Jun 30

Study Questions Home Efficiency Upgrades

Study Questions Home Efficiency Upgrades

 

Study Questions Home Efficiency Upgrades. Image courtesy of ponsulak / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Study Questions Home Efficiency Upgrades. Image courtesy of ponsulak / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A new study makes a controversial finding: Home efficiency upgrades don’t equate to much energy savings over the long run.

The University of Chicago study analyzed a random sample of 30,000 low-income Michigan households that were eligible for an Energy Department home weatherization program. The study found that projected energy savings were 2.5 times greater than actual savings, but energy bills didn’t drop enough to pay for the initial cost of the upgrades.

“The models project much larger savings than are realized by home owners,” says Michael Greenstone, an energy economist and head of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

For example, the study found that home owners saw their energy use fall by 10 percent to 20 percent after the upgrades — which could net them $2,400 in energy expenses savings. But that is less than the $5,000 the upgrades cost to install, on average.

The study’s findings could undermine state efficiency programs and call into question long-held understanding of making existing homes energy efficient.

The study has not yet been reviewed by a panel of peers. Energy efficiency experts who were shown the study argue the authors’ conclusions about energy efficiency aren’t justified after a study of a single program in a single state and that was focused only on low-income households.

Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, also argues that the study neglects to factor in other benefits of energy efficiency, including lower maintenance expenses, reducing the likelihood of missed utility payments, and a more comfortable home.

“Paying for the more efficient appliance is still always the best decision, for your pocket book and the environment, regardless of what this study says,” says Noah Horowitz, an efficiency expert and senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, who reviewed the study. “Nothing in this study contradicts the well-documented fact that energy efficiency is the cheapest, fastest and cleanest way to reduce climate change emissions.”

Source: “Study Says Many Home Efficiency Upgrades Don’t Pay Off,” The Associated Press (June 24, 2015)

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