the credit works adidas yeezy boost 750 canada , let s look at an example of a modest starter home: a single story 3 bedroom 1750 sq. foot home built in 2008 on the Gulf Coast. Replacing old style single pane aluminum framed windows with energy efficient windows with good air seals can save money. Upgrading windows on our little starter home to triple pane insulating low E, argon gas wood framed windows can save $69 per year (note: windows and skylights installed after June 1 require a U factor and SHH Coefficient of .30 or less). Factor in the tax credit for $1600 and you can deduct $480 from your 2009 taxes. Your total cash layout for the windows comes to $1120 (excluding installation labor). Even though adding in the energy savings brings the return to $549, that might not seem a big return on the first year. But the energy cost savings are immediate. Over the windows 30 year lifetime, this becomes an energy savings of $2070. Heating water in your home accounts for 17 of annual energy costs. That s $221 of Energy Star s annual cost of $1,300. Most of the water heater s time will be spent keeping the water heated for when it is eventually used. Putting a water heater blanket around it will help some, but you are still paying for this stand by heat whether you use the water or not. In our example home, the 40 gallon electric water heater s tank is warranted for 6 years. he average lifespan of any electric or gas home water heater tank averages about 8 to 12 years depending on local water quality. The water heater tank will eventually degrade from deposits of calcite and corrosion and then leak; forcing us to purchase and install a new one. So we have several options: install a comparable electric model, install an equal capacity high efficiency Energy Star heater adidas ultra boost canada , or install a tank less water heating system. Generally speaking, electric models make better use of energy, primarily because gas water heaters lose some of their energy up the exhaust vent. A comparable non efficient replacement may cost $370 (without installation labor). A new Energy Star gas water heater, meanwhile, transfers 98 of the heat to the water, leaving exhaust fumes so cooled that they are vented to the chimney by a fan. Such extra efficient gas water heaters cost more than a baseline electric heater; or about $550 (without installation labor). By installing this kind of water heater, we would save $30 annually compared to the baseline electric version and receive a $165 tax credit. That s about $195 recouped the first year. Installing a tank less water heating system breaks the expensive cycle of replacing leaking water heaters. Both electric and gas fired tank less systems do not store water, so they do not need to continually heat the water. They heating water only on demand; that is nike air max 1 ultra moire canada , only when the water is running through the pipe. Not only are they over 80 energy efficient, you can achieve even greater energy savings of 27 eap; a whole house system runs around $1,200. But when you consider our little example house, the annual cost of $221 for hot water drops $106 to about $115. We also get a 2009 tax credit of $360. That adds up to $466 for a return on the first year. Of course, there s the amenity of never ending hot water adding value to the house at sale time. How it Works: Insulating & Taking the Tax Credit Heating and air conditioning account for 50 to 70 of the energy used in the average American home. While air sealing and duct work sealing can improve performance, neither of these is going to compensate for insufficient insulation for the whole house. Throughout most of the country, the US DOE recommends at least R30 (about 1 foot of blown cellulose or fiberglass) for attic insulation and a minimum of a R13 (a bit more than 3 inches of blown cellulose or fiberglass) in the walls. Most new houses are built with R13 in the walls but few have R30 in the attic. Let s say that our sample starter home has R13 in the attic of settled blown cellulose insulation. To bring it up to at least R30 nike air max 90 leather canada , we need to add a further 17 R value s of insulation to the attic. The easiest way to do this is to either apply another 5 inches of blown cellulose or put down un faced R19 fiberglass batts (about 6 inches thick). The cost for blown cellulose to cover the 1750 sq. ft of attic space with 5 inches (or .416 feet) is 46 (16 cu ft) bags @ $7.50 each or $345. Some home centers may include the free rental of their blowing equipment as an incentive. Others may not and rental fees could be as high as $100day. To make the insulation work effectively, it must be kept out of ventilation soffits and spread evenly throughout the attic at a consistent density so that no thin spots or hollows are formed. The cost of unfaced fiberglass batts is 15 batts @ $