HOME ENERGY SOLUTIONS specializes in transforming standard home designs into high performance designs.  These high performance homes consistantly deliver greater year-round comfort and satisfaction as well as dramatically lower utility costs.

We provide this design service to home buyers who want their new homes to be exceptionally energy-efficient and to professional home builders who are interested in the tremendous benefits of marketing high performance homes.

HOME BUYERS:  The very best time to make sure that your dream home will have superior energy efficiency and comfort is during the planning stage.  Once you have chosen a home design and a builder, we can update every energy aspect of the design.  Our technical analysis will help you and your builder make the informed decisions that are necessary to create the energy-efficient home that you want.

By spending a little now to update your home design, you can save tens of thousands of dollars over the life of your mortgage.

A high performance home will cost less per month to own because you will spend signfiicantly less on your home's utility bill each month.  These savings usually offset any small increase in mortgage payments that result from the energy improvements.  In almost every case, the savings on utility bills provides you with extra money each month for use on other items in the family budget.  The following example compares the typical monthly cost of owning a standard home with the monthly cost of owning a high performance home:

    *Estimated mortgage payments are based upon principle and interest only, and do not include taxes and insurance.         Values indicated here are for example only and will vary from home to home.

HOME BUILDERS:  High performance homes deliver greater customer satisfaction, superior quality, and incresed profit.

Greater Customer Satisfaction:  The energy-saving features of a high performance home translate into impressive value and comfort for customers.  These features include:

• Energy savings of 30% to 70%.
• Lack of drafts.
• More even temperatures throughout the home.
• Quieter interiors.
• Better indoor air quality.
• Long term durability and reduced maintenance.
• Higher resale value.

Superior Quality:  Building a high performance home requires close attention to detail during framing, sealing, and insulating. This helps to assure that you produce a home with above average quality. Many of the problems that can lead to costly callbacks and reduced customer confidence are eliminated.

Increased Profit For The Builder:  Greater customer satisfaction leads to increased sales volume, an increased number of referrals, and a reduction in costly callbacks.  A 2001 Professional Builder Magazine survey found that energy efficiency is the number one upgrade most wanted by new homebuyers.  High performance homes are more marketable because of their greater value, comfort, and energy-saving features.

Persistant Myths About High Performance      Home Construction

Myth #1:  High performance homes are too expensive to build.

This is a very common misconception.  Many of the strategies that improve a home's performance are inexpensive.  Often it's simply a matter of paying close attention to details during construction.  

We will help you pick energy-saving materials and technologies that are cost-effective, thereby eliminating a great deal of wasted money and effort.

Also, building a home with a more efficient envelope allows for the installation of a smaller and less expensive HVAC system.  The reduced cost of the HVAC system can offset the cost of other performance strategies.

Myth #2:  Building a high performance home is just a matter of selecting the right materials.

Building a high performance home involves much more than just using energy-efficient windows, high levels of insulation, and high-efficiency heating/cooling equipment.  While these components are important, much of their performance value can be wasted if dozens of other factors are not taken into consideration.

Each home's energy performance is determined by a complex system of interacting factors and components. This complex system includes numerous characteristics of the attic, foundation, mechanical equipment, heating/cooling ducts, insulation, windows, air infiltration rate, site orientation, and local climate.

Ignoring one or a few of these factors and components can dramatically change how the others perform.

Myth #3:  High performance home construction is too complicated.

High performance building practices use readily available technology and materials, along with construction procedures that have been successfully used by builders in tens of thousands of homes across the country.  Nothing exotic or experimental is used.

Our complete energy analysis of the proposed home's design and specifications will give you the information you need to select energy-efficient and cost-effective materials, equipment, and construction procedures.  In high performance homes, details are important.  We guide you through the energy-related details.  The final result will be a high performance home that is far superior to other homes on the market.

Myth #4:  High performance homes look strange.

A high performance home is virtually indistinguishable from other homes.  Style and appeal are not sacrificed.  The home's original architectural design is not altered.  The only difference the homeowner will "see" is the much smaller totals on monthly utility bills.

Is It Possible To Predict How A Home Will Perform Even Before It's Built?

Yes!  Our Comprehensive Home Design Analysis provides a very useful estimate of how energy-efficient a new home will be. The process involves the following three steps:

Step One:  A detailed description of the home design and information about the local climate are fed into our computer system.

Step Two:  A model of the home is created in our computer.

Step Three:  A highly sophisticated software program is used to simulate the yearly energy consumption of the complete home and its individual componants; such as HVAC equipment, ducts, windows, walls, etc.  The local utility rates are used to estimate the home's yearly energy costs.

Along with a complete energy analysis of your home, the Comprehensive Home Design Analysis will provide you with the design information necessary to optimize your home's performance.  You will be able to make informed decisions concerning which energy-efficiency components will provide the best performance for the lowest cost.  The steps of the process are described below:

Step One:  Prior to beginning construction, provide us with a set of the home's construction drawings. Be sure that the following design specifications are included:

• Specifications for insulation levels and placement
• Specifications for windows and doors
• Specifications for heating/cooling equipment
• Specifications for water heating equipment

Compass directions should be clearly marked on the site plan.  Include the names of the local utility providers and specify their current utility rates.  The set of construction drawings will be returned to you upon request.

Step Two:  The above information, along with your local climate data, is used to perform an extensive energy analysis of the proposed home.  The home is modeled in our computer and a wide range of energy-saving strategies is applied and analyzed.  This process results in the creation of a home design that is optimized for energy performance.

Step Three:  The comprehensive design anlaysis will provide you with the following:

• A set of energy analysis reports describing the home's energy use and utility costs before and after being optimized for energy performance.
• A detailed list of recommended energy-saving strategies to implement.
• An estimate of the energy savings expected from each strategy.
• Illustrated instructions for incorporating key energy-saving strategies into the home's design and construction.

Step Four:  After evaluating the energy analysis reports described in the steps above, you may request another computer analysis of the home using your own choices and combinations of energy-saving strategies.

Step Five:  If questions arise during the home's construction, you have the opportunity to consult with us by email.

Fees and Terms

The total fee for the Comprehensive Home Design Analysis is $0.14 per square foot of living space. A basement is considered part of the living space if it is designed to have finished walls, floors, and ceilings.

Send the construction drawings and design specifications to our home office: Home Energy Solutions, 2604 Erie Drive, Springfield, IL 62707-9372.  Include a partial fee payment of $75.00 in the form of a check made out to "Home Energy Solutions."  The remainder of the fee will be due when you receive the design analysis report.

DESIGNING FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY