ecobeco February 2011 Newsletter

ecobeco Saving You Money, Energy and the Environment

ecobeco's February 2011 Newsletter
ecoTips, News, Deals, and More - And it's Free!

February 1, 2011

Greetings!

February is for lovers, and here at ecobeco we love energy-efficient, comfortable homes. Our features this month include an array of improvements to the financing and incentives for getting work done in Maryland. These are time-sensitive offers, so read on for more.

Maryland Energy Administration launches 35% rebate program
Maryland Begins Unsecured Energy-Efficiency Loan Pilot Program
ecobeco is now on facebook
Upcoming Events - ecobeco sponsoring Bethesda Green Happy Hour and Greening Condos Workshop Series
ecoTip - Scoping Out Your Insulation
Federal Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency Improvements Partially Extended
ENERGY STAR Tax Holiday in Maryland February 19 - 21

And some replays...

ecobeco wins Angie's List Super Service Award
Pepco Home Energy Savings Program for Maryland Customers
Allegheny Maryland Customers, Get a Home Energy Check-Up at No Cost
ecobeco Named 2009 Maryland Home Performance Contractor of the Year by the Maryland Energy Administration
I'm Not a Pepco Maryland Customer, What About Me?

Enjoy!

Maryland Energy Administration Launches 35% Rebate Program

On Thursday January 20, the Maryland Energy Administration decided to invest $1 Million of federal stimulus money into the Maryland Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program through the creation of a 35% mail-in rebate for air sealing and insulation work up to $3,100.

This rebate is in addition to the Pepco, BGE or Allegheny rebate programs that give 15% rebates.
This rebate is in addition to the 2011 Federal $500 tax credit, and any other local programs.

In other words, you can get over 50% back in rebates and tax credits for taking action on energy efficiency in your home. To get this rebate, you must use a qualified contractor, and the contractors recommended in ecobeco's audit reports are qualified.

This program is reservation-based and is first come first served. There is $1M available, which the State estimates should cover about 750 homes.

For more information and to download the forms you need to fill out, Visit http://energy.maryland.gov/homeperformance/ . The "Checklist" is very helpful in helping to organize all of the paperwork you will need.

If you have questions about the program, or want to schedule an audit, feel free to call the ecobeco office at (240) 396-2141 x2.

Maryland Begins Unsecured Energy Efficiency Loan Pilot Program

Beginning immediately, Maryland residents can apply for an unsecured loan up to $20,000 with a below-market interest rate of 6.99%.

Any ecobeco customer with an audit completed after July 1, 2010 is eligible. Work performed by ecobeco's recommended contractors qualifies for the loan. This pilot program does not have a firm end date, but we expect it will use up its funding in the next 2-3 months, so if you want these loans, time is of the essence!

This program is being administered by the Maryland Clean Energy Center. Click here to learn more and to apply: http://MCECloans.org

This program is funded by stimulus money provided to the State of Maryland, and it requires an energy audit by a Maryland Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program auditor (like ecobeco, which won the 2009 Contractor of the Year for Maryland Home Performance).

If you need help getting work done, or you want to schedule an audit, give us a call at (240) 396-2141 x2.

Here are more details from the press release:

The first step toward securing a loan is completing a home energy audit performed by a certified auditor. The resulting assessment is likely to recommend several ways a home can save energy.

With audit recommendations in hand, Marylanders can go to http://MCECloans.org to apply. These loans do not need to be secured by the owner's home or other large asset. The clean energy loan amounts are capped at $20,000; the interest rate is 6.99%. Most unsecured loans at commercial banks carry interest rates at twice that rate.

The approval process typically takes a few days. Improvements need to be performed by contractors with a Maryland Home Improvement Certification.

Homeowners with proof of a qualifying audit since July 1, 2010 can proceed immediately to the application.

Contact: Maryland Clean Energy Center at 301-738-6280 or loans@mdcleanenergy.org

ecobeco is now on facebook

It's now easier than ever to stay up to date with happenings in the energy efficiency home improvement industry by "liking" ecobeco with facebook. We will post upcoming events, breaking news, and our helpful ecoTips.

We also hope facebook will let us talk with you and our other customers and allow all of us to learn from each other. We want to hear more of your stories about your experiences with us, our contractor partners, and with products being sold by other companies.

Click on the facebook icon below to visit our page, then next to our name, click "Like ecobeco" and you're all set! Thanks.

Upcoming Events - ecobeco sponsoring Bethesda Green Happy Hour and Greening Condos Workshop Series

Come join us as we announce our upcoming "Bethesda Green Condo Workshops" at the upcoming Bethesda Green Happy Hour.

Bethesda Green First Tuesday Happy Hour from 5pm - 8pm at The Wine Bar at the Doubletree Hotel Bethesda on Thursday February 3rd. ecobeco is proud to sponsor this event, and we will formally announce the upcoming "Greening Condos" Workshop Series at this event.

Bethesda Green and ecobeco are proud to announce the new "Greening Condos" Series, which kicks off Wednesday March 2 at 7pm. This is the first of 5 workshops featuring a variety of important topics for condominium owners who want to make their buildings more energy efficiency and eco-friendly. The first session is a discussion of Whole Building Energy Audits - how they work and what they cost - and the incentives that buildings can get from Pepco after going through an energy audit. The event will be held at the Bethesda Green office on Cordell Avenue in Bethesda.

ecoTip - Scoping Out Your Insulation

Insulation helps to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer by making it more difficult for heat to pass through it. When the summer heat beats down on your roof, insulation keeps the heat from moving through the shingles and onto the attic floor and into your living space. Conversely, in the winter, it keeps the heat in your living space in the home longer, and prevents it from rising through the top floor ceiling.

Remember that insulation is not an air barrier unless it is "dense-packed." This technique involves pushing insulation between two wooden boards and packing it in. Insulation that is sitting on an attic floor is typically not dense-packed, and therefore it does not substitute for attic air sealing. We recommend that home owners do air sealing work first, then insulation augmentation second because insulating first makes it very difficult to air seal later.

Homes built 50 years ago or more have much lower standards for insulation. That's why many ecobeco customers with homes from the 60s have just 3-5 inches of fiberglass insulation in their attics. In these homes, moisture, age, and subtle movement (settling) of the insulation can degrade the usefulness of insulation over time.

energy saving attic insulation One of the easiest places to check whether additional insulation is needed is in the attic. A quick way to see if you need more insulation is to measure the depth of any insulation on your uncovered attic floor. The recommended insulation level for most attics in our region is R-49 (or about 13 inches of loose fill cellulose or 16 inches of properly installed fiberglass batts). For a full chart on ENERGY STAR"s recommended insulation levels see here.

To see the R-value for each type of insulation click here.

If your home is older, and it has little insulation, then you are a great candidate for a Home Energy Audit. The Audit will help you identify the right way to bring your home up to current code in a manner that is safe and affordable for you and your family.

Insulation is also typically installed in rim or band joists, floors over unconditioned spaces (like crawlspaces, garages and cantilevers), and exterior walls. Our audit looks at these areas to assess if insulation is a cost-effective improvement.

Finally, insulation is only one piece of the energy puzzle. Proper air sealing, duct sealing, and keeping HVAC appliances well maintained are also critical to energy efficiency by keeping the warm conditioned air inside your house longer.

Federal Tax Incentives for Energy Efficiency Improvements Partially Extended

The US Congress passed legislation this past weekend that brings certainty to the Federal Tax Credit for 2011. The new legislation is substantially more restrictive, and it caps lifetime benefits at $500.

Click here for more information on the 2009-2010 and 2011 Residential Energy Efficiency Tax Credit

Here are a few key changes in the 2011 legislation:

The maximum benefit is $500, and the benefit is now 10% of the purchase price. This is a big change from 30% up to $1,500.
The benefit is a lifetime benefit. That means if you took more than $500 in benefit from 2005 - 2010, you cannot take any benefit in 2011.
Gas or Oil or Propane furnace or boiler benefit capped at $150.
Efficient property (such as insulation) capped at $300.
Window benefits capped at $200.

You can read more about it when Energy Star updates their website in the near future. Also we are not tax lawyers nor accountants, so please contact your accountant or the IRS with questions about your situation.

ENERGY STAR Tax Holiday in Maryland February 19 - 21

The State of Maryland announced their annual Tax-free ENERGY STAR Product Shopping weekend, which will be February 19-21. During this weekend, purchases of qualifying ENERGY STAR products are exempt from Maryland's 6% sales tax. This promotion includes: