Site aims to help you go green
It's Allison Kartiganer's job to come to your home and take a very close look from basement to attic.
She's looking for the places where energy is escaping. Sometimes it's the windows, but many times, it's not.
"It really does vary from home to home," she says. "We do say that 'air sealing,' 'duct sealing,' and insulation are usually the order we address a home's issues."
Kartiganer works for Vesta, a contractor for a new Seattle-based site called energysavvy.com.
"Home energy is confusing," says Aaron Goldfeder of energysavvy.com. "I mean, do you have any idea what tax credits and rebates are out there for your home? Do you realize how much money you can save by addressing just a few things?"
His Web site just launched last week, and already, Seattle-area homeowners are using it to figure out how much energy they are wasting.
Goldfeder says it just takes about 60 seconds to type in some basic information about your home. The site then evaluates the information, and gives you a score. That score reveals how much energy-saving help you may need. And once the problems are identified, the second part of energysavvy.com kicks in.
"We bring you together with the best experts in the industry," Goldfeder says.
In essence, for no charge, he can tell you where you may be losing energy, and then hook you up with local contractors you can call to come and fix the issues.
Kartiganer's company, Vesta Home Performance Retrofitting, provides a more intense inspection that can be more revealing. She says if you don't want to improve your home's efficiency for you, think about when you go to sell your house.
"Local real estate professionals are telling us a green house definitely now is bringing in more money for the seller," she says.
But why go through all this when you likely just need to replace your windows?
Goldfeder says that while in some cases new windows are needed, for many people buying windows may not address the real issue. He says there can be cracks around the windows or elsewhere in the wall that can be addressed for a lot less money.
"Would you rather have new windows, or would you rather just fix the giant holes in your home?" he asks.
The real cost comes when repairs are made, but the initial report and recommendations from the Web site are free.
"In many ways we're sort of like a 'match.com' for home energy," he says with a smile.
When asked if this was the best way to "go green," Goldfeder says finding out how to conserve energy and then doing something about it is definitely a step in the right direction.
She's looking for the places where energy is escaping. Sometimes it's the windows, but many times, it's not.
"It really does vary from home to home," she says. "We do say that 'air sealing,' 'duct sealing,' and insulation are usually the order we address a home's issues."
Kartiganer works for Vesta, a contractor for a new Seattle-based site called energysavvy.com.
"Home energy is confusing," says Aaron Goldfeder of energysavvy.com. "I mean, do you have any idea what tax credits and rebates are out there for your home? Do you realize how much money you can save by addressing just a few things?"
His Web site just launched last week, and already, Seattle-area homeowners are using it to figure out how much energy they are wasting.
Goldfeder says it just takes about 60 seconds to type in some basic information about your home. The site then evaluates the information, and gives you a score. That score reveals how much energy-saving help you may need. And once the problems are identified, the second part of energysavvy.com kicks in.
"We bring you together with the best experts in the industry," Goldfeder says.
In essence, for no charge, he can tell you where you may be losing energy, and then hook you up with local contractors you can call to come and fix the issues.
Kartiganer's company, Vesta Home Performance Retrofitting, provides a more intense inspection that can be more revealing. She says if you don't want to improve your home's efficiency for you, think about when you go to sell your house.
"Local real estate professionals are telling us a green house definitely now is bringing in more money for the seller," she says.
But why go through all this when you likely just need to replace your windows?
Goldfeder says that while in some cases new windows are needed, for many people buying windows may not address the real issue. He says there can be cracks around the windows or elsewhere in the wall that can be addressed for a lot less money.
"Would you rather have new windows, or would you rather just fix the giant holes in your home?" he asks.
The real cost comes when repairs are made, but the initial report and recommendations from the Web site are free.
"In many ways we're sort of like a 'match.com' for home energy," he says with a smile.
When asked if this was the best way to "go green," Goldfeder says finding out how to conserve energy and then doing something about it is definitely a step in the right direction.
