In these tight economic times, it seems everybody is looking for a way to pinch pennies. One of the best places to begin is in the home. But the commitment to lower utility bills requires biting the bullet and opening the wallet.

There are many home improvements that will start you down that frugal road - insulation, radiant barrier foil, and replacing your incandescents with fluorescents. But a huge ROI is installing replacement windows.

There are a lot of variables to consider. It’s a balance between budget, aesthetics, and the geographic area you’re located in. Another consideration is what you need to install in order to order to qualify for an energy tax credit. It’s not enough to simply have Energy Star products like it is with refrigerators or dishwashers.

Where you live is as important. What will qualify in Wisconsin is not necessary the same as in Texas. What wacky, goofy, out-of-touch guys those legislators up in Washington are.

Then there’s the choice of filler in double-pane windows. The most common choices are air (poor), argon (better), and krypton (best, and not just because it freaks Superman out).

The prices for these three fillers go from low to high along with their efficiency. Krypton doesn’t cost more just to clean out your bank account; the gas itself is expensive. Many experts will tell you that the price isn’t justified as the payback time frame is so darned long.

Read more about fillers, pros and cons of the different types of frame materials, the U-factor, and how the solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) applies to your choice. Education is key before you talk to a salesman.

Other related articles:

• Save Money with Door and Window Weatherstripping
• A Certified Home Inspector can Improve Energy Efficiency
• Save Money with Solar Window Film

One of the buzzwords that’s been going around the home energy saving aficionado crowd is “tight envelope”. What’s this? Basically, making the home’s exterior surface (interface to the outside world) as air-tight as possible.

It minimizes the transfer of hot/cold air to and from the home’s living space. Interestingly, or perhaps not, this way of saving money dovetails with green building and LEED certification, hopefully.

The Exterior Walls is Where it all Begins

The exterior walls are a major surface area, and it only increases when the home goes over one story high. One problem with homes over 30 years old or so is that they weren’t always built with insulation. Retro-fitting with loose-fill and spray insulation is possible but intrusive.

But for new construction, there are three great approaches:

• Conventional wood framing. Framing with wood studs is very economical. Once the sheathing, vapor barrier, and even siding have been installed, the walls can be insulated with spray foam or fiberglass batts before hanging sheetrock.
• Metal stud framing. The same as wood framing without the warping potential and fire hazard.
• Insulated concrete forms. ICFs are green and sustainable and work well in areas that suffer from wildfires, tornadoes, and hurricanes.
• Structural insulated panels. SIPS are also a green building option. They offer all the economy of labor and energy efficiency of ICFs without the concrete. SIPs are sandwiches of OSB and rigid insulation that are building blocks for modular construction.

Green building practices are getting more publicity all the time, but there’s more happening that meets the eye. It’s like it is sneaking on stage. Wanting to stay current on the topic, I set up a Google alert on the phrase about a month ago.

Every day now I get an email listing links to articles on green building. Folks, this trend is gathering steam. For example, C&L Refrigeration is now building LEED certified storage facilities. C&L has clients like Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream, Golden State Foods and Miller Brewing Co.

Weyerhaeuser and Owens Corning are making inroads into sustainable residential building materials. I’m here to tell you that even this improved insulation still itches.

Titebond glue has released a complete line-up of green adhesives.

I’ve spent some time adding insulation and radiant barrier foil in my attic lately. It’s really affected the time available for running workouts, dang it! Both products are Energy Star rated so not only will I save on utility bills, I’ll claim a tax credit at the end of the year. Hey, take it while you can, right?

And what an investment. A report from Henley Business School reveals that LEED certified buildings can reap a rental income of up to 31% more than non-certified properties and that the more highly rated the properties are, the greater the rent. Gotta love it. Well, if you’re the landlord.

But it stands to reason that if things like solar panels are used, the renter still makes out like a bandit with respect to energy bills.

I think my next energy reduction project will be to install solar window film, even though it won’t qualify for a tax credit. Aluminum frames aren’t covered. The IRS has some goofy rules. Just one more thing president Nobama should take care of. But won’t.

Asbestos is some bad stuff if you disturb it and happen to inhale the fibers. It can result in cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma.

Its use was banned in 1989 by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), so if your home is older than that, you might have it in popcorn ceilings, insulation, roofing materials (both shingles and felt), siding, and flooring tiles.

So yes, be very scared when dealing with this stuff. Be sure to get any of these materials tested by an accredited lab. If the results come back positive, you’ve got to have a professional asbestos abatement company remove it.

Be sure to wear a respirator when harvesting samples.


I get a lot of questions from loyal readers about removing popcorn ceilings. Subdivision tract home builders loved using this stuff since it covered up shabby drywall finishing. Sadly, most homeowners today don’t know about the danger they might be getting into. Have this stuff checked, folks!

I know that I got into asbestos when I was an acoustic ceiling mechanic working for Laser Acoustics. We used to remodel a lot of older schools, and they had a lot of pipes covered in asbestos insulation.

But, and here’s the caveat, it can only affect you if you disturb the fibers. Hopefully, I escaped with my hide. (And lungs.)
Back when I was a apprentice, there was a foreman on one job that was in his mid-fifties (which would put him in his eighties now). He recounted his younger days as a millwright when he used to cut sheets of asbestos on a tablesaw. Every day. With no respirator.

He got tested yearly for asbestosis and mesothelioma. It was like waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Folks, don’t take any chances with this stuff. Avoid it just like you avoid sanding paint with lead in it. We’re making progress in using safer materials in the construction and remodeling industry, but unfortunately, we’re still on middle ground. Bad stuff is out there.