The unseasonably warm temperatures couldn't last all winter, and now that the cold weather is here it's time for Michigan residents to take more control of their heating and lighting bills. During the past year, Detroit homeowner Doretha Russell has shaved as much as $50 from her monthly gas and electric bills by using energy-efficient appliances and being disciplined about keeping the thermostat turned down.The 36-year-old autoworker and mother of two teenagers moved into an EnergyStar-certified home built by Habitat for Humanity on 23rd Street near Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in October 2005.
Since that time, Russell has developed a keen understanding of how individual responsibility -- along with smart choices of appliances -- can go a long way toward saving energy and lowering bills.
"I think the importance of energy efficiency is for us to learn not to be so abusive with utilities," Russell said. "You have to be willing to pay for what you use, and you've got to keep in mind that there are a lot of things you can do to cut your costs. To be honest, our gas and light bills are so high, but a lot of times it's because of overusage."
The WARM Training Center, a Detroit-based nonprofit weatherization and construction training group, recently completed a study of new home construction. It found that building homes to meet EnergyStar efficiency standards can save as much as $1,500 a year compared to a standard Michigan home.
"We found that homeowner practices really determine how effective EnergyStar products can be," said Robert Chapman, executive director of WARM. "Improving energy efficiency is by far the most important thing homeowners can do."
The Energy Savings in Michigan Housing report studied the monthly energy bills of 28 EnergyStar-certified homes, including Russell's, that were built in 2005 to determine energy usage. The findings were surprising:
- The Habitat for Humanity homes that were studied used 41% less natural gas a year than non-EnergyStar homes of a similar size and age.
- The EnergyStar-rated homes that were part of the study used 92% less electricity than other homes constructed to Michigan's current building code standards.
- Total energy used in the EnergyStar homes was about 40% less than typical Michigan homes.
Estimates indicate that heating costs will be around $190 a month this winter for a typical Michigan Consolidated Gas (MichCon) customer in the DTE Energy territory. A typical Consumers Energy customer can expect to pay an average of $160 a month for heat this winter, assuming average temperatures and no major disruptions in energy supplies.
Last spring, a nationwide study of the impact of energy prices found that Michigan households that are 50% below the poverty level spend about 43% of their income on home energy bills.
EnergyStar specs
So what is an EnergyStar-certified home?
EnergyStar is a government program started through the Environmental Protection Agency in the 1970s that offers businesses and consumers energy-efficient solutions to save money on heat and electricity.
Homes that are EnergyStar certified can't exceed three stories and must be at least 15% more efficient than homes built under the 2004 International Residential Code.
In addition to applying specific standards and ratings, EnergyStar certification also involves tagging appliances with badges.
More than 360,000 EnergyStar homes have been built since the program has been in place. In Michigan, 1,800 EnergyStar homes have been built.
"The whole point of the study was to get solid data on EnergyStar homes and show that EnergyStar is the standard across the country," said Jacob Corvidae, green programs manager for WARM. "Consumers don't often understand the benefits of EnergyStar certification, so we did this study to have independently certified data that shows how much lower energy costs can go in Michigan."
In Russell's case, she is able to keep her 1,150-square-foot home warm by setting the thermostat at around 69 degrees. At her old three-bedroom apartment at the Brewster Townhouses in Detroit two winters ago, the thermostat was almost always set at 75 to 80 degrees.
"My house is EnergyStar-certified, so it does a pretty good job of locking in the heat," she said. "On Sundays, when we have a family meal and I'm cooking, I don't even have to turn the heat on at all. That's how well the heat stays inside."
For more information on EnergyStar programs visit www.energystar.gov or www.warmtraining.org.
Contact ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA at 313-222-5008 or abodipo@freepress.com.
January 28, 2007
BY ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
