmed by the sheer number and choices. Still, it is a topic that has certainly grown in consumer awareness and interest, and will likely continue to build in importance. In fact, a recent National Association of Realtors survey found that over 90 percent of homebuyers thought that energy effiiency in a home was either important or very important. Buyer's representatives can provide a valuable service to their clients by helping them understand the many different ways their home consume energy and other resources-the long-term implications of current buying decisions, and how certain features can be changed if they are interested in renovating for greener living.
Since it does take a lot of time and patience to sort through all the decisions linked to green ownership, I always find it helpful to come back to the basics, constantly reminding myself of the original recycling logo-that familiar triangle, where each arrow stands for one of three fundamental concepts, all starting with "re"--reduce, reuse, and recycle. It is a phrase that has been bandied about so much that it is easy to forget how elegantly it captures the real essence of green living. Essentially, the three "re"s break down like this:
Reduce--cutting back on how many resources we consume. This is undoubtedly the first and most important way to live greener. It is also typically the hardest one to adopt. So much of our culture and economy is built upon notions like a bigger house is better...that the newest gadget is cooler than the old one...and that convenience trumps everything else. Beyond reducing consumption, when we do need to acquire things, we strive for better choices such as buying recycled products or locally-produced items, to reduce the environmental impact of transportation.
Reuse--strectching the value of what we consume by putting items to further use. Examples: Convert your food scraps into compost. Turn an old shirt into a pajama top or a cleaning rag. Pull clean 8 1/2 X 11-inch sheets of paper out of the recycle bin and print on the reverse side. Share or donate items for resale. Before you toss anything into the trash, or even the recycle bin, think about ways to get more mileage out of it. I have taped "landfill" on my trash can, this is a simple but powerful reminder of the importance of our daily behaviors.
Recycle--convenient curbside recycling programs have helped many of us do a better job of how much paper, plastic, and metal we put into the waste stream. But we can stretch our recycling efforts further by finding ways to recycle products like old computers, cell phones and other electronicws, furniture, large appliances, and many more.
When working with buyer-clients, especially those who subscribe to a green philosophy, it is important to understand the many ways that reduce-reuse-recycle can impact decisions about the way a home is constructed, mantained, and lived in.
If you are in the market for a new home or have questions regarding retrofitting or remodeling your existing home, please feel free to comment on ths page or contact me via email or by phone. My information should be available in my profile. Bob's Team is licensed in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts and specializes in property for investors and first time home in the South County area including Westerly, Narragansett, North Kingstown, South Kingstown, Charlestown, Richmond, and Hopkinton.
Since it does take a lot of time and patience to sort through all the decisions linked to green ownership, I always find it helpful to come back to the basics, constantly reminding myself of the original recycling logo-that familiar triangle, where each arrow stands for one of three fundamental concepts, all starting with "re"--reduce, reuse, and recycle. It is a phrase that has been bandied about so much that it is easy to forget how elegantly it captures the real essence of green living. Essentially, the three "re"s break down like this:
Reduce--cutting back on how many resources we consume. This is undoubtedly the first and most important way to live greener. It is also typically the hardest one to adopt. So much of our culture and economy is built upon notions like a bigger house is better...that the newest gadget is cooler than the old one...and that convenience trumps everything else. Beyond reducing consumption, when we do need to acquire things, we strive for better choices such as buying recycled products or locally-produced items, to reduce the environmental impact of transportation.
Reuse--strectching the value of what we consume by putting items to further use. Examples: Convert your food scraps into compost. Turn an old shirt into a pajama top or a cleaning rag. Pull clean 8 1/2 X 11-inch sheets of paper out of the recycle bin and print on the reverse side. Share or donate items for resale. Before you toss anything into the trash, or even the recycle bin, think about ways to get more mileage out of it. I have taped "landfill" on my trash can, this is a simple but powerful reminder of the importance of our daily behaviors.
Recycle--convenient curbside recycling programs have helped many of us do a better job of how much paper, plastic, and metal we put into the waste stream. But we can stretch our recycling efforts further by finding ways to recycle products like old computers, cell phones and other electronicws, furniture, large appliances, and many more.
When working with buyer-clients, especially those who subscribe to a green philosophy, it is important to understand the many ways that reduce-reuse-recycle can impact decisions about the way a home is constructed, mantained, and lived in.
If you are in the market for a new home or have questions regarding retrofitting or remodeling your existing home, please feel free to comment on ths page or contact me via email or by phone. My information should be available in my profile. Bob's Team is licensed in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts and specializes in property for investors and first time home in the South County area including Westerly, Narragansett, North Kingstown, South Kingstown, Charlestown, Richmond, and Hopkinton.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
2009 Rhode Island Green Home Incentives
Many features that make a home green have been around for many years and while most were scarce or expensive to install, the federal and state governments are now attemting to make it an easier decision to install such products and systems. Many programs are in place to receive incentive rebates up to 30% of the cost of the materials, labor not included, of new heating systems including solar hot-water systems, active solar-heating systems, wind-energy systems, and geo-thermal heating systems.
Many of these systems will allow for lower utility costs and depending on the size of your home and family can pay for themselves in 3 to 7 years. I recently went to the Home Show at the Ryan Center and met with several vendors offering green features for homes including a passive solar tubing heating system. It would replace between 60 and 70 percent of my heating costs including hot water. My present system uses oil, thus not allowing me the National Grid rebate for gas and electrical systems, but I would still be eligible for a 30% rebate from the federal government. Afterexplaining our current status and home size, the system was estimated to cost $10,000 or $7000 after incentives and the life-cycle cost was about 5 to 7 years for repayment.
In short, this system would pay for itself in as little as five years and it would add value to my home if and when I decide to sell. Instead of filling my oil tank every six to nine months I would likely to have to fill the tank with oil every two to three years. With oil prices skyrocketing last year and uncertainty of the future, now seems an ideal time to take advantage of such systems.
If I can be of service to you or attempt to answer any questions you may have about different systems availale to your home please feel free to contact me at 401-339-4401.
These are some Rhode Island offered rebates and incentives:
The Energy Consumers Alliance of New England (ECANE), which operates as Mass Energy Consumers Alliance in Massachusetts and as People’s Power & Light in Rhode Island, is a non-profit organization that buys renewable energy credits (RECs) from photovoltaic (PV) systems and small wind-energy systems. The RECs from PV systems and small wind-energy systems are packaged together with low-impact hydro and biomass RECs and sold as New England GreenStart, a renewable energy-based electricity product marketed through GreenUp. GreenUp is a green power program offered by National Grid, an investor-owned electric utility serving customers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. ECANE offers to purchase RECs from PV systems and small wind-energy systems installed in Rhode Island after 1998 at $30 per megawatt-hour ($0.03 per kilowatt-hour) for a period of three years. After the three-year contract, owners can consider other opportunities for selling RECs in the green power market; these options include extending the purchase agreement with ECANE. PV system owners and small wind-energy system owners may also choose to donate their RECs as a contribution to green power market development. Income from the sale of RECs will not reduce the benefits of net metering.
Rhode Island offers a personal tax credit for photovoltaic systems (on-grid and off-grid), solar hot-water systems, active solar-heating systems, wind-energy systems and geothermal-energy systems. The tax credit is equal to 25% of the system cost and applies only to residential installations. The credit is available to the resident or business that pays for the system. Photovoltaic (PV) systems must have a minimum module size of 24 square feet, and must either be connected to the grid or to a battery-storage system. PV systems up to $15,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for a PV system that exceeds $15,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $15,000 system cost.)
Solar hot-water systems must have a minimum collector area of 60 square feet and must include a storage tank that holds at least 80 gallons. Solar hot-water systems up to $7,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for a solar hot-water system that exceeds $7,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $7,000 system cost.) Active solar-heating systems must have a minimum collector area of 125 square feet, and must include a system for storing and/or distributing heat to the living area of a house. Active solar-heating systems up to $15,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for an active solar-heating systems that exceeds $15,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $15,000 system cost.)
Many of these systems will allow for lower utility costs and depending on the size of your home and family can pay for themselves in 3 to 7 years. I recently went to the Home Show at the Ryan Center and met with several vendors offering green features for homes including a passive solar tubing heating system. It would replace between 60 and 70 percent of my heating costs including hot water. My present system uses oil, thus not allowing me the National Grid rebate for gas and electrical systems, but I would still be eligible for a 30% rebate from the federal government. Afterexplaining our current status and home size, the system was estimated to cost $10,000 or $7000 after incentives and the life-cycle cost was about 5 to 7 years for repayment.
In short, this system would pay for itself in as little as five years and it would add value to my home if and when I decide to sell. Instead of filling my oil tank every six to nine months I would likely to have to fill the tank with oil every two to three years. With oil prices skyrocketing last year and uncertainty of the future, now seems an ideal time to take advantage of such systems.
If I can be of service to you or attempt to answer any questions you may have about different systems availale to your home please feel free to contact me at 401-339-4401.
These are some Rhode Island offered rebates and incentives:
The Energy Consumers Alliance of New England (ECANE), which operates as Mass Energy Consumers Alliance in Massachusetts and as People’s Power & Light in Rhode Island, is a non-profit organization that buys renewable energy credits (RECs) from photovoltaic (PV) systems and small wind-energy systems. The RECs from PV systems and small wind-energy systems are packaged together with low-impact hydro and biomass RECs and sold as New England GreenStart, a renewable energy-based electricity product marketed through GreenUp. GreenUp is a green power program offered by National Grid, an investor-owned electric utility serving customers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. ECANE offers to purchase RECs from PV systems and small wind-energy systems installed in Rhode Island after 1998 at $30 per megawatt-hour ($0.03 per kilowatt-hour) for a period of three years. After the three-year contract, owners can consider other opportunities for selling RECs in the green power market; these options include extending the purchase agreement with ECANE. PV system owners and small wind-energy system owners may also choose to donate their RECs as a contribution to green power market development. Income from the sale of RECs will not reduce the benefits of net metering.
Rhode Island offers a personal tax credit for photovoltaic systems (on-grid and off-grid), solar hot-water systems, active solar-heating systems, wind-energy systems and geothermal-energy systems. The tax credit is equal to 25% of the system cost and applies only to residential installations. The credit is available to the resident or business that pays for the system. Photovoltaic (PV) systems must have a minimum module size of 24 square feet, and must either be connected to the grid or to a battery-storage system. PV systems up to $15,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for a PV system that exceeds $15,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $15,000 system cost.)
Solar hot-water systems must have a minimum collector area of 60 square feet and must include a storage tank that holds at least 80 gallons. Solar hot-water systems up to $7,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for a solar hot-water system that exceeds $7,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $7,000 system cost.) Active solar-heating systems must have a minimum collector area of 125 square feet, and must include a system for storing and/or distributing heat to the living area of a house. Active solar-heating systems up to $15,000 are eligible for the full 25% credit. (A resident or business that pays for an active solar-heating systems that exceeds $15,000 in cost will receive a credit based on a $15,000 system cost.)
Monday, December 22, 2008
"Going Green"
"Going Green" does not have to be all that time consuming and difficult. Every week or so I will try to give tips on how you can help the environment and even your wallet. Many ideas behind going green may cost you money initially but will reap benefits down the road. Some examples of this are changing to a low-flow showerhead, initial cost of $180 with an annual savings of $300; a programmable thermostat, initial cost of $115 with an annual savings of $180; compact flourescent bulbs, initial cost of $60 with an annual savings of $80; and a hot water heater blanket, initial cost of $25 with an annual savings of $30.
There are many websites dedicated towards "Going Green" ideas, for instance I continually hear an ad on the radio for this website, http://boston.1thingus.com/, where they ask that you do one thing to contribute towards giving back to the environment. It can be as simple as recycling or going paperless. You can obviously recycle paper, cardboard, plastic, and glass as well as electronics, flourescent bulbs, and batteries. Many banks and creditors are attempting to go paperless with statements and payments. You can now view and pay most bills via the internet. Along with saving time this will also save you money for stamps. Not every "Going Green" idea has to be installing solar panels on your roof or buying a Smart Car.
I hope you find this information useful and will attempt to assume responsibility to help the environment while saving yourself money. Also, I would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have featuring real estate in North Kingstown and homes for sale in Narragansett. Thank you very much and have a Happy New Year!
Richard Holsombach
Bob's Team @ RE/MAX Flagship
There are many websites dedicated towards "Going Green" ideas, for instance I continually hear an ad on the radio for this website, http://boston.1thingus.com/, where they ask that you do one thing to contribute towards giving back to the environment. It can be as simple as recycling or going paperless. You can obviously recycle paper, cardboard, plastic, and glass as well as electronics, flourescent bulbs, and batteries. Many banks and creditors are attempting to go paperless with statements and payments. You can now view and pay most bills via the internet. Along with saving time this will also save you money for stamps. Not every "Going Green" idea has to be installing solar panels on your roof or buying a Smart Car.
I hope you find this information useful and will attempt to assume responsibility to help the environment while saving yourself money. Also, I would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have featuring real estate in North Kingstown and homes for sale in Narragansett. Thank you very much and have a Happy New Year!
Richard Holsombach
Bob's Team @ RE/MAX Flagship
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