• Why a Touchstone Energy® Home℠?
• How does ENERGY STAR® relate to the HOME Program?
• How energy efficient is a Touchstone Energy HOME?
• Where do you start when creating a more energy efficient home?
• What's involved in doing your own energy audit?
• Why should I use a professional energy auditor when I can do it myself?
• How do you know if the energy improvement will save money?
• What is the best way to determine if air leaks are in the home?
• How do you know if the home needs more insulation?
• How do you know if the HVAC equipment is functioning properly?
• How do you insulate windows and what is a good window?
• Does construction of an energy efficient home really save you money?
• How can I best minimize my cooling costs in Summer?
• How does lighting effect my energy bill?
• How can I get more information?

Why a Touchstone Energy® Home?
In past years, traditional building practices among builders and contractors were passed down from one generation to the next. Though this practice is rich in tradition, many builders find it difficult to keep pace with changing material technology and evolving home science practices in the residential home construction market. Indiana's Touchstone Energy Cooperatives want to reward customers for exceeding the norm in energy efficient building practices. Members of Indiana's Touchstone cooperatives, who choose to build or remodel a home, may be assured that their Touchstone Energy Home (HOME) achieves a level of performance that will save them money and provide for years of comfort living.

For the cooperative member services representative, the key to maximizing the value of the Touchstone Energy Home Program is to establish partnerships and alliances that drive promotion, increase recognition and improve program credibility. The Home Program offers Indiana's Touchstone Energy cooperatives the opportunity to truly service its member base.

Touchstone Energy Homes are well-insulated, electrically heated homes that feature:

•	Improved energy efficiency
•	Less operating expense
•	Cleaner and safer surroundings
•	More comfort
•	Higher home resale value

By utilizing existing code guidelines and rating standards it is possible to network into an expanding base of service providers as well as consumer products and services that can supplement consumer/member needs. Partnerships with national energy programs and product manufacturers provide a source for training, print, video, and other promotional materials and even co-op advertising with little or no up front development costs.

As co-ops that serve local member needs, we are extremely interested in the benefits derived from improved energy efficiency. These program standards will provide improved comfort and savings in addition to other health and building performance improvements.
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ENERGY STAR
The Touchstone Energy® Home^SM (HOME) standard in Indiana is co-branded with the Department of Energy's ENERGY STAR® New Homes program to leverage brand awareness, to facilitate training and enhance the tools available to distribution cooperatives, their members, builders and contractors in the marketplace.

Touchstone Energy Home standards, when adhered to completely, provide the assurance to future home building consumers that their newly built home will exceed the minimum energy efficiency performance requirements of ENERGY STAR, and meet the standards of a Touchstone Energy Home. The combined resources available through Touchstone Energy and ENERGY STAR represent some of the most complete training application of home science building practices taught in the market today. This winning combination provides the assurance that program certified homes will be less costly to heat and cool, will offer superior comfort, and generate greater resale value than homes not built to the HOME and ENERGY STAR standard.

The Touchstone Energy Home program is unique from the ENERGY STAR program in that homes constructed under the HOME program must be ALL-electric heated and cooled. This important distinction provides the homeowner with a clean, comfortable, affordable and extremely efficient life-long residence.
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Touchstone Energy HOME Performance
The Indiana Touchstone Energy® Home^SM (HOME) takes into account "prescriptive and performance based" audit approaches. The prescriptive approach is used to more readily communicate the custom standards to the builder and consumer. But it is through the inspection and rating process that the final determination is made as to whether the residence meets the Touchstone Energy Home energy efficiency standard.

Starting in January 2006, Touchstone Energy Homes equal or exceed the July 2006 ENERGY STAR base requirements. Indiana's Touchstone Energy Home is designed to exceed the 2004 International Residential Code (IRC) by a minimum 15 percent. The "trade-off" approach is used when determining if overall performance level achieves a Home Energy Rating System (HERS) score of 83 points or better—the minimum target level of performance for homes built under the HOME program.

Adherence to the program's prescriptive checklist maximizes the likelihood that the home will pass inspection. Diversion from the prescribed methods may result in a failure to achieve the target performance rating, and should not occur without first consulting with your assigned home rater or local cooperative's Touchstone Energy Home representative.

Home Energy Audits
A home energy audit is the first step to assess how much energy your home consumes, and to evaluate what measures you can take to make your home more energy-efficient. An audit will show you problems that may, when corrected, save you significant amounts of money over time. Audit findings pinpoint where your house is losing energy. Audits also determine the efficiency of your home's heating and cooling systems. An audit may also show you ways to conserve hot water. You can perform a simple energy audit yourself, or have a professional energy auditor carry out a more thorough audit.
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Do-It-Yourself Energy Audits
You can conduct a home energy audit yourself. With a simple, but diligent, "walk-through," you can spot many problems in the house. When auditing your home, keep a checklist of areas you have inspected and record problems. This will help you prioritize your energy efficiency upgrades. The information contained in these pages will assist you in developing your inspection checklist.
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Professional Energy Audits
A professional energy rater uses a variety of techniques and equipment to determine the energy efficiency of a structure. The expertise that the professional rater offers surpasses that of most do-it-yourselfers. The cost of going with a professional is most often recouped within a few months of energy use. Thorough audits make use of equipment such as a blower door , which measures the extent of leaks in the building envelope, as well as infrared cameras, which reveal hard-to-detect areas of air infiltration and missing insulation.

All professional energy audits should include a "walk-through" similar to the one above and a blower test. Most audits will include a thermographic scan. Professional audits generally go into great detail. The rater should do a room-by-room examination of the residence, as well as a thorough examination of past utility bills.

Before the rater visits the home, make a list of any existing problems such as condensation and uncomfortable or drafty rooms. Secure copies or a summary of the home's annual energy bills. (Your utility can get these for you.) The rater first examines the outside of the home to determine the size of the house and its features (i.e., wall area, number and size of windows). He or she then evaluates the occupant behavior: Is anyone home during working hours? What is the average thermostat setting for summer and winter? How many people live in the home? Is every room in use? Your answers may help reveal some simple ways to reduce household energy consumption. Walk through your home with the rater as he or she works, and ask questions. Observe use of equipment to detect sources of energy loss, such as blower doors, infrared cameras, furnace efficiency meters, and surface thermometers.
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Blower Door Tests
A blower door is a powerful fan that mounts into the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air out of the house, lowering air pressure inside. The higher outside air pressure then flows in through the home's unsealed cracks and openings. The rater may also use a smoke pencil to detect air leaks. These tests determine the air infiltration rate of a building. Establishing the proper building tightness helps reduce energy consumption due to air leakage, avoid moisture condensation problems, avoid uncomfortable drafts caused by cold air leaking in from the outdoors, and ensures that the home's air quality is not contaminated by indoor air pollution.

There are two types of blower door units: "calibrated" and "uncalibrated." It is important that energy raters use the calibrated type. This blower door has several gauges that measure the amount of air pulled out of the house by the fan. Uncalibrated blower units can only locate leaks in the home. They provide no method for determining the overall tightness of a building. The calibrated blower door's data allows the auditor to quantify the amount of air leakage and the effectiveness of any air-sealing job.
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Validation Technique - Simple Payback
Simplified payback offers an easy-to-understand form of cost/benefit analysis. Use of this calculation method determines the amount of time it will take to return the value of the investment. Simply take the first year installed cost and divide it by the first year energy cost savings produced by the improvement:

This method may be used in new construction projects to determine the most rewarding energy efficient design alternatives. Keep in mind that this approach does not take into consideration future changes in heating fuel or electricity costs. Increases in fuel cost can dramatically reduce the payback period for energy saving construction improvements.

The process of determining your best energy investment alternative has been greatly simplified through the introduction of the Touchstone Energy HOME Energy Savings Calculator. Your energy savings calculator offers the convenience to compare energy-use cost estimates based upon your inputs.
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Locate Air Leaks
First, make a list of obvious air leaks (drafts). The potential energy savings may range from 5% to 30% per year, and home comfort is improved. Check for indoor air leaks such as gaps along the baseboard or edge of the flooring, and at junctures of the walls and ceiling. Check to see if air can flow through electrical outlets, switch plates, window frames, baseboards, weather-stripping around doors, fireplace dampers, attic hatches, and wall- or window-mounted air conditioners. Look for gaps around pipes and wires, electrical outlets, foundation seals, and mail slots. Check to see if the caulking and weather stripping are applied properly (no gaps or cracks) and are in good condition.

Inspect windows and doors for air leaks. See if you can rattle them, since movement means possible air leaks. If you can see daylight around door and window frames, then the door or window leaks. You can usually seal these leaks with caulking or weather stripping. Check the storm windows to see if they fit and are not broken. You may also wish to consider replacing your old windows and doors with new high-performance types. If new factory-made doors or windows are too costly, you can install low-cost plastic sheets over the windows.

On the outside of your house, inspect all areas where two different building materials meet. For example: inspect all exterior corners where siding and chimneys meet; and areas where the foundation and the bottom of exterior brick of siding meet. You should plug and caulk holes or penetrations for faucets, pipes, electric outlets, and wiring. Look for cracks and holes in the mortar, foundation, and siding, and seal them with the appropriate material. Check the exterior caulking around doors and windows, and determine if exterior storm doors and primary doors seal tightly.

In homes where a fuel is burned (i.e., natural gas, fuel oil, propane, or wood) for heating, be certain the appliance has an adequate air supply. Generally one square inch of vent opening is required for each 1,000 Btu of appliance input heat. When in doubt, contact your local utility company, energy professional, or ventilation contractor.
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Insulation
Your home probably needs insulation if:

• • • •

It was built prior to 1980 It is uncomfortably cold in winter or hot in the summer Your energy bills seem excessive You are interrupted by outdoor noise

If you are conducting your own energy audit, heat loss through the ceiling and walls in your home could be very large if the insulation levels are less than the recommended minimum. You should check to see if the level of the attic and wall insulation of your home is at least at the minimum recommended amount. Given today's energy prices, and likelihood that future prices probably will be higher the insulation level might be inadequate, especially if you have an older home.

If the attic hatch is located above a conditioned space, is it as heavily insulated as the attic? Is it weather-stripped, and does it close tightly? In the attic, determine whether openings for items such as pipes, ductwork, and chimneys are sealed. Any gaps should be sealed with expanding foam caulk or permanent sealant. If you have recessed light fixtures, determine if they are air tight IC rated fixtures. It is strongly recommended that only air tight IC rated fixtures be used. Other types allow large amounts of your heating dollar to escape in the attic. If you do not wish to purchase new IC rated fixtures, be certain to allow a three-inch space around any recessed lights. This will prevent the recessed light from overheating. Place a fire-rated safe box over the non-IC rated fixture and insulate over the box.

Make sure that the attic vents are not blocked by insulation. Seal any electrical boxes in the ceiling with flexible caulk (from the living room side or attic side) and cover the entire attic floor with the recommended amount of insulation.

Checking wall insulation levels is more difficult. Select an exterior wall and turn off the circuit breaker or unscrew the fuse for any outlets in the wall. Be sure to test the outlets to make certain that they are not "hot." Check outlet with a lamp or portable radio. Remove the cover plate from one of the outlets and gently probe into the wall with a thin, long stick or screwdriver. If you encounter resistance, you have some insulation there. You could also make a small hole in a closet, behind a couch or in some other unobtrusive area to see if the wall cavity is filled with insulation. Ideally, the wall cavity should be totally filled with insulation material. Unfortunately, this method cannot tell you if the entire wall is insulated, or if the insulation has settled. Only a thermographic inspection can do this.
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Thermographic Inspection
Energy auditors may also use thermography - infrared scanning - to detect thermal defects and air leakage in building envelopes. Thermography measures surface temperatures by using infrared video and still cameras. These tools see light that is in the heat spectrum. Images on the video or film record the temperature variations of the building's skin, ranging from white for warm areas to black for cooler areas. The resulting images help the auditor determine if insulation is needed. They also serve as a quality control tool, to ensure that insulation has been installed correctly.

A thermographic inspection is either an interior or exterior survey. The auditor decides which method would give the best results under certain weather conditions. Interior scans are more common, because warm air escaping from a building does not always move through the walls in a straight line.

Heat loss detected in one area of the outside wall might originate at some other location on the inside of the wall. Also, it is harder to detect temperature differences on the outside surface of the building during windy weather. Because of this, interior surveys are generally more accurate, as they benefit from reduced air movement. Thermographic scans are also commonly used when the blower door is running. The blower door helps exaggerate air leakage through defects in the building shell. Such air leaks appear as black streaks in the infrared camera's view finder.

Most energy audits take from four to eight hours and cost between $300 and $500. Any retrofit work would cost additional money.
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Heating/Cooling Equipment
Inspect heating and cooling equipment annually, or as recommended by the manufacturer. If you have a forced air furnace, check your filters and replace them as needed. Generally, they should be changed every month or two, especially during periods of high usage. Have a professional check and clean your equipment once a year. If the unit is more than 15 years old, you should consider replacing it with a newer, energy-efficient unit. This will go far to reduce your energy consumption, especially if the existing equipment is in poor condition. Check your ductwork for dirt streaks, especially near seams. These indicate air leaks, and they should be sealed with duct mastic. Insulate ducts or pipes that travel through unheated spaces.
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Highly Insulating Window Technology
Temperature differentials across a window, particularly with cold exterior environments in residential buildings, can lead to significant energy losses. Current low-emissivity coatings, gas-fills, and insulating frames provide significant energy savings over typical single or double glazed products.

If you're building a new home, you'll want to do your homework. Windows vary significantly by design, size and thermal qualities. For a thorough introduction to ENERGY STAR® qualifying models, check out: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=windows_doors.pr_windows.

If your goal is to make improvements to existing windows, consider the addition of storm windows. Storm windows are the most effective energy saver you can add to an existing window. An economical alternative is plastic or vinyl sheeting. Many types are available. Look for those which can be heated with a hair dryer and shrunk to create a clear non-distorted view.
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Benefits to Building an Energy Efficient Home
New home construction provides a great opportunity to minimize energy consumption while leveraging the value of the home you can afford. Consider the benefits:

• • • •

Lower utility bills. Qualification for energy efficient mortgages. Higher home resale value. The potential for more monthly disposable income to do with what you want.

For every dollar spent on energy saving features and high construction standards, you reduce the monthly dollars spent to heat home and water, cooling, lighting and cooking. Energy consumption falls as energy efficiency building measures are applied. Consultation with your builder or local cooperative's Touchstone Energy® Home^SM (HOME) representative can help determine how to best invest in energy efficiency.

When it comes to the home, most agree—comfort drives satisfaction. Application of HOME building standards help assure the elimination of drafts, and uneven warm and cold spots in the home. These discomfort zones are usually not attributable to the thermostat setting. It is more often associated with high air infiltration into the home.

Higher resale value results when construction quality and improved energy efficient building practices are employed. Simply put, energy-efficient homes are worth more in the marketplace. A recent Touchstone Energy® sponsored survey found that 85% of the respondents believe energy saving features contribute to the home's resale value.

Last, special financing and mortgage programs may be available to you as the owner of an energy efficient home. Documented proof of lower energy consumption in the home may qualify you for a larger mortgage than that received with a conventional built home.

According to the National Association of Realtors®, lenders are now looking closely at the projected utility costs for a home in determining whether the prospective mortgagee can afford the monthly mortgage payment and the utility payment. The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) and the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) have changed their appraisal forms to recognize energy efficiency. Finally, Freddie Mac has changed its purchasing guidelines to permit higher loan-to-income ratios for energy efficient properties.

Meet with your local lender before entering into the construction phase to determine if your future home and your ability to pay qualify for an energy efficiency mortgage.
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Site Planning - Cold Climates
Home site planning is one of the most overlooked considerations of building a home. If acting as the designer, the general contractor, architect or do-it-yourself homeowner, you will want to examine the site for the most suitable home placement and solar orientation. The designer will also want to take into consideration things like: natural windbreaks, summer breezes, shade, water run-off and ground water tables. When conditions exist, sites facing southeast, south or southwest provide the opportunity for optimizing a building's orientation with respect to daylighting and passive solar gain.

Landscaping should be used to buffer the house from winter winds, allow for winter solar gain and daylighting, and provide summer shade and cooling. Here are a few other tips:

•	Compact building designs are more energy efficient than spread out, high cubic foot homes.
•	When laying out the floor plan, locate the most actively used spaces where daylighting will most benefit the area.
•	Kitchens, living rooms and family rooms should be located to the south side.
•	Large paved surfaces should be placed on the lee side of use areas to minimize uncomfortable summer thermal mass effects perpetuated by high winds.
•	Open floor plans optimize air flow and ventilation, improve daylighting, and in winter, distribute heat more evenly.

Solar radiation and daylighting penetrating the home and entering through windows can cause the home's inside temperature to rise as much as 20° F on hot days. This effect can work for you when laying out the homes orientation, especially in the winter months. In designing for a cooling load, avoid excess windows on east-and west-facings of the home because they are the most common cause for summertime overheating. Too many windows on the south side of the home may lead to overheating in summer and winter. Double pain, Low E glazed windows should be installed throughout the home to maximize thermal efficiencies, reduce solar radiation, and to protect interior home surfaces from fading.

Roof overhangs and awnings are a good source for shade, as are drapes with light-colored linings or blinds. Keep in mind that lighter colors for walls, floors and ceilings, and roofs reflect sunlight and will reduce heat gain.
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Lighting
Energy for lighting accounts for about 10% of your electric bill. Examine the wattage size of the light bulbs in your house. You may have 100 watt (or larger) bulbs where 60 or 75 watts would do. You should also consider compact fluorescent lamps for areas where lights are on for hours at a time. Your electric utility may offer ENERGY STAR rated products for purchase.
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For More Information
The following publications and videotape are good sources of information on how to reduce the amount of energy you use at home, and how to keep energy costs down. These items provide tips on home energy auditing, how to prioritize your energy efficiency investments, and how to proceed if you are so inclined. The publications may be found in your local bookstore and library, or obtained from the publisher as indicated. You should verify availability, prices, and shipping charges before ordering.

"Best-Practice Energy Upgrades," S. Andrews, Journal of Light Construction, (18:6) pp. 95-100, March 2000.

Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings, A. Wilson, J. Thorne, and J. Morrill, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), 1999. Available from ACEEE, 1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 801, Washington, DC 20036; Phone: (202) 429-0063; Fax: (202) 429-2248; Email: info@aceee.org; World Wide Web: http://www.aceee.org. 244 pp., $8.95.

Energy-Savers: Tips on Saving Energy and Money at Home, U.S. Department of Energy, 1998.

"Energy-Saving Roundup," Consumer Reports, (58:10) pp. 649-67, October 1993.

Home-Made Money: How to Save Energy and Dollars in Your Home, R. Heede, et al., Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), 1995. Available from RMI, 1739 Snowmass Creek Road, Snowmass, CO 81654-9199; Phone: (970) 927-3851; Fax (970) 927-4178 or (970) 927-3420 (for publications); Email A. Wilson, J. Thorne, and J. Morrill, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), 1999. Available from ACEEE, 1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 801, Washington, DC 20036; Phone: (202) 429-0063; Fax: (202) 429-2248; Email: orders@mri.org; World Wide Web: http://www.mri.org. 285 pp., $14.95, ISBN 188317807.

Insulation Fact Sheet, U.S. Department of Energy, 1997.

"Home Energy Audits: Only a Web Site Away," Helen Hunter, Home Energy. ,(15:6), Nov/Dec 1998. Available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/hem.dis.anl.gov/eehem/98/981112.html.

Residential Energy: Cost Savings and Comfort for Existing Buildings, J. Krigger, Saturn Resource Management, 2001. Available from Saturn R.M., 324 Fuller Avenue, N-13, Helena, MT 59601-9984; Phone: (800) 735-0577; Fax: (406) 442-1316; Email: saturn@srmi.biz; World Wide Web: http://www.srmi.biz/bookstore.html. 288 pp., $35.00, ISBN 1880120119.

"Troubleshooting Guide to Residential Construction. From the Editors of the Journal of Light Construction, Williston, VT, July 2003, p. 158. Orders: http://www.eeba.org/bookstore. 295 pp., $33.00, ISBN 1928580122.

Warm House-Cool House: A Money-Saving Guide to Energy Use in Your Home, M. Florman and Consumer Reports Books Editors, Consumer Reports Books, Fairfield, OH, 1991. 288 pp. Out of print.

"What to Know About a Home Energy Audit," Consumers' Research Magazine, (73:19) pp. 17-21, January 1990.

10 Quick Ways to Cut Your Energy Bills (Video), Iris Communications, Inc., 1994. Available from Iris Communications, P.O. Box 20, Lorane, OR 97451; Phone: (800) 346-0104; Fax: (541) 767-0357; World Wide Web: http://www.oikos.com/catalog. 20-minute video tape, $15.00 plus shipping.

NOTICE
This report was modified in part by Hoosier Energy REC, Inc. for the benefit of its member cooperatives and consumers. The primary content of this report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States government. Neither Hoosier Energy REC, Inc., nor participating Touchstone Energy HOME program participating member electric cooperatives, nor the United States government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by Hoosier Energy REC, Inc and/or the United States government or any agency thereof.
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