6/30/2009 - Bend
by Matt McDonald
 
Alex and Tracey Valley's west Bend home, built in 1930, is labeled an energy hog.
 
"We were paying close to $250 to $300 for our gas bill," said Tracey Valley.
 
With the flip of a switch and the whir of the fan, air is sucked out of the house.
 
"The idea with the blower door, we can depressurize the home. Essentially, we can pull air in from any places in the home where there might be leakage," explains Megan Clark, an Energy Advisor with the Energy Trust of Oregon.
 
"All that air is coming through here very very fast," said Alex Valley.
 
Energy tests for the average home cost between five hundred and a thousand dollars. Uninsulated gaps in the attic, a thirty year old furnace and an inefficient hot water heater helped the Valley's win a $25,000 energy home makeover from the Energy Trust of Oregon.
 
 
"There's no insulation in the ceiling here at all and you can see daylight around the chimney in different places. It's not an airtight situation here by any means," said Alex Valley.
 
The two most cost effective ways for any homeowner to improve energy efficiency, improved insulation and control air leaks.
 
Cans of expandable foam sealant like this usually cost less than five dollars and can be found at any home improvement store. And they can be used to fill cracks where your home might be losing air.
 
Insulation is rated by r-value. The higher the value the better the insulation, usually R-19 for exterior walls. For windows, it's a U-value and the opposite rule. A lower the U-value the better. Windows with a U-value below 0.3 can quality for a cash incentive from the Energy Trust.
 
The impact on power bills can be significant.
 
"We're being told it will decrease by as much as fifty percent, so of course we're thrilled with that possibility," said Tracy Valley.