Mike Keesee of the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) contacted builders in the Vacant Properties program about incorporating advanced energy efficiency measures in the houses. The SMUD project sees to demonstrate the innovations and conduct research measuring improvments in energy usage.
Our team leader, Jim Murray-Clark, a general contractor, and Bruce Solorzano, a HVAC contractor, jumped at the chance to learn new, advanced methods. The team analyzed the house and chose a group of renovations designed to give the house a "deep energy retrofit". We promised to make information on the results available to the community.
Energy-Efficient Demonstration House in Del Paso
Stories of energy-efficient renovations often feature beautiful high-end villas. This is a blog for the rest of us. This is a story of a small, older home, where we used technology to address a range of energy use problems.
Like most houses in historic Del Paso, it was built in the fifties in a bungalow style, has alley access to a large back yard, great soil, and good water. The house was built with 920 square feet of living space, two bedrooms, one bath and a small garage. Unknown to the planning department, some time in the seventies, the garage morphed into a third bedroom. The foreclosed and vacant house was watched over by friendly neighbors and there was no vandalism. We bought it for $46,000.
We received a rehabilitation loan from the Sacramento Housing and Rehabilitation (SHRA) under their Vacant Properties Program and started renovation. The Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) helped us fund some new energy saving innovations. We promised in return that we would demonstrate the innovations to the public. Monitoring equipment will soon be installed by SMUD, which will allow them track energy usage in various systems in the house for approximately two years. The monitoring will be done without intruding on the people who eventually buy and live in the house.
planning commission televised
December 16 presented open house schedule
Problems and Solutions
No central heating or
air conditioning?
See our Ductless Mini-Split
HVAC system.
Need a new roof?
Add air vents for better
cooling.
Drafts and high energy
bills?
See how we found leaks and
air sealed the house. See water
heaters with heat pumps,
double pane windows, and
review Energy Star appliances.
Don't like fluorescent lights?
See what the new lights can do.
No trees? Hard to control trees?
Face the Mulberry challenge.
Additions without permits?
House too small?
Need another bathroom?
See our garge conversion.
air conditioning?
See our Ductless Mini-Split
HVAC system.
Need a new roof?
Add air vents for better
cooling.
Drafts and high energy
bills?
See how we found leaks and
air sealed the house. See water
heaters with heat pumps,
double pane windows, and
review Energy Star appliances.
Don't like fluorescent lights?
See what the new lights can do.
No trees? Hard to control trees?
Face the Mulberry challenge.
Additions without permits?
House too small?
Need another bathroom?
See our garge conversion.
Open Houses - January
Place: 1110 Jean Ave, Sacramento, Ca
Dates: December 12, 13, 19 20
January 9, 10, 16, 17, 23 and 24
In February or March call
(916) 5020433 for appointment
Times: 2 to 5 PM
Dates: December 12, 13, 19 20
January 9, 10, 16, 17, 23 and 24
In February or March call
(916) 5020433 for appointment
Times: 2 to 5 PM
About Us
Bruce Solorzano
HVAC Contractor
(916) 502-0433
Jim Murray-Clark
General Contractor
Painting Contractor
(530) 867-3909
Painting Contractor
(530) 867-3909
Jim Hicks
Jim Hicks
Construction
Technician
Construction
Technician
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