Looking for a new water heater?

AO Smith makes the Vertex 100 water heater that is very efficient at 96% thermal efficiency. The 50-gallon Vertex delivers hot water output that exceeds a 75-gallon atmospheric gas water heater. The Vertex can deliver continuous hot water flow of over 4 gallons per minute. It has a LCD display allowing precise temperature control. The Vertex 100 has a dedicated loop for radiant hot water heating systems. Dimensions are similar to a standard 50-gallon power-vent water heater. 100,000 BTU input per hour. Jay Leno and Ed Begly Jr have these units.

Vertex 100 does requires PVC, CPVC or ABS pipe venting not traditional metal venting. It also requires a separate intake PVC airline. The unit requires AC power to run its fan. This fan makes this unit’s operation a bit noisy.  It is probably best suited for a garage. Vertex 100 water heaters cost roughly $2000+ installed minus the Federal and any local utility rebate. Our local utility PG&E has a $50 rebate.

How does it compare to a ‘normal‘ energy saving water heater? AO Smith’s Conservationist series 50 Gallon model has an Energy Factor of 0.62. and 40,000 BTU input per hour. Approximately 80% efficient. It costs about $1300.

An entry level model, ProMax 50 Gallon Water Heater costs about $600 and has an Energy Factor of 0.58. Approximately <80% efficient.

It it worth spending $800 more for the Vertex 100? Will you recoup the price difference over the unit’s six year lifespan?

Clearly without the rebate, the price difference is a huge.  A rough estimate of saving $10 a month in gas x 6 year lifespan = $720.  If it lasts longer than six years, then you are in the right zone. If you need to install a new PVC exhaust an intake pipe, there goes the savings. Consumer Reports states “..high cost offsets much of the roughly $70 per year the Vertex will save you.”

We recently installed The Vertex 100 water heater and so far so good.

Alternatives to the Vertex

Phoenix Evolution is a 96% efficient, 135,000 BTU water heater that can provide hot water for the domestic system, radiant heating, hydro air and even solar assist all in one appliance that qualifies for the Federal rebate.  55-119 Gallons. It also needs PVC Venting. The catch, the Phoenix costs several thousand dollars.

Heat pump water heaters

Heat pump water heaters are another way of keeping your energy bill down. General Electric Co. and Rheem Manufacturing Co. make these heaters, which suck up heat from the air in a basement or garage to assist heating water for the home. It’s like a refrigerator working in reverse. According to Rheem officials, this machine has an operating cost of $225 and $280 per year or about half of a common electric water heater. These heaters are not cheap, costing nearly $1500 for a 50 gallon model, three times more than a normal electric water heater, and five times more than a natural gas powered one. Payback time could be three to four years.

Solar Water Heater

Solar Water Heating is using the sun to heat water, thereby saving on you money on your gas bill by eliminating or reducing the amount of water that needs to be heated. It is cheaper to install than solar electricity and has a faster payback.

You need to do your homework first. Find out how solar friendly your home’s location is, how much hot water you use, upfront costs, cost of fuel, tax incentives, and rebates. Systems range in price from $7,000 – $10,000. They should drop your water heating bills by 50 – 80%. Water heating typically uses 15-25% of the energy consumed by a home. Federal Tax Credit is currently 30%. Typical return on investment is 3 to 10 years. Those that live in cold winter climates may have longer payback times.

Energy.gov has information of estimating a solar water heating system’s cost and payback.

The economics are even better if you are refinancing or building a new home. You could roll the cost into your mortgage and write off the mortgage interest.

Hot Water Recirculating Pumps

How much water do we waste waiting for hot water? We have seen figures estimating 10 gallons of water are wasted a day, waiting for the shower, tap, dishwasher etc. This cost money and is a total waste.

To get instant hot water you need to have a loop in the piping system that circulates hot water back to the water heater. Recirculating pump systems employs a temperature actuated by-pass valve that connects the cold and hot water supply lines at the fixture that is farthest away from the water heater. The system is designed to provide hot water at the most distant fixture and every fixture in series, or close to the main water line. The bypass valve uses the cold water line as the return loop back to the water heater.

Most pumps use electricity and have timers to set operation. Handy folks can install hot water recirculating pump systems themselves. Note that hard water causes problems for these systems.

Also be sure to put insulation on your hot water pipes.

Hybrid Water Heaters – GE GeoSpring Water Heater

We recently covered Tankless Water Heaters. A new product is the Hybrid Water Heater. Like ones from Eternal and GE.  Hybrids have 2 modes of operation. With low flows it has a fixed gas input rate from the preheated water, with higher water needs, it uses a flow sensor like a tankless water heater. GE claims their electric, Energy Star Qualified Geospring Water Heater uses up to 62% less energy than a conventional water heater, and saves $300 a year in energy costs. It has a high energy factor of 2.35. Consumerreports.org has a mini review, their October 2010 print issue has a bigger review.

Hybrid Water Heaters are much higher in efficiency than a regular water heaters, but holds less hot water, usually less than 50 gallons.  Recall that Tankless water heaters may not have the capacity to satisfy multiple water uses at the same time and have issues when temperatures are cold. Energy Star standards are emerging for these new items. These units can be up to 50% more efficient.

Downsides:

1. They are taller, up to 7 feet tall
2. Hybrid water heaters need space to capture uncooled air, upto 1000 sq ft
3. If you do no have a nearby drain, a condensate pump ($150) is needed
4. They are noisier than conventional water heaters

These items are not cheap, they start around $1600 – $2000 for a 50 gallon, 15GPM GE GeoSpring Hybrid Water Heater model. It is projected to have a 56% annual savings, resulting in a short 4.5 year payback time with Federal Tax Credit.  10 year warranty.

The 50 gallon Rheem HP50RH hybrid water heater is slightly cheaper at $1600 – $1750, 58% annual savings, 4 year payback, 10 year warranty.

Most Hybrid Water heaters are covered by local utility rebates, so you can save additional money by purchasing it.

Tankless Water Heater

A Tankless Water heater produces hot water as hot water is requested.  Traditional water heaters have large tanks to store and heat water, so they continually have to keep the water heated.

A Tankless Water heater uses electricity or gas to quickly heat water that is needed.  Different units are capable of product hot water at different rates. Gas units generally perform better.  Large units or multiple units are required if you need to have say a kitchen sink, shower, and other things operating at the same time. Savings up to 30% can be realized.

everun even makes a stylish tankless water heater that you need not hide. They cost from $200 to $1200.

Some key items to look for are electrical or gas needs of the unit, and venting requirements. Many gas units require a certain size of gas inlet and exhaust vent size.  I found these requirement prohibitive in my installation attempt.  Electric tankless do not require expensive vent piping.

Climate is also a factor. Those living in very cold areas with water barely above freezing in the winter should think twice before going tankless.

Federal tax credits for energy efficiency are available to help reduce the cost. Many local gas utilities also have rebates.

Reduce Water Heater Energy Use with your present water heater.

Remodeling and Paint

We selected Yolo Colorhouse paint when we did our remodeling. It is Green Seal Certified. They produce zero VOC paint and primer in a variety of beautiful colors.  As Yolo puts it – VOCs are bad for people and the environment. You can smell them and they easily off gas throughout your home and into the atmosphere. They cause health problems and may be depleting the Ozone.

This part of green affects people directly as you inhale any chemicals coming from the paint in your home.  The cost premium was only a couple dollars a gallon. Yolo also has poster sized color swatches with actual paint on them. No need to buy wasteful small sample cans.  You can also reuse the swatch as gift wrap. Quality of the paint was decent and there was no need for many coats.

The next time we needed to paint a room, Benjamin Moore had a line of no VOC paint that we purchased. The Natura paint line has virtually no odor and no VOCs. Even if you have your paint tinted, it will still retain a no VOC rating unlike other paints.

Most paint lines including Benjamin Moore and Kelly Moore now include zero or low VOC paints, so look for them when shopping.  Large chains such as Lowes even carry zero VOC paints.

VOC limits are set for 250 grams per liter (g/l) for flat paints, 380 g/l for others by the US Government.  California limits it to 100 g/l and 150 g/l. Los Angeles limits it to 50 g/l.

Keep in mind that a base paint color might be zero VOC but any color tints added to a base color usually will add VOCs.

Green Seal approved paints have VOC levels of 50 g/l or lower for flat paints, 100 g/l otherwise.

Quality make be inferior and more coats may be needed with these paints when compared to ‘regular’ paint, but is it worth inhaling chemicals to have a longer lasting finish?

Eco Friendly Green Exterior Paint

Eco friendly Green exterior paint has different attributes to look for when compared to interior paint.

Exterior paints have fungicides. The best choice for an exterior paint is one that has zinc oxide as the fungicide. Next best choices are zero- to very low-VOC paints, acrylic or latex paints, and recycled water-based paint. Avoid oil-based paints because of their high VOC content, as well as paint from old cans that may contain mercury or lead. California’s VOC rules have forced most paint manufactures to reforumate paint for all states.

AFM Safecoat makes a low voc All Purpose Exterior Satin. Yolo Colorhouse makes a zero VOC exterior paint. Be sure to tint them with zero voc tints.

Consumer Reports Indoor Paint Review

Consumer Reports has a new issue entitled Best TVs with a great review of indoor paints including an independent review and discussion of low and no VOC paints.

Low VOC paints contain no more than 50 grams per liter of VOCs. At one time indoor paints contained almost 400 grams per liter of VOCs.

The top rated paints were low VOC with zero VOC ones rated lower. Some of the zero VOC paints that did well in Satin and Flat finishes that we have encountered in the past are Olympic Premium from Lowe’s. This paint is very inexpensive and available nationwide.

BestDealMagazines has 1yr subscriptions to Consumer Reports sold at a steep discount. Normal newsstand price is $77. Use 15% off coupon code in our right side column to save even more.

Elastomeric paint – Never paint your home again?

A recent radio commercial was advertising Elastomeric paint. They claim that you would Never have to paint your home again. You could laugh at your neighbors painting their houses every spring and summer. Money would be saved on painting as well as a reduction in all the chemicals and pollutants used in the processes. It was time to repaint our home, so we decided to look into this type of paint.

Elastomeric Paint Plusses

• Waterproof
• Available in most brands and colors
• Fills small cracks and holes. Great for masonry
• Flexible, Expands and contracts in response the weather changes. Good for wide temperature changes
• Limited lifetime warranty often available

Elastomeric Paint Weaknesses

• More costly. May cost up to 5 times more.
• Each can covers far less area than conventional paint
• Latex paint is good enough for smooth surfaces such as interior trim, Sheetrock, or smooth wood
• Spraying it on is required
• Not for use on steps, floors, or glazed brick
• Clean, dry and dull finish must be achieved before applying
• New concrete or stucco surfaces must wait up to 90 days before painting

With a typical paint job lasting up to 10 years, it would take a long time to make back the price differential. If you were to sell your house, there is the distinct chance that the next owner would want to repaint it to their color scheme, negating any price premium.

Recycling Paint

Paint cannot be simply tossed into the trash or drain. Check with your local hazardous waste disposal department, as most will help you recycle paint. Paintcare has established hundreds of drop off sites to help you recycle extra paint. This program covers interior and exterior coatings sold in 5 gallon or less containers.

California required the paint industry to develop a new program to recycle post consumer paint waste. This program was created in response to this.

A common question from computer users is whether they need to buy a new computer because their present machine is running very slow. In this article we will jump into some tips to hopefully help you save some money and be more green by fixing your computer’s problems.

Upgrade or update your current computer

Before purchasing a new computer, consider upgrading or updating your current computer. Many people experience slowdowns with their current laptop or desktop and figured that it is time to just purchase a new machine. Before spending is money, you should investigate enhancing your current computer.

Fixing a Slow Computer

Has your computer slow down after years of usage? Is time to try a  couple free techniques to liven up your computer’ s performance. Be sure to back up your machine before doing anything.

• Make sure a virus or spyware is not slowing you down. Microsoft Security Essentials is free antivirus software. Malwarebytes is free anti-malware software. Install these programs and scan your machine for malware. Visit our sister site, Safegadget.com for more free security tutorials.
• CCleaner as is free software to remove all the junk that may have accumulated in your system. PC Decrapifier removes useless programs bundled with new machines.
• Uninstall any programs that are not needed. Revo makes an uninstaller program to help you remove programs that will not uninstall correctly.
• Disable unnecessary programs that run at startup with MSCONFIG
• Remove extra browser plugins and toolbars
• Reinstall Windows without losing your data
• Understand your computer’s performance by running a benchmark program. This will help you understand whether you have a problem or need a faster machine.
• If your computer has less than 2 GB of RAM memory, upgrade it to 4 GB of RAM.
• Reduce your system’s default recycle bin size, Internet Explorer’s temp-files storage, and the System Restore storage usage
• If your hard drive is full, consider purchasing an external hard drive to increase your computer storage
• Generally if it costs more than $100 to upgrade your computer, you’re better off recycling your current machine, and purchasing a new one

Switching to a Solid State Drive (SSD)

If you have a computer with at least an Intel Core processor, you might consider upgrading its hard drive to a solid state drive. This type of upgrade can help eliminate the storage bottleneck and save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars over a new computer. We recently upgraded a notebook with a Core 2 Duo processor and found that we essentially gave this notebook a new lease on life. Before the upgrade, it took several minutes to start up. Now the machine boots up in 30 seconds or less.  Upgrading does require opening up the machine and cloning, and swapping drives. This is not that difficult with all the tools that are available like Acronis Disk Imaging software. This upgrade helped improve battery life by approximately 15% and cost less than $100 for an 80GB SSD.

Buying a new computer

Looking for a more energy saving new computer? Check this database first: EPEAT is a system to help purchasers in the public and private sectors evaluate, compare and select desktop computers, notebooks and monitors based on their environmental attributes. They are listed by Bronze, Silver or Gold ratings. EPEAT is run the non profit Green Electronics Council.

Climate Savers also has a database of energy savings computers. This non profit was started by Google and Intel in 2007. Per Climate Savers – “Our goal is to promote development, deployment and adoption of smart technologies that can both improve the efficiency of a computer’s power delivery and reduce the energy consumed when the computer is in an inactive state.”

Erecycle has a list of places where you can recycle your old system.

Sony VAIO EG3 Series Notebook

Sony has a new EG3-series eco friendly and light 5lb, 14 inch notebook that has a chassis made from recycled CDs. The unit’s carrying bag is made of recycled plastic bottles. An electronic user manual in place of the standard 76-page printed manual to save paper.

This netbook is Energy Star 5.0 compliant, meaning that it meets their low power guidelines, helping extend battery life up to a long 7.5 hours. It is also EPEAT Gold registered. EPEAT takes into account energy use, materials use, recycled content in packaging, and end of life management. It is also RoHS compliant, has a Mercury-free LED Backlight, and has PVC-free exterior product casing and packaging.

This notebook is targeted towards families as their second computer. It has a reasonably sized screen and keyboard. The Sony EG3 Series laptop sells for $469.99 from Amazon.

Acer recently introduced a new 15.6 inch Aspire notebook, that is free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). It is also Energy Star 5.0 compliant.

Hopefully these types of notebooks will be the new norm and not a one-off product.

We are doing some research into replacing an aging outdoor deck.  The costs to repair it and repaint it are so high that it makes sense to simply recycle the old deck and replace the old redwood.  One of the first decisions when redoing a deck is what type of material to use, real wood or a composite decking material. Both materials cost about the same, with composite material slightly more expensive.

Eco-friendly FSC Certified Wood

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an independent nonprofit group started in 1993, who gives a seal of approval to commercial forests that meet strong environmental and social guidelines. They use independent auditors to ensure compliance. If you look on the back of many major catalogs, you will see the FSC logo certifying the paper.

We found a local lumber yard that sells a lot of FSC certified woods. Interesting to see that another larger one in South San Francisco barely knew what FSC was. FSC Certified 2×4′s did cost about 40% more when we bought them. They do have a stamp saying they are FSC certified. Someday the price delta will be smaller.

Analysis of Using Real Wood

Appearance – Beautiful look, if kept up.

Maintenance – Requires re-staining or sealing every 1 to 4 years.

Installation – More expensive thick tropical woods like Ipe require special saw blades, drilling, and deck screws to install.

Reliability – Many types of woods are very reliable and termite proof. Real wood is also best at preventing slipping.

Eco Friendliness – FSC certified woods are green and sustainable

photo credit: Velo Steve

Analysis of Composite Decking Material (Timbertech, Trex, Evergrain, Fiberon etc)

Appearance - Not as nice as real wood, but improving.

Maintenance - Lower maintenance? Periodic washing to remove dirt, mold, mildew. Chemicals may be involved. May require some refinishing after many years.

Installation - Normal installation.

Reliability - Mold and mildew problems require maintenance and pressure washing. Splinters, fading, and scratching are still issues. Suntan lotion can stain it. Slipping issues when wet.

Eco Friendliness – Many are made with wood pulp and petroleum products such as plastic or vinyl. Some are made from wood mill waste and polyethylene (PE or HDPE) from recycled plastic products. TimberTech is 12% post-consumer recycled plastic. Fiberon has up to 74% recycled content and up to 10% reclaimed content on products. The problem area is that they are not very recyclable after it has been installed.

Cost – May cost more than real wood.

If you want to go with Composite, you should think about going all the way to Carefree building products, 100% recycled plastic lumber products that can be recycled themselves. There are also PVC or polyethylene plastic products that are better than Composites at resisting the elements.

Some localities require Class A fireproof materials, so that alone many limit your choices to a certain kind of decking.

The biggest issue is whether composite materials can maintain their ‘look’ for a long period of time, perhaps decades. One look at the Bob Villa forums indicates lots of composite problems. As the Sierra Club said: “These wood composite products may save our current generation some time, but may have a negative impact on future generations when they try to dispose of them.”  Trex technical support told us to trash extra Trex pieces as they do not recycle them.

FSC certified Natural wood seems to be the best bet. IPE, Douglas Fir, California redwood, and Mahogany are good bets. Avoid pressure treated wood as it contains chemicals like chromated copper arsenate and cannot be recycled.

Eco Friendly FSC Certified Wood – Way Basic Green Cubes

When we started remodeling we wanted to use as much Eco Friendly Wood as possible. We looked for FSC Certified wood in our cabinets and from our contractor.

When buying cabinets, furniture, try to buy them with FSC Certified woods. Or do even better by fixing up what you have. Buy new pillows or slip covers.

Way Basic Green Cubes

Way Basics makes a eco friendly furniture and storage products. We were sent their cube and it to be an easy to assemble building block product made from sustainable zBoard – recycled paper and itself fully recyclable. You pull off the tape and carefully tape boards together. It is pretty sturdy and costs $20.

Did you know that (DECT) 1.9Ghz digital cordless phones emit the same type of pulsed microwave radiation (about 1.8 GHz) as ordinary (GSM) cell phones. Emissions can be about 6 V/m within a metre of the base unit, for as long as it is plugged in. Companies push these phones because they do not interfere with Wifi networks. Many base stations emit their radiation even when the phone is not in use! Microwaves are continuously emitted 24 hours a day as long as they are plugged in. Not good. Details – More Warnings. – “DECT cordless phones work at a fixed power. Mobiles turn their power down to the lowest level possible, so when you are near a base station this can be much lower than a DECT cordless. DECT pulses are far more aggressive than for mobiles.”

Only the 3rd generation DECT models will not emit radiation continuously. These new models also adjust their power output depending on how far away the base station is from the handset. We could not find US cordless phone models that mention this issue. This is a big deal in Europe.

This wireless technology is now the main one being used on most cordless phones in the US. 5.8Ghz cordless phones have faded away. There are issues with these DECT cordless phones constantly transmitting even when not in use. It is especially concerning if you put a cordless handset next to your bed. Always err on the cautious side.

Siemens eco dect line is a popular line of cordless phones. The Siemens Gigaset SL785 DECT cordless phone was the first Eco DECT Mode Plus cordless phone to address the issues. The following Siemens DECT Cordless phones are similar:  Siemens A580IP and Siemens S795

What to look for in a cordless phone

• Reduce the transmitting power of the Siemens Gigaset ECO Mode Plus Phone’s base station by 80% simply by selecting the ECO DECT Mode.

• Energy saving ECO Mode Plus for 100% reduction of transmitting power when the handset is idle or charging.
• “The international limits for radio wave transmission ensure that there are no risks. Our products fall well below these recommended limits. Even though there is still no scientific evidence that radio waves emitted by DECT phones are harmful, SHC’s approach is to equip all its Gigaset phones with functions that enable the automatic or manual reduction of transmitting power.”

• The energy-saving power supply of the Gigaset ECO Mode Plus Phone’s uses up to 60% less energy.

See how much radiation is coming from a DECT cordless phone.

Siemens now has a family of ECO Mode Plus DECT cordless phones, so be sure to check these out when shopping for a new cordless phone.  While they still radiate while being use, these eco dect phones are far better than plain DECT cordless phones. Some are available inside the US.

5.8Ghz cordless phones

If you have an old DECT phone, you may want to upgrade. We use 5.8Ghz phones to avoid this issue. Amazon still sells a bunch of 5.8Ghz cordless phones.

Panasonic DECT Cordless Phones

Some Panasonic DECT Cordless phones feature an Intelligent Eco Mode that automatically lowers the power consumption when you are using the handset close to the base unit or while the phone is not in use.  This is better at reducing radiation, but not great. We recently tested one that has a ECO indicator on the handset. This light remained on while handsets sat in their cradle.

Other cordless phone manufacturers do not even mention these radiation issues.  When in doubt, use a corded telephone.

DECT Baby Monitors Radiation Alert

DECT technology is now the main one being used on most cordless phones and is now being used for Baby Monitors. It is especially concerning because a baby monitor is almost constantly transmitting. Another concern is that you place the baby monitors next to your bed and your baby’s crib. This issue is getting press in the UK, not in the United States.

How much constantly emitted radiation is safe?  Let the experts debate it, we do not even want to worry about it.

We suggest avoid DECT baby monitors and stick to the old style 900Mhz baby monitors. Turn the baby monitor OFF when you absolutely do not need it.  Station the monitors at least 10 feet from both beds.

Think twice about deploying your own WiFi network, which will add to the radiation. At least turn it off when you are sleeping.