Wednesday, April 25, 2012 – 10-11:30 AM (Pacific Time)
DESCRIPTION:
George and Ellen Beeler decided to take on the renovation of a 1940 vintage home in Petaluma, CA 14 years ago. Over that time, a 3-stage deep energy reduction (DER) project unfolded that ended up with the Beeler residence becoming the first home in California to officially meet the Thousand Home Challenge. While the first webinar in this series looks at a number of California case studies, comparing the monitored results across properties (including the Beeler home), this webinar dives into the details of the entire effort of the Beelers, including their broader commitment to living a sustainable lifestyle. George will share the many lessons he learned throughout the entire process, including what was most successful as well as what could have been done differently. He will also share his most recent experience with an electric vehicle and its effect on the home’s utility bills.
By participating in this webinar, attendees will:
- Learn the details of a completed multi-stage deep energy reduction project
- Explore the energy performance results of this project and how it met the Thousand Home Challenge threshold
- Hear about the lessons learned, what was most successful, and what could have been done differently
Webinar Downloads
Biographies
A. George Beeler, Presenter
A. George Beeler, principal architect, AIM Associates, has been designing low energy use buildings for thirty years. His design of the Environmental Technology Center at Sonoma State University won a National Science Foundation grant. George’s live/work building is the first in northern California to qualify for the Thousand Home Challenge by reducing its energy use by more than 75%.
Don Fugler, Respondent
Don Fugler was trained as a mechanical engineer and spent 25 years doing housing research for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). He managed research projects on topics such as combustion spillage, home energy use, wet basements, ventilation, indoor air quality, contaminated lands, and straw bale housing. One of his last projects was the performance monitoring of the CMHC EQuilibrium homes, houses designed to be net zero and healthy. He retired from CMHC in 2011, and currently undertakes contract research into ventilation, IAQ, energy retrofitting, and other issues.
Gary Klein, Respondent
Gary Klein has been intimately involved in energy efficiency and renewable energy since 1973. His firm, Affiliated International Management LLC, provides consulting on sustainability through their international team of affiliates. At present, the focus is on water-energy-carbon footprint issues with a particular emphasis on hot water.