The Luzia Energy Report

The Luzia Energy Report
by Luzia, Inc.

When buying, selling, or making improvements to your home, you can plan, budget, and capture the value of energy efficiency with Luzia.

Whether you are selling your home and want to display its energy advantage or you own the home and want to get an at-a-glance reference for your home’s energy systems, Luzia’s technology brings all of your information in one place.

The Luzia Energy Report gives your home a personalized score powered by ENERGY STAR® that ranks the home’s energy bills as compared to similar homes. The profile describes the home’s heating and cooling systems, lighting, insulation levels and windows, and major appliances, along with their efficiency levels. A Savings Summary with an estimate of your possible savings from small steps to major upgrades, including their return on investment and other statistics highlight your home’s energy friendly ways.

The Luzia Energy Report gives you a simple, effective way to know your home’s energy friendly features and achieve the next ones. Luzia works with you in a short turnaround time so you receive your home’s Luzia Energy Report and can begin using the information.

Selling your home? Showcase the energy friendly features with a Luzia Energy Report.

Home buyers or owners, get the energy facts for your home with a Luzia Energy Report. Use your report to make informed upgrades and save on home improvement costs using rebate and tax credit resources.

Get the power of home energy information you can use with Luzia. Visit www.LuziaEnergy.com to see a sample report or email, request@luziaenergy.com, to get started on your own personalized report.

“I am very excited about the Energy Report, it’s been very well received,” claims Erin Green, marketing agent for PRG.

Meet Lara Greden, PHD

Meet Lara Greden, PHD
by Shelley Hawes

Lara Greden was inspired by energy efficiency at a young age. Growing up on a farm in Pine City, MN, her family was at the forefront experimenting with home energy systems; Their home integrated high thermal mass passive solar design elements.

Greden’s interest moved toward the engineering end of construction, eventually leading her to graduate school in Building Technology at MIT where she concentrated on computer modeling for designing energy efficient buildings. The results led her to question how to communicate their results.

About a year ago, Lara and husband/business partner Bruno Miller became inspired while looking for a car and checking CARFAX reports. They thought to apply the idea to homes and soon partnered with George Matthews, a software engineer, to develop the Luzia Energy Report.

Not just a checklist, the Luzia Energy Report includes Energy Star’s benchmarking system; the Home Energy Yardstick. It is a marketing and educational tool that measures how improvements are actually performing. When making energy improvements at home, it helps to ask the question “Does it work?”

Common Questions about Geothermal Energy

What is geothermal energy?
There are two types: high-grade and low-grade. High-grade geothermal energy is the heat of the earth’s pressure that turns water into stream. Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park is an excellent example. Low-grade geothermal energy is the heat within the earth’s crust. This heat is actually stored solar energy. Geothermal taps into this low-grade geothermal energy and delivers big energy savings when heating, cooling and making hot water.

What is a geothermal heat pump?
A heat pump is a mechanical device used for heating and cooling, and that operates on the principle that heat can be moved from a warmer temperature to a cooler temperature. A geothermal heat pump uses the earth to warm us in the winter and cool us in the summer.  You already have a heat pump in your home—your refrigerator. If you put your hand behind it you’ll feel the heat that has been removed from the food inside the refrigerator. This is the same principle that Geothermal uses to move heat to and from the home and earth.

We know a geothermal heat pump can heat, but can it also cool my home?
Yes, one of the reasons a heat pump is so versatile and efficient is its ability to heat and cool as one system. With a flick of a switch on your indoor thermostat the geothermal heat pump changes from heating to cooling.

How do I get the heat from the ground into my home?
There are several types of systems that gather the heat from the ground. The most commonly used are open-loop and closed-loop systems.

Can a heat pump provide 100% of my heating and cooling needs?
Heat pumps can provide 100% of your heating and cooling requirements. All heat pumps will show significantly improved energy efficiency.

Can a geothermal heat pump heat my hot water for my home?
Domestic hot water is available with the use of a heat pump for pennies a day or even free. A hot water desuperheater is a heat exchanger built into the heat pump and is designed to remove high temperature heat from the refrigerant gases. A typical hot water desuperheater will generally provide 120° F water and can supply most of the domestic water needs depending on the amount of consumption.

Can geothermal do snow melting?
Yes. Snow melting on sidewalks and driveways is becoming more popular and can be incorporated into the overall geothermal system design.

Can I heat my pool?
Yes. Indoor and outdoor pools are easily and inexpensively heated with heat pumps.

How can a geothermal heat pump have efficiencies of 350-400%?
For every dollar spent you get $3.60 worth of free heat back from your loop field. We are not creating heat, we are simply moving solar energy that is stored in the earth’s crust to your home or business.

“Geothermal heat pumps can be installed in existing homes located in the city as well as in a suburban or rural setting.  Part of a geothermal system is the earth loop heat exchanger.  This is used to capture heat from the ground in the winter and to remove heat from the home in the summer.   Even though a city lot will be smaller than a suburban or rural lot, there should be enough open area in the yard to install a vertical earth loop heat exchanger.”
—Bob Donley, ECONAR GeoSystems, Sales Manager

Journey to the Center of the Earth

The facts on geothermal

By Michael Anschel

Hundreds of miles below the surface of the earth, a great sea of molten rock flows around the core of our planet. This infernal ocean produces incredible heat and power, which occasional breaks through the crust of the earth spilling out, forming new islands. For generations we have talked about the potential that lies beneath the surface and have pondered how to tap it. While journeys to the center of the earth remain in the realm of sci-fi, we have found a way to tap one small portion of the earth’s inner potential.

Geothermal systems have been around for hundreds of years in various forms. Iceland has a long history of tapping into geothermal power to run its processing plants and provide cheap power to industry. In fact, much of the world’s aluminum production, which requires massive amounts of energy, takes place in Iceland for that reason.

In Minnesota we have a healthy winter, which at times can run a little long, and a spring and fall that can be very chilly. So Minnesotans have the heat on 75% of the year. Conventional heating systems rely on fossil fuels to generate that heat and as we are all now aware, this adds to the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which has a negative impact on our planet.

In the search for alternative methods for heating and cooling our homes, it seems only natural to turn to the wind the sun and the earth. While sun and wind have been getting most of the press, the stoic earth makes its quiet contribution. Ground-source heat pumps or geothermal heat pumps have been serving as heating and cooling systems for homes for years, and with the advances in technology in recent years they have finally come into their own.

1 Looking at a home you would never know that it is getting its heat from below the surface of the earth. 2-4 Drilling rigs come in various types and sizes depending on the conditions below the ground. In the event that you run into fractured limestone, the rigs may change to use air pressure to assist the drilling process and punch through that old rock. Because the well is quite small (around 8” in diameter), drilling rigs can be quite small to get into urban neighborhoods. After the pipes have been installed in the well, it is filled with a grout that both improves contact between the pipes and the soil and protects any ground water from infiltration from the surface. 5 A properly designed geothermal system in Minnesota will typically combine the efficiency of the ground source heat pump with a high efficiency boiler or furnace.

Tapping Into the Earth’s Heart

A small white box sits in the utility room of the Miller home. A red light shows the temperature of the water. Two heavily insulated pipes rise out of the box and head out towards the foundation where they exit the home and split into four smaller pipes. Those pipes travel out into the yard about eight feet under the snow-covered grass, spreading away from one another, making an abrupt 90-degree turn and heading straight down into the earth. They travel down for 180 feet before heading back up and returning to the home where they deliver the newly captured heat to the home. There is hardly any sound as the pump moves the water along its subterranean journey. This is a geothermal heat pump at work.

“We have yet to truly tap the potential of the earth for renewable energy,” says Jim Cusack, general manager of UMR Geothermal of Maple Plain. “The systems we design and install take advantage of a small fraction of the ground’s power.”

So what exactly are these systems, and how do they work? Most of us are already quite familiar with the principles behind this technology. In fact you are so familiar with and interact with it on such a routine basis, that you probably aren’t even aware you are doing it. Go stand next to your refrigerator. Do you feel that warm air coming out of the bottom? Your refrigerator doesn’t make the air or food cold, it extracts heat from the contents of the fridge and expels it into your home. The same principles are at work in your air conditioner (if you have one). As air passes over a coil of refrigerant, heat is extracted from the air and stored in the refrigerant, which then runs to the exterior where the heat is then released into the air.

A heat pump is really just like an air conditioner that is running in reverse. Instead of removing the heat from the inside and expelling it outside it is picking up the heat from outside and bringing it inside. Below eight feet, the earth maintains a constant 55 degrees, extending down for miles, with almost infinite storage capacity. Ground-source heat pumps draw heat from the ground in the winter and expel heat to the ground in the summer. Imagine thousands of little shopping carts running through the pipes and each one picks up 5 degrees of heat which it then brings back home. Pretty soon the heat starts to pile up and soon your home is warm. Simple, right?

So how do you determine if your home is suitable for geothermal? Well, the first step is to measure and evaluate your home to determine its heat loss using something called Manual J. “If the house is not well insulated and performing well, then a ground-source heat pump probably is not the best option,” Cusack explains. The next step is to perform blower door and infrared scan tests of the home, which will tell you how the house is actually performing and help identify leaks and areas of reduced insulation. “Most homeowners can actually achieve a significant performance increase in their homes with $2,000-$5,000 in insulation and air sealing, and that is the better investment,” Cusack says.

If the house is efficient, then the next step is to test the soil. “In order to ensure good performance from these systems,” Cusack says, “we need good, wet soil. The more water the better, in fact the best systems are those that are installed directly into water saturated conditions. Municipal drilling records can give us a good idea of what to expect, which is critical,” Cusack explains. A typical soil bore will cost between $1,000 and $2,000, but is critical. “If we hit bedrock after 50 feet we may have to drill another 200 before we get into the water table. The cost of the drilling may become prohibitively expensive at that point,” Cusack says. The same is true for the large field loop systems that are buried in an excavated area that is around 8-12 foot deep. If the soil is dry and sandy, the system will not perform properly and would consume more energy then it saves.

Once you get the green light from these three tests, the rest is easy. Like so many things, the secret to success lies in the preparation. So why aren’t there more homes with these smart systems installed? There are a number of reasons and cost is one of them. The return on investment can vary depending on soil conditions, the performance of the home, and the design of the system, ranging from 7 years to 25 years. The return will be longer for a newer, more efficient home that is replacing the heating system than it would be for an older, less efficient home. Other considerations are the value an advanced system like this adds to your home as well as the benefits to society from consuming less energy.

There are also some myths surrounding ground-source heat pumps that create confusion among homeowners. The most common is that they cannot provide enough heat for homes in Minnesota. A properly designed system can provide plenty of heat for the home, but it may not be the best thing for the environment. It all goes back to that concern about carbon in our atmosphere. The problem is that the geothermal system uses electricity to pump the water and some systems come with auxiliary electric element heaters. In Minnesota we get most of our electricity from coal plants, which release large amounts of carbon and consume large quantities of water. Electricity from coal experiences an almost 80% loss in transmission, which would make a 100% efficient electric heater only 20% efficient in practice—not so great.

A properly designed geothermal system will run at an efficiency between 360% and 560%, which helps offset the carbon released and is the reason geothermal heat pumps are considered a good alternative technology. The reason to combine a natural gas furnace or boiler with a geothermal system is to take advantage of the natural efficiencies of both and reduce the overall emissions created by your heating system. There is a second advantage and that is access to less expensive energy through the utilities’ dual-fuel program.

It takes study to fully understand the nuances of geothermal heat pump systems and that is why working with a professional who has experience with these systems and experience with a wide variety of homes is important. Remember the three steps before starting—then enjoy the warmth of our wondrous planet.

“Geothermal heat pump technology is one of the most efficient, cost effective and potentially environmentally friendly ways to cut high heating, cooling, and hot water costs. With the new 30% federal tax credit, there has never been a better time to install a geothermal heat pump system!”
—Brian Urlaub, Regional Manager, Enertech, Inc.

Common systems in Minnesota

Horizontal Loop
This is a common installation where there is plenty of land to work with. The pipes are laid 8-12’ deep trenches in long loops that can stretch 500 yards or more. Soil conditions must be right for this installation or the efficiency will be too low, resulting in a higher carbon footprint.

Slinky Field Loop
This is another variation on the horizontal loop that can be installed in a trench, fully excavated field, or a pond. It is most appropriate for water installations, however these are largely prohibited in Minnesota lest water temperature rise and disturb that ecosystem.

Vertical Loop
Pipes carrying water run out from the home about 8’ below the yard and then plummet 150-250’ down into the ground before looping back up and into the home again. These systems are most commonly found in urban environments where available land may be limited. The backyard of the average home has plenty of space to accommodate the wells required

Minnesota GreenStar

You’ve seen it, you’ve heard it, what is it?

Minnesota GreenStar is the premier local resource for residential green building standards and certification. Created by Minnesotans for Minnesotans, MN GreenStar is your guide to improving the impact of homes on individuals, their families, the community, and the environment by creating healthy, durable, and efficient spaces. What makes MN GreenStar extra special is that it can be used on existing homes for any remodeling project, large or small.

MN GreenStar provides a holistic approach to green design and construction that gives you the tools to assess the best strategies and the level of impact. 

The program revolves around five core principles: energy efficiency, resource efficiency (including durability), indoor environmental quality, water conservation, and site and community impact.

Centered around a comprehensive checklist and manual filled with options, building science strategies and green building tactics, your home can acquire points balanced across each of the five core green categories. The ability to know upfront how green your home will be, gives you the power to make smart choices to make your home as green as you desire.

Critical to the process are 3rd party inspections—beginning at the design phase before a hammer is swung, at key points during construction and at the end. Each inspection is aimed at insuring your project is built and performs as designed. Think of it as an extra set of eyes on your project.

MN GreenStar is quite simply a great tool for you to use with your designer, remodeler, or builder. It is flexible and helps you understand what the outcome will be. It takes the mystery out green building and is the key to a credible, durable, and healthy home!

How Green is Green?
You make the choice; you decide what is most important for your home, your family and your community:

Energy Efficiency – Reduce the amount of energy required to operate the home.Install efficient light fixtures, improve insulation, install high efficiency appliances, upgrade windows and doors, and more.

Resource Efficiency – Reduce resources used in building, modifying and maintaining the home. Install more durable and longer-lasting products, use fewer materials, buy local, consider the amount of energy to produce, transport and install the materials, and more.

Water Conservation – Maximize the efficient use of water both in and around the home. Install dual-flush toilets, install low flow faucets, harvest rainwater for gardening, and more.

Indoor Environmental Quality – Create a healthier indoor environment for the occupants. Use low-VOC paints and finishes, test and mitigate for radon, increase the use of natural light, increase fresh and clean air intake, and more.

Site and Community Impact – Consider the impact of the materials and the home building process on the land and the immediate community as well as the global community and environment. Add native plant species, reduce the amount of waste to landfills, recycle and reuse, manage storm water on site, and more.

A Friendly Remodel

Looking to make your home greener? Check out this journey through a Minnesota GreenStar Gold certified residential remodel. LouAnn Berglund Haaf takes us on

A VIP tour of a Lake of the Isles green remodel.

In 1997 when Jay Miller purchased his Lake of the Isles home in the Kenwood neighborhood, he did it knowing full well a whole house remodel was in the cards. Glaring problems: a kitchen that was small and cramped and a single bathroom, up on the second floor. The home wasn’t without its charm, however, with features like a front foyer, hardwood floors, a spacious living room, a fabulous view of the lake and (as they say) location, location, location.

Fast forward to 2007. Jay called on Michael Anschel (principal at Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build) and shared his ideas for transforming the space. Michael recalled their first meeting: “We sat in the dimly lit dining room and tiny kitchen talking about how we could improve the flow of the home.” The two agreed that an addition was a given, but as much of the backyard as possible should be preserved. And they agreed to continue the existing style and visual elements of the home. Jay added one final stipulation: the new place had to be green.

Going Green…

Of course, green can mean many things. To Michael Anschel, it meant everything from energy savings to reducing carbon emissions to the governing  principle of treading lightly. In fact, going green meant considering a wide gamut of concerns, from resources to people. The Miller home presented a unique opportunity to achieve the new MN GreenStar certification—one of the most progressive and rigorous standards in the country. As one of the founders of the new rating system, Anschel was in a position to create a home that embodies its principles. To his delight, Jay Miller loved the idea. Though he knew the lofty standard meant additional testing and inspections, he foresaw  the unique value certification would add to the home.

Remodeling an entire house with an eye toward green requires a lot of decision making early on. Miller and Anschel agreed that the home would receive a two-story addition across the back of the home that was about 12 feet deep. The flow issues were resolved and light fixtures selected. The first tangible green step was to test the old house to see how much air leaked from it. Sure enough, the blower door test revealed that the house was quite leaky—4200cfm, to be exact. By construction’s end the house would be at 900cfm, a fourfold improvement in efficiency. And so the “friendly remodel” began, leading to today’s remarkable dwelling.

The kitchen, though twice the size of the original, still manages to feel cozy. The granite countertops are all reclaimed and seem to change color as as you move around the room. The stone was cut with Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build’s signature hand-drawn organic edge, as was the soapstone backsplash extending upward from the Viking range—truly a beautiful and custom touch. Custom hickory cabinets  look like they could have been original, right down to the inset doors. What makes them green? They were crafted locally in Eden Prarie and shipped without any packaging. The plywoods and glues are free of cancer-causing carcinogens. The finish is a low VOC finish that imbues the wood with a more vibrant, richer, and deeper color than oil-based, heavy-polluting finishes.

A mudroom/transition space was added to the back of the home, complete with built- in bench and storage. One of the challenges faced was in fashioning a transition from the library to the kitchen area. The solution was for the stonework of the mudroom to meet up with hardwood floors in an intricate series of cuts and curves.

The new library is spacious and filled with light during the day, with excellent views of the back yard. The formal living room and dining room are virtually all that is left of the original home.

The addition of a powder room on the first floor and the remodel of a basement bath brings the house into the 21st century and provided an opportunity to have some fun with materials. Dual-flush toilet, low-flow faucet, carcinogen-free vanity, CFL lights, water-based finishes, and a socially responsible mirror show how even a small space can be green.

The home is fully wired for TV and sound, in nearly every room in the home, and in keeping with the green requirement each bedroom is fitted with its own system that also includes a special shut-off switch to eliminate lost energy when not in use. The basement floor was excavated, insulated, and heated with hydronic radiant heat to create a sunken-floor home theater.

The house features a geothermal heating system that runs a combination of radiators and radiant heat in the home. Windows were replaced with triple-pane Pella windows, and Icynene insulation was added throughout. The paints used were all low VOC; even the cabinet finish is water-based low VOC (though you would not know just by looking at it). Salvaged hardwood floors are mixed with newer wood, dual-flush toilets are installed in every location, low-flow shower heads, CFL lights, and reclaimed limestone patio are just a few of the many steps that were taken to make this home green through and through. The backyard was modestly redesigned to include a spacious thermal-cut Kasota limestone patio and walkways. Plantings include native species that are beautiful and require less water than others. The yard was reseeded with a drought-tolerant grass that requires virtually no mowing or irrigation. Any water not captured in the permeable patio and rain barrels is directed to a rain-garden that is both beautiful and functional.

In short, the finished home is a masterpiece that combines visually engaging high-end design with the latest in green building to create a home that is beautiful, spacious,  healthy, and efficient. The addition blends seamlessly with the fully-remodeled home giving new life. A sun-filled kitchen and library, luxurious master suite, wraparound second-floor deck, and dozens of intricate design details all create a sense of refinement and class. The geothermal heat, low-VOC finishes, water-conserving fixtures, and dozens of features make this a vibrant, healthy  house.  Which brings us to the most astounding conclusion: if no one had told you this well-appointed house were green, you  might never know. It is first and foremost a place to be comfortable – its ulterior identity as a poster house for healthy living is its beautiful secret.

Note: The house is pending certification and Michael is optimistic it will achieve the Gold level certification, the highest level offered.