Here at EDGE Energy, we’re best known for our solar panels and quality service.
Not as many people know that we’ve committed about half our business to helping low and moderate income homeowners with energy efficiency upgrades.
We want as many people as possible to feel safe and comfortable at home with energy bills they can afford. That’s why we partner with almost every program serving income eligible homeowners in the DMV.
This week, we’re sharing the story of Kadir and his family. We found rebates and incentives from a few different sources to cover the entire cost of Kadir’s project.
We installed a new heat pump, heat pump water heater, solar panels, air sealing, insulation, and more – all at no cost to Kadir and his family. Here in the DMV, we’re fortunate to have robust resources to help homeowners save energy.
If you’re curious which resources you can claim or if you know someone who struggles with high energy bills, please give us a call at (888) 586-3343. You can also send us a message anytime.
Energy Assistance: Where It Started
Kadir and his family live in a three bedroom townhouse in Maryland. It was built around 1985 and has about 1,800 square feet of living space. For a townhouse that size, Kadir’s energy bills were relatively high. The bills took a bite out of the family budget every month.
Annual Energy Bills Totaling About $2,750
Digging in, we found that their electric baseload accounted for most of their energy consumption, followed by space heating, cooling, and water heating. The “baseload” included the cost to operate space heaters that supplemented the aging heat pump in the home.
Breakdown of Energy Consumption by Category
Maryland Energy Assistance: The Project
Home Energy Audit
We first partnered with emPOWER Maryland to cover the cost of Kadir’s home energy audit.
When we do a home energy audit, we run a series of diagnostic tests to find out exactly where a homeowner is using and losing energy. The result is a prioritized list of recommendations, complete with costs, savings, rebates.
Based on the results of our tests, we recommended that Kadir start by sealing up air leaks and adding insulation. We also recommended that he swap out his older heat pump and water heater – both of which were nearing the end of their expected lifespans.
Kadir’s Energy Efficiency Priorities
By including each of the priorities in Kadir’s project scope, we were able to reduce his family’s energy bills by about 30%. Here’s what that looks like.
Kadir’s Cost Savings and Percent Energy Savings
Air Sealing and Insulation
With the combination of air sealing and insulation, we made Kadir’s house about 21% tighter.
Our goal is to make the home the home tight enough that Kadir and his family don’t notice drafts and cold spots, but not so tight that they experience issues with indoor air quality, such as the growth of mold and mildew.
Attic Insulation Before the Project
Attic Insulation After the Project
Heating and Cooling
We replaced the 25-year old heat pump with a brand new Goodman heat pump, which reduced Kadir’s heating bills by about 38% and his cooling bills by about 48%.
Heat Pump Before the Project
Heat Pump After the Project
Water Heater
The AO Smith Heat Pump Water Heater that we installed saves about $443 every year (a 74% reduction) compared to the existing electric tank water heater, which was installed around 2010.
Water Heater Before the Project
Water Heater After the Project
Indoor Air Quality
To ensure that Kadir’s house gets enough ventilation, we replaced the older existing bathroom fans with top-of-the-line ENERGY STAR bathroom fans.
We also found that Kadir’s dryer vent was not properly vented to the outside. When we arrived, the vent was pumping warm, moist air into the attic, which caused mold to start growing on the underside of the roof.
We fixed the vent to make sure that it sent the warm, moist air outdoors, rather than the attic, preventing any additional issues with mold or mildew in the attic.
Energy Assistance Programs: The Bottom Line
What was Kadir’s experience?
“EDGE Energy helped me navigate the process. Every person was very helpful. If I had any questions, they explained it. They were very punctual, arriving when they said they would. It was a very smooth experience.” -Kadir
There are so many programs and agencies with resources to help income eligible households with both solar and energy efficiency upgrades. There are so many, in fact, that it’s sometimes tough to know where to start.
Start here: Give us a call at (888) 586-3343, or send us a message.
We’ll help you navigate the programs, and since we do almost all of the work ourselves, you’ll have one point of contact for your entire project. We want as many people as possible to enjoy the benefits of a safe, comfortable, and efficient home.
