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GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The term “net zero” has been cropping up as a common term in describing buildings and homes for some time now. The intention of a net zero building is to be, at the end of the year, left with zero utility bills.
This doesn't simply mean zero electricity usage but zero electricity, propane, natural gas, and, in the near future, gasoline usage. Some net zero diehards will even use rainwater collection (which is now legal for those without municipal water supplies in Colorado) as a final feather in the hat of true net zero households, since the water is harvested directly on site.
Net zero can oftentimes be achieved easier on new construction for the simple fact that new homes can be built with better design that allows for more efficiency. Passive solar, high insulation R values in walls, ceilings, and crawl spaces, better windows, reflective roof material, natural cooling elements, and roof space designed for solar technologies all contribute to achieving net zero status.
Note that net zero doesn't have to mean off the grid. Off the grid means that a home is not connected to the utility grid, telephone grid, or municipal water supplies. Net zero means that your annual usage of these commodities doesn't go over your production of them.
Though net zero may be inherently easier to create on new construction, it is certainly a far cry from impossible for existing homes. First, using less is key.
Take a close look at where your electricity currently gets used, then ask yourself if there is any way to reduce this amount by upgrading light bulbs, appliances, or simply turning devices off while not in use. The same can be said of your heating load. Can you close off bedrooms during the winter that are not used? Are there places with very poor insulation or no insulation at all that are being heated? Getting a home energy audit done by one of the fine companies here in Grand Junction can help you with this first step.
After this, it is simply a case of providing power for the rest of the load that is left, after your home has become more efficient. High Noon Solar has an easy, low maintenance approach for this that will last for 35-40 years and provide you with a zero utility bill during that entire time. Solar, of course!
Solar electric panels can offset 100% of a home's electric bill, but what about the heating load if you have gas heating? First, for the domestic water heating, we recommend upgrading to an electric on-demand hot water heater. They are more efficient than gas hot water heaters and they can easily be offset by a solar electric system with no maintenance.
Most two person households use 7-11 therms per month in domestic water heating with gas. The solar system needed to produce this same amount with an electric on-demand would range from around a 2KW to 3KW solar grid tie. This system would simply be added to the solar electric system size designed to provide power for normal needs in the home.
Heating can be a little harder to use average numbers on since home sizes and heating methods vary dramatically. Electric boilers or electric baseboards can be used in much the same way as the electric on-demand is, in that the solar system provides the electricity to it, rather than using gas.
Some homes may not achieve 100% net zero status but they are leaps and bounds above what they were before they started trying. One High Noon Solar customer in Whitewater used this model when remodeling their home a little more than a year ago. After installing electric baseboards and a 10KW solar tracking system, their bills are happily negative or zero at the end of the year. Now that's something to feel secure about.
This doesn't simply mean zero electricity usage but zero electricity, propane, natural gas, and, in the near future, gasoline usage. Some net zero diehards will even use rainwater collection (which is now legal for those without municipal water supplies in Colorado) as a final feather in the hat of true net zero households, since the water is harvested directly on site.
Net zero can oftentimes be achieved easier on new construction for the simple fact that new homes can be built with better design that allows for more efficiency. Passive solar, high insulation R values in walls, ceilings, and crawl spaces, better windows, reflective roof material, natural cooling elements, and roof space designed for solar technologies all contribute to achieving net zero status.
Note that net zero doesn't have to mean off the grid. Off the grid means that a home is not connected to the utility grid, telephone grid, or municipal water supplies. Net zero means that your annual usage of these commodities doesn't go over your production of them.
Though net zero may be inherently easier to create on new construction, it is certainly a far cry from impossible for existing homes. First, using less is key.
Take a close look at where your electricity currently gets used, then ask yourself if there is any way to reduce this amount by upgrading light bulbs, appliances, or simply turning devices off while not in use. The same can be said of your heating load. Can you close off bedrooms during the winter that are not used? Are there places with very poor insulation or no insulation at all that are being heated? Getting a home energy audit done by one of the fine companies here in Grand Junction can help you with this first step.
After this, it is simply a case of providing power for the rest of the load that is left, after your home has become more efficient. High Noon Solar has an easy, low maintenance approach for this that will last for 35-40 years and provide you with a zero utility bill during that entire time. Solar, of course!
Solar electric panels can offset 100% of a home's electric bill, but what about the heating load if you have gas heating? First, for the domestic water heating, we recommend upgrading to an electric on-demand hot water heater. They are more efficient than gas hot water heaters and they can easily be offset by a solar electric system with no maintenance.
Most two person households use 7-11 therms per month in domestic water heating with gas. The solar system needed to produce this same amount with an electric on-demand would range from around a 2KW to 3KW solar grid tie. This system would simply be added to the solar electric system size designed to provide power for normal needs in the home.
Heating can be a little harder to use average numbers on since home sizes and heating methods vary dramatically. Electric boilers or electric baseboards can be used in much the same way as the electric on-demand is, in that the solar system provides the electricity to it, rather than using gas.
Some homes may not achieve 100% net zero status but they are leaps and bounds above what they were before they started trying. One High Noon Solar customer in Whitewater used this model when remodeling their home a little more than a year ago. After installing electric baseboards and a 10KW solar tracking system, their bills are happily negative or zero at the end of the year. Now that's something to feel secure about.
