Energy-Efficiency Tax Incentives for 2010

For 2009, under the Nonbusiness Energy Property Credit, you may be able to claim a credit of 30 poercent of the costs of qualified energy-efficient property or improvements (residential energy property credit) and a 30 percent credit for solar energy and fuel-cell power plants (residential alternative energy credit). The credit, which was not available in 2008, has been reinstated and is available in 2009 and 2010.
Improvements include insulated walls or ceilings; energy-efficient exterior doors and windows, including skylights; specially treated metal roofs; and a high-efficiency furnace, air conditioner or water heater. The improvements must have been made in your principal residence located in the United States and the maximum credit is $1,500.

For 2009, under the Residential Energy Efficient Property Credit, there is no limitation on the credit amount for qualified solar electric property costs, qualified solar water-heating property costs, qualified small-wind energy property costs and qualified geothermal heat-pump property costs. The limitation on the credit amount for qualified fuel-cell property costs remains the same.

Also, the Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit grants four separate credits for different types of energy-efficient vehicles. Your potential credit will be determined by the type of vehicle and which of the four credits apply. You can check with your CPA or the IRS for a list of qualified vehicles and allowable credits.

One credit that is part of the Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit is the credit of up to $3,400 for hybrid vehicles. The credit is taken in the year you purchased the vehicle. However, the full credit only applies to the first 60,000 vehicles that the auto manufacturer sells. After that, the credit is phased-out. Ford has reached the limit, and no credit is available for any Ford or Mercury hybrid motor vehicle purchased after March 31, 2010. Honda has reached the limit, and no credit is available for any Honda hybrid motor vehicle purchased after December 31, 2008. Toyota has reached the limit, and no credit is available for any Toyota hybrid motor vehicle purchased after September 30, 2007. The credit is available for other automobile manufacturers.

For qualified vehicles purchased in 2009, a plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit is also available. A similar credit is also available for vehicles placed in service in 2010. For 2009, the credit is equal to $2,500 plus $417 for each kilowatt hour of traction battery capacity in excess of four kilowatt hours. The credit is capped at $7,500 for a vehicle with a gross weight of 10,000 pounds or less. The credit begins to phase out when the total number of qualified vehicles sold reaches 250,000.

Content provided by the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. 

Product Review - Packaging Made from Plants

Vegware sells eco-friendly green products for the food service industry. 

There products are an economic and environmental alternative to oil-based plastics in the food service sector. Switching to Vegware products reduces the use of non-renewable resources, and will enable a shift in the way waste is managed.  All their products are made from natural materials and are biodegradable or compostable.  They have an FAQ page that answers more questions about the raw materials, disposal and end of life.

This picture shows you the "One of Everything Sample Pack". For $15 you can get a sample of one of all of their products if you want to try them out!

Product Review - the Smart Power Strip

Smart Strip Energy Saving Power Strip with Autoswitching Technology and Surge Protection

You can plug your stuff into the plug into the wall which doesn't protect for surges.
Or, you can use a surge protector to protect against surges.
Even better, you could use this smart energy strip to not only protect against surges, but to save energy.

Most electrical devices produce what is called an idle current. This means that whatever you have plugged in, even if it is turned off, is still costing your money and drawing a current. By using this power strip you can eliminate that consumption and cost by automatically turning peripherals on and off.

Water Conservation in Commercial Buildings

Here are a few relatively easy things you can do to decrease your water consumption:

1. Bathroom Faucets  – A low-flow self-closing faucet is ADA approved, uses 0.5 gallons per minute, and is LEED certified.
2. Bathroom Toilets – Dual flush toilets conserve up to 7000 gallons of fresh water per fixture per year.
3. Spray Valves – If you are a restaurant or a bar, a low-flow spray valve could save you more than $1,000 annually depending on the size and workload of your restaurant. The low-flow valve enables you to lower your water consumption and the sprayer slashes your water, wastewater-disposal and energy bills. 
   

LED vs CFL

Changing your lighting applications from CFLs to LEDs will help you consume less energy and decrease your costs.  Royal Contracting can help you choose the right LED lighting your application, figure out for you how much your energy consumption and costs will decrease, and install the new lighting.

This graph was published by the Carnegie Mellon Green Design Institute.  They published the results of their study (in easy to understand presentation format) on the life cycles and energy consumption of lighting applications.

Remote Rewiring Using Skype!

You can really take advantage of technology to get things done in emergency situations.  During the Open House period of the 2009 Solar Decathlon, the team experienced an electrical issue and I had already gone home to Boston but we still got the job done.

Using skype and webcams I helped the team complete the rewiring so they could participate in the electrical component of the competition without standing guard.  This "enablement" allowed them to spend the evening in the pub!

You can view the full session here.

Live Curio @ the 2009 Solar Decathlon

In October 2009 the Boston Architectural College (BAC) and Tufts University are participating in the Solar Decathlon. The competition is sponsored by the US Department of Energy. This is the second entry from the BAC and the second time I have contributed to the success of the project.

To find out more about the house the team has documented lots of progress and information about the house on their official website called livecurio. You can stay posted via their updates on twitter, facebook, and photos on picasa.

Along with many other talented individuals the house is being built on the Tufts campus, deconstructed and will be rebuilt on the Washington Mall in DC. I was featured in their September 2009 newsletter as a featured sponsor - thanks guys! It's been a pleasure working as an advisor on the team and I'm looking forward to winning the competition! If you are in the neighborhood, visit us at the solar village on the mall. All the details are available on the official decathlon site.

In addition to being a sponsor, I am also an advisor on the project and have spent many enjoyable hours working on the construction with everyone. Here's the fabulous picture they posted of me:

Johnny D's Remodel

 

Over the past year I have been working with Johnny D's to help them take advantage of new ways to save on costs and become more environmentally friendly. Below are some of the implementations which they have benefited from:  

1. Kitchen Appliances - By replacing inefficient kitchen appliances energy costs were reduced by 34%.
2. Water - By replacing standard urinals with waterless ones the business has saved 120,000 gallons of water a year for an annual savings of $2,000.
3. Building Envelope - By insulating the building we anticipate a savings of $1,700 per year. Thirty percent of the savings comes from electricity and 42% from gas.
4. Lighting - The installation of dimmable LED lighting in the bar and restaurant reduced their lighting energy consumption by 45%. 
5. Heating, Cooling and Ventilation (HVAC) - We found that the building exhibits a significant negative pressure relative to the outdoor ambient pressure. This caused higher heating and cooling bills and drafts. Through a holistic redesign and an upgrade, Johnny D’s will soon see decreased utility bills and a more comfortable environment.
   

Waterless Urinals

My most recent installation of waterless urinals was at a bar in Somerville.  The energy audit I performed showed that this was one of the changes that made sense for them - it had a short payback and the changes could be done almost immediately with little disruption to the restaurant. 

The installation of 3 waterless urinals saves the bar about 120,000 gallons of water a year (equal to 160 cubic feet of water). The cost of water is approximately $12 per cubic foot. Therefore, the annual savings for the restaurant is $1,925 and their payback based on the cost of installation is less than two years.

Radiant Heating For Your Home

A combination boiler can be used for radiant heating and domestic hot water and is an energy efficient and longer lasting alternative to the typical water tank installed in most New England homes.

Below is the installation for my home - it's a Baxi wallhung boiler.  I installed it at the same time I installed radiant flooring.    It is very environmentally friendly, is Energy Star rated, and generates substantial fuel consumption savings.  Although the technology is new to the United States, Wallhung heating and hot water technology has a successful history in Europe since the 1970's. They export to more than 62 countries.  This particular unit was produced in Canada.

Using Warmboard For Your Radiant Heating

Warmboard a combines structural subfloor and a thermodynamically sophisticated radiant panel (aluminum and PEX tubing are two parts) into one simple component of your radiant heating system.  

You use warmboard rather than plywood under your floor.  It has a lower operating cost which will save you money over the life of it's installation. 

Their featured gallery of products even includes the MIT Solar Decathlon entry!  If you are interested in learning more, the Warmboard website has a lot of good information that is easy to understand.

To the right is a photo of a stranded bamboo floor over a warmboard installation and below is a gallery of photos of the installation. 

Remodeling a Porch into a Bedroom

Many people are finding that their needs have changed and they need more space, but since home prices have decreased in our area it might not be an option to move to a bigger home.  Often, with some creative planning, we can convert existing space into a more livable area for you.

At this house in Wakefield, the owner's had a baby and couldn't move out of their one bedroom apartment. I converted their back porch into a bedroom.  This new bedroom made use of space that was rarely used and they no longer feel like they have outgrown the apartment.  It was a good value for money for the owners and will enable them to stay in their home until the next baby!

In addition to gutting the room and adding the room to the existing heating system, I also moved the back door from the room to the hallway and built new stairs leading up to it.

Converting a Screened-In Porch to a Three Season Porch

The rotting porch was almost unusable when the new owners bought this house. Once I made the shell of the porch structurally sound again, I installed new windows. The porch had floor to ceiling windows which made the room fully visible from the outside. I removed all of those and replaced them with windows large enough to see the woodlands but small enough to afford some privacy.

Once that work was complete I could then do the remodel of the interior. This included adding tongue and groove shiplap pine cladding on the walls, replacing the windows and removing the low ceiling to expose the full height of the cathedral ceiling. I also wired the whole room for sound! Having this 40 x 20 porch for three seasons of the year really expanded the footprint of their home and allows them to take advantage of the beautiful wooded yard that their home overlooks.

Look below for before and after photos of the porch.

Structural Insulated Panel - Wakefield, MA

The R-Control Structural Insulated Panel (SIP) is a strong one-piece structural system, which provides superior insulation in exterior walls, roofs/ceilings, and floors. Engineered wood facings and solid EPS insulation are laminated to create a structural component with exceptional strength. The R-Control SIP is used in residential and commercial construction. Specify R-Control SIPs for your next project.

Environmentally Best--R-Control EPS Insulation

• Contains no CFC's, HCFC's, or HFC's
• Contains no formaldehyde
• No R-value drift
• Can be recycled
• Inert, non-nutritive, highly stable

Residential addition

Private Residence Addition - Wakefield, MA
Royal contracting & Remodeling adding 2,000 sqf of family room, office, bedroom and master suite addition. This was a challenge project tying into the existing 1900's house with the new addition on three floors, this is was a three month project the owners where still lived in the house.

Solar Decathlon 2009

Solar Decathlon 2009

BAC & Tufts

Licensed General Contractor

Hire Royal Contracting for Sustainable & efficient energy solutions

EcoRob @ Royal Contracting

EcoRob @ Royal Contracting

Portfolio

Royal contracting provides energy efficient solutions for new construction, upgrades and remodeling, and for residential and commercial.

home efficiency upgrade services

Solar heat and hotwater systems

Solar PV

and high efficiency heat pumps

Solar Decathlon 2007

The Solar Decathlon joins 20 college and university teams in a competition to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house.

Solar Decathlon 2007

MIT & BAC is the team I was a general contractor 

MIT Solar Decathlon 

Hear are some on are team Pictures