Buying Green - Or Greenish

November 20, 2008

This year’s energy scare is a taste of what will come. Experts all agree that our use of energy in this country has to change. So if you’re looking to buy a home, how do you choose a home that has a moderate appetite for energy? Although “green” homes are becoming more popular, they come at a price. But there are alternative choices that will provide savings if you are aware when you go looking.

The first thing to look at is the orientation of the home. Passive solar homes are designed to work with the sun. The ideal home is one with most windows facing the south. During the hot summer months, the sun moves over your house but will not directly shine into the south facing windows. During the winter months, the sun is lower and will shine into your south facing windows, providing solar warmth to your home. A home with a lot of west facing windows will have much higher cooling bills as the hot afternoon summer sun will penetrate even double glazed windows.

Next take a look at how the house conserves energy. The existing homeowner may be able to tell you what the energy efficiency rating is on the house. Are the windows double or tripple glazed? Is there insulation in the attic and under the floors (not all areas of the country need insulation under the floors). Do the built-in appliances have an ENERGY STAR rating? Is the home leaking energy? Sealing air leaks is the quickest and cheapest energy improvement you can make. Actual savings vary for each home, but it is possible to reduce energy costs by one-third. Sealing air leaks can save money in other ways, because a tighter home envelop allows for smaller-capacity heating and cooling equipment. The best way to reduce air leaks and implement the right ventilation strategy is to hire an energy analyst to run a blower door test.

Bear in mind that once you buy a home you there are other things you can easily do to increase the energy efficiency of your home. Unplug appliances when not in use, especially chargers. Switch to using energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs). Look for ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs by choosing the right lumens (not watts). Use cold water to wash clothes, line dry items, use air dry instead of heated dry on your dishwasher. Invest in thermal shades or drapes.

So with a little forethought, your next home could be a partner in your effort to save both money and the earth’s natural resources!

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Local Information for Owatonna, MN

Latitude: 44.087161 -- Longitude: -93.224559

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As of the census of 2000, there were 22,434 people, 8,704 households, and 5,936 families residing in the city. The population density was 687.4/km² (1,779.9/mi²). There were 8,940 housing units at an average density of 273.9/km² (709.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.09% White, 1.56% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.99% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.92% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.31% of the population. There were 8,704 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.8% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.08. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Minnesota 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Owatonna	Minnesota	United States
Population	22,434	4,919,479	281,421,906
Median age	34.9	35.4	35.3
Median age for Male	33.5	34.4	34
Median age for Female	36.1	36.3	36.5
Households	8,704	1,895,127	105,480,101
Household population	21,945	4,783,596	273,643,273
Average household size	2.52	2.52	2.59
Families	5,939	1,255,141	71,787,347
Average family size	3.08	3.09	3.14
Housing units	8,940	2,065,946	115,904,641
Occupied units	8,704	1,895,127	105,480,101
Vacant units	236	170,819	10,424,540

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