Buildings Things We All Agree On

In discussions with other Peers 

                  involved in the Construction Industry about the building and remodeling of homes and business in the St Louis Area. I keep a mental log of the conversations and what I noticed was a recurring theme in something we all did agree on ( and it didn't matter if I was speaking to a Democrat, Republican, Independent- Young or Old). They all agree that: Material prices have skyrocketed in the past few years. A Building shouldn't be drafty and have air leaks. Heat and Cool Buildings Efficiently and Affordably.

Material Prices Have Skyrocketed

Supply and Demand is Driving the Material Costs Higher. World Wide Population growth coupled with what seems like some form of Natural Disaster Somewhere in the World every Month or Two. It doesn't matter if the home or business was destroyed by the Flood, Hurricane, Tornado, Tsunami, or whatever it was. The End Results are the Same: Cities and Towns left Completely in Ruins. And we simply can't get trees to grow as fast as what's needed to rebuild the damage.

Air Leaks and Drafty Homes

Whether its your home or office: Everyone wants to be comfortable. With the Advent of the different types of Air and Vapor Barriers, Insulation, Advanced Framing Techniques, Windows, and Doors. (As Required by current building codes) Buildings are now constructed and or remodeled using progressive building techniques that eliminate over 90% of these Air Leaks.

Heat and Cool Buildings Efficiently and Affordably

We've came along ways in providing heat for the home over the years. Long past is the time we spent sitting around the campfire for warmth. Our warmth in the winter and cold air in the summer; now comes from the switch on the wall. (I enjoy the modern convenience of a climate controlled room.) And any business owner will state that their employees productivity is greater when the staff isn't too hot or cold. In times long since past the costs for turning up or down the temp didn't make too big of a bill at the end of the month. Nowadays it seems that every notch on the dial leads to higher bills at months end.

Its obvious to me that: Green and Sustainable Buildings is the Answer for today's Construction Needs. I would venture to say that 90% of today's builders and remodelers (worth their Salt) adhere to Energy Efficient Building Guidelines.

Which always leads me to ask:

"What is wrong with making your own Electricity?"

A new recurring theme appeared and they asked these three main questions: Is it affordable-Aren't they expensive to install? Is Solar Reliable?

Zero $Money Down Solar Lease is one example

I then start telling them about the: Zero Down Solar Lease, which makes solar affordable on most every budget. (for every home I have figured- Solar either eliminates or cuts the Electricity Bill in half.) What could be better than a Non-Polluting Solar Electric System that generates its own electricity for less than your current Ameren UE Utility Bill?

Installation Is Covered

With the $00.00 Down Solar Lease- Any Permits, Inspections, Installation, and Maintenance is included in the Solar Lease.

That means that you will not have to come out of pocket for a Dime to install a Solar System at your Home or Business. Installation and Maintenance is covered in the Solar Lease

20+ Year Guaranty

The various Solar Systems I sell, lease, and install all have guaranties for 20+ years. These warranties come from Field Tested Systems; where the electrical output is so predictable that the "Yearly" electrical outputs are guaranteed as well. As long as the sun is shining they will produce electricity for your home for many many years into the Future. And Unlike the rising costs of electricity- an Owner of a Solar system costs decrease as the Solar System pays for itself.

I can't spell it out any clearer. Solar is Affordable Now. It will decrease your High Energy Bills leaving more $Money$ for you and your household. And it will last 20+ years and still produce electricity in its old age. What is there not to like about a Free Solar Lease System? and as always Scotts Contracting provides a Free Estimate for any job. What have you got to lose? Use the contact info to contact Scotty for a "Free Solar Lease Quote".

Build a Green St Louis
Scotts Contracting, St Louis Renewable Energy





Thank you for stopping by St Louis Renewable Energy. Feel free to comment in the section below or contact Scotty.

New Reports Chart Path-Net Zero-Energy Efficient Commercial Buildings

high levels of energy efficiency are the first, largest and most important step on the way to net-zero

New Reports Chart Path to Zero-Net-Energy Commercial Buildings
Press Release Washington, D.C. (February 23, 2011)

– Two new reports from the Zero Energy Commercial Buildings Consortium (CBC) on achieving net-zero-energy use in commercial buildings say “high levels of energy efficiency are the first, largest and most important step on the way to net-zero.”

Leading national organizations such as the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA), American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE), American Institute of Architects (AIA), the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), the Association of State Energy Research and Technology Transfer Institutions (ASERTTI), the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) and many other commercial building stakeholders worked together over the last year to develop the reports, which highlight the need for new approaches in technology research and deployment, holistic building design and financing as critical elements to further advance energy efficiency in the commercial buildings sector.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) commissioned the reports from the CBC, an industry consortium led by the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), the Alliance to Save Energy (Alliance) and other leading national organizations to identify barriers and make recommendations to industry stakeholders for achieving net-zero-energy commercial buildings over the next two to three decades.

There are many definitions of net-zero-energy buildings, but typically they are highly energy efficient buildings that use no more energy than they can produce on site on an annual basis.

The Next Generation Technologies: Barriers and Industry Recommendations for Commercial Buildings and the Analysis of Cost and; Non-Cost Barriers and Policy Solutions for Commercial Buildings focus on innovative technologies and practices and market-oriented strategies, respectively. (Free copies of the full reports can be downloaded from the CBC website.)

The CBC reports are quite timely, following closely on President Obama’s February 3 announcement about the new Better Buildings Initiative, which is aimed at improving energy efficiency in commercial buildings by 20 percent over the next 10 years by stimulating private investment in building energy efficiency, generating new jobs in construction and facilities operation and saving commercial building owners and tenants nearly $40 billion yearly on utility bills.

“While many details remain to be settled, the Better Buildings Initiative is a very exciting development for the commercial buildings sector, and the CBC fully supports its goals and looks forward to working with CBC members and industry stakeholders to contribute to these efforts,” according to NASEO Executive Director David Terry. “The President’s initiative targets many of the same barriers examined by CBC members over the last year, which are summarized in the two major reports just released by the CBC.”

David Hewitt, lead author of one of the CBC reports and executive director of the New Buildings Institute, noted that “National initiatives such as the BBI can build on and complement important new initiatives by states and utilities, such as California’s Zero Net Energy Action Plan. The job ahead is big enough that everyone’s efforts are needed, and they need to be coordinated – that’s exactly why we created the CBC.”

Additional recommendations in the two reports include:

• Create and sustain market demand for energy efficiency retrofits and new construction through innovative approaches to financing and valuation of energy efficiency improvements. 

• Emphasize voluntary programs, such as President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge, to catalyze change in corporate culture through strong leadership and commitment to energy efficiency. 

• Enhance and extend building energy codes and standards to cover all energy end uses, emphasize building and systems commissioning and long-term performance.


• Promote wide-scale use of integrated design and whole-building approaches to achieve more aggressive and dramatic energy reductions. 

• Refine modeling and decision-making tools to fully support new financing, codes, design and benchmarking approaches. 

• Develop and build consensus around national workforce standards and increase training efforts for the professional and technical workforce on energy-efficient building design, auditing, retrofitting, commissioning and operations.

“The long-term road to net-zero begins with what we can do today,” notes Alliance Senior Vice President Jeff Harris. “This includes broad application of today’s best energy efficiency technology and sustained energy management practices in the existing stock of commercial buildings. We also need to design new commercial buildings to be ‘net-zero-ready,’ so that it’s easier to continually improve their energy performance as new and even better technologies are introduced over the next 30-50 years – the expected lifetime of today’s new buildings.”

Article from: News You Can Use for February 24, 2011

Scotts Contracting can assist you in making your Building a Net-Zero - Energy Efficient Property.  Click Here to email for additional Information