Amy Gahran

Boulder handyman Steve DiCesare cut through my ceiling yesterday to make way for an attic fan.

Today, Steve DiCesare (a local musician, teacher, and handyman) is finishing the installation of my new 30-inch attic fan. And I can’t wait. The top floor of my 3-story (including the finished basement) South Boulder home routinely roasts during the hottest days of summer. Since I work at home, and my office is on the top floor, that’s a problem.

The whole project, including equipment, supplies, and labor, will cost me about $600. Although I didn’t run the numbers to estimate energy savings from this project, I didn’t have to in order to decide to go for it. For me, it’s a matter of summer survival.

Which got me thinking: What really does motivate people to undertake major energy-saving projects?…

In my own case, regarding the attic fan, I can’t stand being sticky. Thanks to Boulder’s arid climate (a key reason why I moved here 12 years ago, I can’t stand humidity), as long as I have shade and the air around me is moving even slightly, I’m generally comfortable enough to think and work well.

My house is designed for excellent cross-ventilation — that is, when the windows are open, and when there’s at least a slight breeze. But as every Boulderite knows, often in the heat of summer from about 10am until 3pm, the sun is fierce and breezes are scarce. Which means that, sitting in my home office, I have to set up a fan to preserve even a fraction of my ability to think and work — and thus, to get paid. Or I have to go work in the cooler basement (which I can do, but I don’t prefer it). Either way, I’m perpetually inconvenienced in my own home.

Amy Gahran

My new attic fan: installed, awaiting finishing work and a switch.

Not cool — in just about every possible way.

Yes, I do have central air conditioning — but not in any way that has ever made sense. First of all, the aging cooling unit has never worked well. Despite regular maintenance, the coils keep icing up, which shuts down the unit just when you want cooling most. Also, all our central HVAC ducts on the main and upper levels are in the floor, on the edges of rooms. When you consider that hot air rises and cool air sinks, how much sense does it make to put your vents there?

So I decided not to tolerate the inconvenience any longer. We have a small crawl space of an attic, but it’s enough to accommodate an Energy Star rated 30-inch attic fan, which Steve is equipping with a manual control switch.

Energy Star is the US EPA’s energy-efficient product rating and labeling program. According to EPA, Energy Star-rated ventilation fans “that include lighting use 65% less energy on average than standard models, saving $120 in electricity costs over the life of the fan. These fans are more than 50% quieter than standard models. They feature high performance motors and improved blade design, providing better performance and longer life.”

My new attic fan doesn’t include a light (it’s not a ceiling fan), but it does have an efficient motor and a low noise rating. More importantly, it’s positioned in a very central part of the upper-floor ceiling, where it should easily draw out hot air from my cathedral-ceilinged living / dining room, loft space, stairwell, and my office — and generate a decent cross-breeze if I leave my east and west windows open during the day.

My goal: I shouldn’t have to run my central air conditioner much, if at all, this summer — which is fine with me. It’s on its last legs, and I’d rather reduce my home’s overall cooling load before replacing it.

…That’s the plan, anyway. I should know by the end of the weekend whether it’s working as I hope.

Attic fans are not for everyone, of course. Especially in more humid climates, or where heat is more extreme (like, say, Bakersfield CA or Tucson AZ), at least some air conditioning may be a necessity. If you really do need to run a cooling system, it may not make sense to pull that conditioned air out through the attic.

But for my house, Boulder’s climate, and my work and lifestyle, I think it makes a lot of sense. Yes, it will probably save energy and thus help reduce my greenhouse gas emissions. That’s a nice side benefit. Honestly, though, I couldn’t afford to spend $600 just to be green.

What about you? What energy-saving projects are you doing this summer? How much will they cost, and what benefits (financial, green, and otherwise) do you expect?

Let’s explore here what really motivates Boulderites to invest in energy-saving measures could significantly affect how well the city’s plans to spend our carbon tax revenues will pan out. The city’s overall climate action strategy relies heavily on educating and motivating Boulder residents, businesses, and institutions to undertake energy-saving projects. What motivates (or would motivate) you to take action?

Please comment below.

(How’s my attic fan working? Read the next update…)

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 16th, 2007 at 3:29 pm and is filed under Buildings, Choices & actions, Residential, Your stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.