Energy Audits: A Decision Grade Audit (DGA) is a great starting point that serves as the initial investigation into energy efficiency projects. They highlight glaring inefficiencies and reveal opportunities for improvement. They are fairly basic and, as a result, might not provide you with all that is needed to move forward with an investment. The cost of a DGA is substantially less than an Investment Grade Audit (IGA) as a DGA typically takes about 25% of the time needed to complete the work of an IGA. Many home and business owners make uninformed decisions on efficiency upgrades. One example often used is window replacements. More often than not, replacing windows would be one of the last suggestions from a prioritized list of recommendations as the cost is very high and the energy savings are often minimal. In many cases, it can take 20 years or more to pay for such an investment with energy savings. Effectively, the DGA points the property owner in the right direction with de visu energy savings and project implementation estimates. If further assistance is needed to develop any specific recommendation, the cost benefit of super-insulating a structure for example, the audit can then be advanced to an “investment” level.
An Investment Grade Audit is a much more involved process that analyzes all inefficiencies much more thoroughly and provides a detailed financial analysis with a return on investment (ROI). Overall, this audit is suited for someone who understands what opportunities for improvement exist and are ready and willing to invest and implement these improvements. Since this audit is much more comprehensive and requires more hours to complete, the cost is greater and should be factored into the ROI.
Residential Energy Retrofits & Design-Build: With access to the industry's most cutting-edge technologies, we are able to provide our customers with a wide variety of energy efficient products that will drastically decrease their energy consumption and maximize their savings. Whether you want to design a new high-performance home or renovate your existing home, we can help.
Our work with single-family homes is more a systems approach to energy reductions. Our typical residential project is a multi-phase renovation and will usually involve a boiler replacement, air sealing and insulation, new doors and windows, an alternative energy component, etc.
If you have property and are looking to build but you don’t want to spend a fortune to heat and cool your new home, call us. SDES can help you design your new home that will use at least 75% less energy than a typical home and surpass most high-performance standards. Please note that we will neither design nor build a single-family home that is larger than 2,500 ft². We believe that there is no such thing as a 5,000ft² environmentally friendly home.
Architect/Builder Consulting: More and more architects and builders want to make a transition to energy efficient design and construction practices, but might not be “up to speed” on how to introduce high performance practices into their projects, while maintaining moisture control and healthy indoor air quality. With years of experience in construction and renovation, we know “what works” to produce optimum performance while adhering to budget constraints. We can effectively work with all architects and builders to generate and complete dynamic energy efficient projects of all sizes and types.
General Contracting: SDES is a unique of breed general contractor in that we focus solely on projects relating to energy efficiency upgrades and alternative energy systems. We can assist in building envelope efficiency, high efficiency heating systems, heat distribution efficiency, energy efficient ventilation systems, and any type of alternative energy system.
Municipal Energy Planning: In today's economy, cities and towns are under increasing pressure to cut back on their energy consumption and produce real savings for the tax paying residents. This process can be extremely complicated and time consuming, but SDES is ready to help guide you through the entire process.
Energy Planning isn't just about cutting back on heating fuel or electricity. Ultimately, the goal in this process is to educate and empower the town and its citizens to make permanent changes to the town's master plan that will focus on long-lasting energy conservation at the municipal level. We help your town achieve this by working with Local Energy Committees to research and understand the energy issues that affect their town. We will assist in rallying support and enlisting the involvement of the community. With everyone on board, amending and redrafting the town's master plan can begin. This is the final step needed to successfully adjust the way your town uses its energy.
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