Getting Started on Household Energy and CO2 Reductions

Some tools, calculators and references to help you 1) see where your household's energy use and green house gas emissions come from, 2) identify actions you can take to reduce energy use and emissions, and 3) estimate the savings that you will get.

Home Energy Audits

Home Heat Loss Calculators --

Automobile Energy Use Calculators

Greenhouse gas emissions calculators

Energy Saving Project Ideas

Home Energy Audit These home energy audit programs will help you determine where your energy is going, and what to do about it. Note: Your utility company may have an audit program -- these are often free and can be very helpful -- they may include tests that you cannot do yourself.
Our own "1/2" Program Gary	This is my families program to see if we can reduce our total energy consumption and green house gas emissions by one half. Use the "Planning" section to evaluate your situation and pick the best set of projects for your situation.
An Interactive Tool for Saving Energy at Home Interactive Home Energy Saving Tool	A cute new tool from Energy Star that identifies energy saving tips on a room by room basis. You can give to your kids, and let them nag you into making some energy saving changes to make the planet better for them.
Energy Savers from DOE EERE site http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/ Energy Tips from EERE (2.7MB pdf)	"Energy Savers" for home owners (insulation, appliances, lighting, ...) energy saving advice. The Energy Tips 36 page booklet is good.
Home Energy Saver Audit/Calculator http://hes.lbl.gov/	A Do-It-Yourself home energy audit Fill in details on your home location, size, construction, etc. The calculator estimates your current energy use, makes recommendations on changes and estimates the cost saving and pollution benefits.
Home Heat Loss These calculators and household energy simulation programs allow you to estimate your current heat loss in various areas, and to see the savings that would result from making specific improvements.
Insulation Upgrade Cost Saving Calculator	Calculate how much money and greenhouse gas you would save with various insulation, window, or window treatment upgrades. Very easy to use.
Home Heat Loss Calculator Gary	This is a simple home heat loss calculator. It provides rough estimates of design heat loss (for furnace sizing), yearly heat loss, greenhouse gas emissions, and estimated yearly fuel bills. Very Easy to use.
HEED http://www2.aud.ucla.edu/heed/ Additional documentation: http://www2.aud.ucla.edu/energy-design-tools/papers.html	This is very easy to use, yet very capable simulation software for estimating the energy/thermal performance of a passive solar or conventional home. Weather files for over 700 worldwide locations. While it initially appears almost too simple, by using the "advanced tab" it can handle a wide variety of situations. It uses a one hour simulation time step, and weather files that cover a full year of typical weather. It has been carefully validated. It is limited to 1 zone, and does not handle sunspaces. It is a free download. For people outside of California: Here is how to get and use a weather file for your area with HEED.
Additional Home Energy Use Calculators Listed Here ...
Green House Gas Calculators These are the best of the greenhouse gas emissions calculators that I have found for doing household CO2 emissions calculations
Infinite Power www.infinitepower.org/calculators.htm	The best and most flexible of the carbon calculators I have run across. Covers all the common fuels and all the common energy uses (transportation, heating, appliances, ...). Lots of other good renewable energy information on this site.
BP Carbon Calculator http://www.bp.com/iframe.do?categoryId=9005522&contentId=7011382	A very simple and interactive calculator from BP to estimate your "Carbon Footprint". It also provides quick, interactive ways to see how much you can reduce your Carbon output.
More emissions calculators here ...
Automobile Calculators These calculators allow you to compare cars for gasoline use and energy emissions. For many families, cars are the single largest energy use and CO2 emissions source.
Fuel Economy dot Gov http://www.fueleconomy.gov/ Fuel Economy Guide ...	Very informative site. Fuel economy data on all models. Some info on the various green and fuel efficient technologies. The "side-by-side" comparison tool is very handy for comparing mpg, cost, carbon, interior size, ... for multiple cars.
Gas Mileage Impact Calculator HybridCars.com http://www.hybridcars.com/calculator/	A nice calculator to compare conventional cars to hybrids. Give gasoline savings, and green house gas emissions reduction. Sample: Ford Explorer to Toyota Prius
More Vehicle and Transportation Ideas here ...
Project Areas Some areas to find projects you can do to save energy and reduce CO2 emissions
The Projects page ... This page is the directory to several hundred renewable energy projects described in detail on this site -- the projects cover conservation, solar heating and cooling, solar water heating, solar home design, solar electricity, wind power, micro hydro, day lighting, efficient transportation, AND water conservation.

Comments or suggestions?...

Gary September 1, 2008