Every year utility costs, management costs, and maintenance costs increase. It is predicted that the largest increases in years to come will come from rising utility costs. As utility costs increase, Reserve fund allocations by default, also increase. Most condominium boards are always searching for ways to reduce costs for their owners, to minimize the dreaded fee increase. They try to negotiate better deals for management and maintenance staff, contractors, insurance companies, and sign long term agreements with utility companies. All of these routine and mundane tasks require a great deal of time and effort. While both necessary and important, these types of activities generally lead to little or no improvement in monthly condo fees. Very often boards expend all of their energy on routine items, such as parking issues, complaints from owners, and routine maintenance, yet they fail to address the simple yet high potential items such as achieving cost savings through energy efficiency.
Energy efficiency upgrades are permanent, have dramatic positive effects on utility costs, and once installed continue to pay the owners back year after year after year. Energy costs are driven by world energy demand, and are predicted to by 35-50% in the next ten years alone. While upgrading boilers, insulation, and windows is effective, it is costly and often not feasible unless the items are at the end of their life.
By far the highest immediate potential we see for savings is in converting common area lighting to "Green" lighting. High quality, energy efficient common area lighting enhances the look and feel of the complex, saves energy, and increases the safety and security for the residents. 50% of a prospects decision to buy or rent is based upon the curb appeal of the complex, and the feeling of safety and security. Improving these items improves unit holders property value and return on investment.
"Green" lighting solutions available today produce high quality light, in a spectrum that is pleasing to the eye and boasts a lifespan of up to 100,000 hours. (5 times to 50 times the life of the bulbs they replace). Although the initial cost is higher, the energy and maintenance cost savings achieved make green lighting the best choice for lighting available today. Bulbs either contain no mercury, or they contain it in an amalgam pellet form which is non toxic and easily recyclable.
Once upgrades are completed, condominium owners can expect to reduce their common area lighting and maintenance costs by 50% to 80%. Introducing energy efficient lighting to the complex generally results in condo fee reductions of $8.00 to $15.00 per unit per month. Savings come from reduced energy and drastically reduced maintenance costs of long life lighting technology. The return for unit owners investing in energy efficient lighting is generally 25-30% of the initial investment per year.
Energy efficient lighting solutions
Traditionally, compact fluorescent lighting, although improved from their early days, still suffers from poor light quality, UV radiation (causing headaches), and poor reliability. From an energy standpoint, CFL lights save energy but because they contain mercury, are not a true green solution. CFL's last an average of 5000 hours and are not easily recyclable. Bulbs must be sealed in bags and taken to an approved recycling depot for disposal, as they cannot be placed in conventional recycling bins. Currently most hardware stores accept CFL bulbs for recycling, but because of the inconvenience, many are not being recycled, instead are disposed of in the trash to poison our landfills and ultimately our environment.
There are generally only two types of green lighting which meet energy efficiency standards and the low/no mercury standard LED and Induction).
LED lighting utilizes light emitting diodes to create light. LED lights generally use 40% less energy than compact fluorescent bulbs, last 5-6 times longer and contain no mercury. Recycling is as simple as putting them into your recycling container. LED lighting is versatile, with bulb types available for most applications.
Induction lights are similar to fluorescent lights in that they use gasses, which once 'excited', react with the phosphor that coats the tubes to produce white light. Fluorescent lamps use electrodes, which degrade with time, to 'excite' the gasses inside of the tube. Induction Lamps do not use electrodes but instead use the principle of Induction (the transmission of energy by way of magnetic field). Induction lighting is the best choice for parking garages, commercial lighting, and outdoor parking lots because of because of its long life (100,000 hour), lowest CO2 emissions and 100% recyclable components! Induction systems come with a 10 year, 60,000 hour warranty!
Green Building Certification specializes in providing environmentally responsible solutions to homeowners, business owners, and condominium owners alike. We assess your building, recommend the most cost effective lighting solution, calculate your potential savings, install the upgrades for you, and present you with a "Green compliance" certificate to hang in the lobby, certifying your lighting solution as green. We can also handle warranty claims, and apply for any available rebates on your behalf. Visit our website at www.greenbuildingcertification.ca.
Our projects typically save between 40% and 60% on common area lighting costs.
