Install appropriate insulation in area to be remodeled.

Install high-efficiency windows instead of those that minimally meet the energy code.

Seal all exterior penetrations in areas being remodeled.

Purchase only Energy Star®-rated appliances. Install only low-flow water fixtures.

Upgrade to at least an Energy Star®-rated water heater, or better yet, a tankless water heater.

Purchase the highest efficiency HVAC system you can afford and make sure it is correctly sized for the area you want to condition.

Use programmable thermostats

Greener products to consider:

Non-toxic paints and sealants
Natural flooring
Local building materials
Native plants for landscaping

The first story is about a 1912 stucco Tudor home:

The first couple bought their home in 1981 for around $53,000. Built in 1912, their stucco Tudor home had two bedrooms and a full bathroom on the second floor and contained 800 square feet on the first floor, 750 on the second, and 700 in the basement.

Immediate Repairs Needed

Unfortunately, when they first bought their home, they were faced with repairs. The house had been sitting vacant for a year before they purchased it. During that time, water pipes and heat radiators had frozen. The house also had an old oil boiler.

They removed the oil boiler and installed inner thermal electric water radiant baseboard heat. But the baseboard heating system did not prove to be efficient; there were no storm windows, and the house still had cold spots. They contacted the local electrical utility company to have their home converted to gas (hot water and furnace) and to qualify for the Weatherization Program. They sold the radiators and some of the thermal baseboards to a used building supply. The rest of the inner thermal baseboards were sold to a friend and donated to a local charity.

The Weatherization Program helps customers identify and repair areas where energy may be lost due to inadequate insulation and inefficient doors and windows. Financial assistance may be offered by the electrical utility company to qualifying customers for taking weatherization steps. For example, grants may be offered to help cover a portion of the cost of insulating attics, walls, and floors over heated areas. A small grant may be paid toward replacing existing windows with more energy efficient windows. An energy audit determines the exact amount of each grant, and the grant does not need to be repaid. Any remaining balance after the work is completed and the grant has been awarded is the homeowner’s responsibility. There may be a weatherization program in your area—you will want to contact your local electrical utility company for more information.

While the house appeared large, the rooms were small. With children still at home, it was time for an expansion. The thought of moving never entered the picture—they liked the neighborhood—but they didn’t know how to add on without losing the integrity of the home. An architect friend drew some plans that the couple liked so well that they hired a contractor and started their project in September 1993.

The Remodeling Experience

The contractor was to be responsible for excavation, foundations, framing, plumbing, roofing, insulation, and drywall. In order to save money, they purchased the windows which the contractor installed. They also did the demolition with the help of their 13-year-old son, and they did their own wiring—all 4,500 feet of it!

Another area where they saved (or in this case, made) money, was by putting their detached single-car garage up for sale. They ran a classified ad in the local newspaper that read “Garage for Sale,” which most people read as “Garage Sale.” Boy, were these people surprised when they showed up looking for furniture and trinkets! Once sold, the garage was relocated and the couple didn’t have to go through the process of tearing it down.

The completed addition is a dream come true as it gives the homeowners the extra room they need and want. The square footage of their home was increased by 800 square feet per floor, including the 800-foot double-car garage at basement level. The addition includes a new kitchen, full bathroom, and a mud/laundry room on the first floor. The second floor has a master bedroom, an extra bedroom, a full bathroom, and a rebuild of the original bathroom.

Final Thoughts

This house finished out with four bedrooms and three baths, not to mention the original sun room, a deck over the garage (using a special membrane material so water will not leak into the garage), and the original basement that incorporated extra rooms. The new addition was finished to match the existing home, both exterior and interior.

By the time the job was completed, the couple put between $80,000 and $90,000 into the project. For a time, their home outpriced the rest of the neighborhood, but this was of little concern to them. They like the neighborhood and plan to stay there, and that was their main reason for doing the project.

Stay tuned for stories two and three…

In the Bathroom

* Consider reglazing a tub instead of replacing it, especially if it is still in relatively good condition. This can save you more than half the cost of a tub replacement and minimize the dust at the same time.

* Cultured marble sheets are a good choice for tub surrounds, instead of ceramic tile. You will save considerably on labor costs and the marble sheets are much easier to clean.

* Fiberglass surrounds are also less costly than tile.

* Examine how you are utilizing space. You may be able to steal some space from a neighboring room or closet. If your overall space is limited, purchase a jetted tub and shower combination or install a pedestal lavatory instead of a vanity cabinet with a sink. Understand that while pedestal lavatories do eliminate the need for vanities and save space, some models may cost more than a separate vanity cabinet and sink.

* Cultured marble lavatories can be a great budget choice since it is an integrated sink bowl and countertop sold in one easily installed unit.

* Define what is truly needed in the bathroom. Sometimes an extra bath is planned when installing a double sink in an existing bath would meet the need.

* If you are going to add a large jetted tub to your project, consider adding a water heater dedicated to that tub. A large jetted tub can hold up to an average of 75 gallons or more, which can easily overextend your existing water heater and cause problems in the future.

* When revamping yesterday’s bathroom to fit with today’s homeowners’ expectations for luxury, homeowners can familiarize themselves with the latest options in home spa advancements. One such indulgence is an electric warming system beneath your new stone or tile floor.

Now you can get started!

“Natural ventilation created by venting skylights is much more effective than opening a window,” says John Carmody, director of the Center for Sustainable Building Research at the College of Design at the University of Minnesota. “ Green building guidelines encourage homeowners to provide more natural ventilation, primarily because it reduces energy consumption,” says Carmody, the author of several books on building design.

The chimney effect created by an open skylight exhausts volatile organic compounds (VOCs) along with humid, moist, stale air while admitting healthful, natural light, explains Joe Patrick, senior product manager with VELUX America. “Homes that can’t ‘breathe’ can be unhealthy, as VOCs can build up in tightly sealed spaces and cause health problems.”

Patrick also points out that while modern skylights allow a home to breathe, they don’t leak. “This was sometimes a problem with early skylights, but quality units, properly installed with matched flashing kits, make that an unnecessary concern,” he says. “They are as dependable and functional as any vertical window or other installation that requires an opening in the sides or roof of the home.”

Kitchens and bathrooms are areas of the home where venting skylights are particularly effective for removing heated, moist air.

Kirsten Ritchie, a civil engineer and regional director for sustainable design for Gensler, a global architectural, design, planning, and consulting firm, says, that among her favorite innovations or design ideas for a green kitchen are, “lots of operable windows for natural daylight and free ventilation.”

Patrick points out that operable skylights serve the same function and offer as many, if not more, accessories to adjust and control light and ventilation as do vertical windows. Plus, skylights offer sensors to close them in case of precipitation.

“Venetian blinds are available to adjust light, cellular shades to diffuse light, light block shades to block light from the inside, and exterior heat block awnings block heat before it enters the home,” Patrick says. “And ENERGY STAR-qualified skylights with energy efficient, insulated, low-E glazings offer protection against solar heat gain, resist condensation twice as long as clear glass, and protect interiors by reflecting the vast majority of the sun’s fade-causing rays.”

“There are a number of improvements homeowners can make today that will more than pay for themselves over time,” says Chris Pickering, vice president of marketing at Ply Gem windows. “With the 2009/2010 energy efficiency tax credits in full swing, now is an ideal time to make cost saving upgrades to the home.”

Ply Gem, a leader in the building products industry, offers some helpful tips to prepare your home for the winter season and beyond:

* Add insulation to your attic to reduce heat loss and drafts.

* Install glass doors on fireplaces to reduce drafts and make sure your damper is working properly.

* Clean vents and air ducts and replace filters to promote air flow and ease the strain on your heating and cooling system.

* Drain a few gallons from your water heater to remove sediment and help it operate more efficiently.

* Upgrade to insulated siding, like Mastic Home Exteriors by Ply Gem Structure EPS, to efficiently lower heating and cooling costs for the home by up to 25 percent.

* Wrap your hot water pipes in insulation pre-formed for that purpose to reduce heat loss and ease the workload on your water heater.

* Check around doors and windows and replace damaged caulk or weather-stripping.

* Replace old single-pane windows with energy efficient, dual- or triple-pane models to reduce heat loss in winter and keep hot air out and cool air in during summer.

“Windows are a particularly good place to save energy and money,” Pickering says. Advancements like Argon fills between window panes have made windows more efficient than ever before and can be a major component in lowering utility bills.”

Installing ENERGY STAR-rated windows can save more than $450 per year in heating and cooling costs. Plus, with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, you can receive a tax credit for 30 percent of the purchase price of new energy-efficient windows up to a maximum of $1,500. Window manufacturers are helping homeowners break down the benefits with Web tools like the one from Ply Gem. Do the math and you’ll find that new windows, along with these other energy saving tips, can pay off immediately and for years to come.

I work with Trane Heating & Cooling, and thought you might be interested in some information on saving energy- especially in a time where we’re all looking to save wherever we can! Saving energy is a great New Year’s resolution, and Trane can help.

A few thought starters on energy savings:

• You’ll save about three percent of your heating costs for every degree you lower your thermostat during winter months
• Installing a programmable thermostat will shave about 10 percent off of your heating and cooling bills, according to the Alliance to Save Energy. The average annual savings is about $100 and programmable thermostats often pay for themselves in two years or less
• A professional to tune up your furnace system every year for oil-fired systems, every two years for gas furnaces and three years for heat pumps – will increase the life of the system, improve energy efficiency, reduce pollutants and save money
• If your furnace other major appliances, such as heat pumps, are more than 10 years old, it may make sense to replace them with newer, more energy-efficient models
• An energy efficient gas furnace with a Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) rating of up to a 96.7 percent, exceeds the government’s minimum AFUE rating for furnaces and boilers by nearly 20 percent, and could save you up to 40 percent on energy consumption and, in turn, lowering your energy bills

And on how Trane can help:

• The Trane XL19i is among the highest energy efficiency air conditioners available today and its Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) of up to 19.5 exceeds the minimum efficiency of 13 set by the Department of Energy. A SEER rating of up to 19.5 can mean a saving of up to 59 percent on a family’s annual energy bill, if the system it’s replacing is 10 years or older

• The Trane XV95 is the market’s most efficient gas furnace and the first to attain up to a 96.7 percent Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency rating, which is nearly 20 percent higher than the government minimum standard. By installing an efficient furnace, consumers can save themselves up to 40 percent on energy consumption