Does energy factor in to where you want to live?

[Medwed]



Right, because currently there are no regulations on how to construct a home in the US.

Official Instructions on how to build a home in da grates country in this galaxy, evar:
Take wooden sticks (home depot ****** 4x4 lumber), prop them up with a help of illegal unqualified day laborers. Don't bother covering anything from the rain let it get flooded or snowed in real good before you put the roof on. Hire idiot-unlicensed plumbers, fail first 4 inspections, hire different idiots fail more inspections. Do it yourself , pass inspection. Forget to put insulation. Install cheapest plastic ****-windows. Carpet everything. Put cardboard doors and only shittiest chinese drywall and plumbing. Sell it for half a million.
Repeat.

 

[lefty]

My house in NJ used to cost approx 900/mth to heat in the winter.
My very large apt in CA cost approx $45/mth for gas and electric.

Couldn't wait to get out of CA and back to the east. So, no, not a factor.

lefty

 

[Rambo]

jesus, $900? how large was the house?

 

[lefty]

About 2500 sq ft, but built in 1904 so a sieve. I doubt there was much if any insulation in some of the old lathe and plaster walls.

lefty

 

[Biscotti]

Energy is ridiculously cheap here.

 

[NorCal]



i live in NJ and use natty gas. I also work on a constant basis to curb energy costs due to heating or electricity cost due to lighting. So I switched all of the lighting to warm LED and have a plan I'm working on to reduce heating costs.
Reflective barrier in the attic.
removing all flex duct except short run and running insulated hard duct.
Wrapping the basement ductwork with insulation to help even out the temp in the house.
Sealing or replacing leaking doors or windows.
I find it sort of amazing that houses aren't built to near passive house standards in america. Does anyone weigh the difference in cost against the money saved and the reduction in emissions?

That's hippie talk that is.

 

[nootje]



Amazing, this should be a requirement in the US in my opinion. It will certainly be a priority for me if I have the opportunity to build a home.

btw, it does have one unintended by-effect, which could affect ones health if you're not aware of it. All of the new houses have very poor ventilation due to the high isolation. Which leads to stale air, extreme dryness etc. All of this can be mitigated easily by opening a window every once in a while, have a few more plants and water them more regularly, etc. etc. But you do need to be aware of it. My inlaws have the same problem with a house build 7 years ago.

For instance, the first time my mother used the ventilation for the cooker, the thing sucked the smoke straight from the wood burner. There just wasnt enough air coming in through other spots, so it came down the chimney.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

That is true, if they are not properly ventilated, and opening a window is not really the best approach from what I have researched. There are ventilation systems available that circulate new air into the house and old air out while maintaining a nearly constant temperature so that you don't loose your heat.

 

[NorCal]



That is true, if they are not properly ventilated, and opening a window is not really the best approach from what I have researched. There are ventilation systems available that circulate new air into the house and old air out while maintaining a nearly constant temperature so that you don't loose your heat.

There are systems that use a heat exchange that are about 90% efficient. There is still air moving in and out, it is just controlled and no energy is wasted.
With decent, air-tight windows, insulation, and said heat exchange a house can be kept warm through a German winter with nothing but body heat as a heat source.

 

[patrickBOOTH]

Sounds like my place. Always warm with a window open all winter. I never turn on the heat.

 

[gnatty8]

I spend more, literally, on coffee each year, than I spend on electricity, and it is not because I don't use much electricity. Now I can see the point about having the option to burn natural gas or oil to heat homes in the north, but I have to be honest in responding to OP's question that I probably would not seriously weigh energy costs very heavily in determining where to live. State sales and income taxes? Almost certainly, but not energy costs.

 

[Michigan Planner]

When we bought our house, we weren't looking to move to a different metro so we were stuck with the local utilities here for heat and electric. We did look for a house with mature trees around it offering shade in the summer and blocking the wind in the winter.

Our house is relatively large (about 3,000 square feet) and not new or particularly efficient by any stretch of the imagination but our heating and cooling costs seem very reasonable.

 

[upthewazzu]

We use Natty gas for heat/hot water and electricity for the A/C. Our bills average $140 in the winter and $50 in the summer. Eastern Washington (state) is a pretty dynamic area weather wise. It'll hit triple digits in the summer and dip below 0 in the winter. A few years back it hit 103 in August and -22 in January.