Category Archives: Blogs

Cut energy bills by up to 30% by taking advantage of the rebate programs offered by the Federal Government, Alberta Provincial Government and The City of Edmonton.  You may qualify for thousands of dollars in rebates for upgrading the insulation in your home.

Did you know that space heating is the largest energy consumer in our homes?  Why not take advantage of rebates from three levels of government and reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the same time.

Climate Change Central recommends the following R-values:

*Attic R-50

*Basement external walls R-20

*External walls R-20

What is R-value?

R-value is a measure of thermal resistance used in the building industry

Your home could use additional insulation if:

a.  you have excessive heating bills

b.  you experience uneven heat in different rooms in your house

c.  outside walls and floors are cool to touch.

d.  your house gets very hot in the summer months – a well insulated home is much cooler in warm weather and will help you save on air conditioning costs.

Another way to save on air conditioning costs… consider adding a Whirlybird Turbines to help keep a house cooler in summer as it removes the hot air from your attic.

Contact us for information on the rebate programs and installing wind driven Whirlybirds Turbines.

Having a well insulated home will help a great deal to get top dollar for your home when the time comes to sell.

In a recent survey, three reasons were given for upgrading their homes and making them more energy efficient.

1.   To save money.

2.   To reduce the impact on the environment

3.   To increase the value of their home for resale purposes.

New homes are typically more energy efficient than older homes but with three rebate programs available you can’t afford not to take advantage of the thousands of dollars of savings.

The Federal Government just announced $400,000,000.00 in 2011 and 2012 for the eco Energy Retrofit Homes program.  Stay tuned for the details.

The Alberta Government currently offers generous rebates for upgrading your home to make it more energy efficient and

The City of Edmonton not to be outdone, would like to insulate your pocketbook with up to $250.00

In total there are thousands of dollars available to anyone who wants to upgrade their insulation whether it is just your attic, walls, rim joists, unfinished basement or crawl space.

To qualify for the current Rebate Programs all energy audits and work must be completed by March 31, 2012.

Give us a call at “780-416-0026“  for a free quote if you are interested in taking advantage on getting FREE money from the government.

Note:  *These rebate programs are only effective while the designated funds are available.  Don’t wait too long or you may be disappointed.

Thinking of renovating your unfinished basement? Then look no further than the latest Innovation in Basement Insulation!

All of us here at Northern Alberta Energy Savers are proud (and excited!) to offer the sale and instillation of Canadian-Made Quik-Therm Concrete Insulation. We have just finished trying out this innovative basement insulation system and could not be more excited to endorse this new product.

What is the Quik-Therm Concrete Insulation system?

This new concrete insulation system is actually 5 building components all in 1!

Developed and Tested in Manitoba this unique insulation system is your insulation, air and vapor barrier, radiant barrier and (we save the best for last!) a framingsystem all rolled up into one fast assembling efficient package.

• It installs faster and cheaper than conventional wall stud and batting systems.

• It out performs conventional wall stud and batting insulation.

• It contains no formaldehyde and is made up of 15% recycled expanded polystyrene (EPS).

Check out these pictures!

Quik-Therm CIS Conventional Batt and
Stud System

Effective R-value of R-17.18 Effective R-value of R-15.8

Still not convinced?!

Find out more info about quik therm concrete insulation system at our website.

Or

Check out the TBC (Canada) Inc. website and read the research for yourself.

http://www.tbcca.com/products/interior-concrete-insulation-system-cis/

Interested?!

Buy it and install yourself or have us install it for you!!

Call us at (780) 416-0026 for a free inspection and quote, and bring new life to your basement.

Increasing the thickness of an insulating layer increases the thermal resistance. For example, doubling the thickness of fibreglass batting will double its R-value, perhaps from 2.0 m²K/W for 110 mm of thickness, up to 4.0 m²K/W for 220 mm of thickness. Heat transfer through an insulating layer is analogous to adding resistance to a series circuit with a fixed voltage. However, this only holds approximately because the effective thermal conductivity of some insulating materials depends on thickness. The addition of materials to enclose the insulation such as sheetrock and siding provides additional but typically much smaller R-value.

There are many factors that come into play when using R-values to compute heat loss for a particular wall. Manufacturer R values apply only to properly installed insulation. Squashing two layers of batting into the thickness intended for one layer will increase but not double the R-value. Another important factor to consider is that studs and windows provide a parallel heat conduction path that is unaffected by the insulation’s R-value. The practical implication of this is that one could double the R value used to insulate a home and realize substantially less than a 50% reduction in heat loss. Even perfect wall insulation only eliminates conduction through the insulation but leaves unaffected the conductive heat loss through such materials as glass windows and studs as well as heat losses from air exchange.

The R-value is a measure of insulation’s heat loss retardation under specified test conditions. The primary mode of heat transfer impeded by insulation is convection but unavoidably it also impedes heat loss by all three heat transfer modes: conduction, convection, and radiation. The primary means of heat loss across an annulated air-filled space is natural convection, which occurs because of changes in air density with temperature. Insulation greatly retards natural convection. Most insulation’s trap air so that significant convective heat loss is eliminated leaving only conduction and radiation transfer. The primary role of such insulation is to make the thermal conductivity of the insulation that of trapped, stagnant air. However this cannot be realized fully because the glass wool or foam is needed to prevent convection and increases the heat conduction compared to still air. Radioactive heat transfer is minimized by having many surfaces interrupting a “clear view” between the inner and outer surfaces of the insulation.[citation needed] Such multiple surfaces are abundant in batting and porous foam. Radiation is also minimized by low emissivity (highly reflective) surfaces. Lower thermal conductivity and, therefore, high R-values can be achieved by replacing air with argon when practical such as between sealed double-glazed windows and within special closed-pore foam insulation.

How does attic insulation keep my home cool in the summer?

This is a common question among home owners. Most people associate insulation with keeping a space warm but don’t seem to make the connection between insulation and keeping a space cool.

Insulation works in a very simple way, it is a poor conductor. We all learned in elementary school that a good conductor easily transfers energy, either electricity and/or heat. For instance materials like copper, aluminum or iron are good conductor’s of heat and/or electricity because they transfer energy easily – this is why we use various metals as a means to distribute heat or electricity.

Materials like woods, plastics and insulation are all poor conductors because they transfer electricity or heat poorly. Hence why wood is used in most building construction over steel. So, during the winter, heat from your home is less likely to escapes through your roof or walls if they are properly insulated and sealed. The same is true for heat during the summer.  If your home is properly insulated, heat from the outside will have a much harder time making its way into your home via the attic or walls, thus keeping it cooler.

Here are some of our favorite energy saving tips that will help keep your house cool and efficient this summer, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Northern Alberta Energy Savers!!

Whether you can spend a little or a lot there are a variety of ways to keep your energy bills low and your home cool this summer!

No-Cost Tips

• Use appliances that generate heat such as dishwashers, clothes washers and dryers in the evening.
• Close all blinds and drapes during the day to keep heat out
• BBQ! Enjoy the summer weather and keep your house cool by cooking outside.
• Use a clothes line! Get that authentic country breeze freshness without the dryer sheet!
• Run full loads in your washer and dryer, and wash in cold water when ever possible.
• Run a full load of dishes in the dishwasher and let them air dry!
• Get into the habit of turning off all appliances when they are not being used. This will not only prevent the creation of excess heat but will help cut down on your power bill.

Low-Cost Tips

• Caulk all windows and doors. This will help keep the heat out during the summer and cold air out during the winter.
• Add weather stripping or replace old weather stripping around all doors and attic hatches.
• Beautify your yard! Plant trees and shrubs on the south and west side of your home; they will act as an insulator in the winter and provide shade during the summer.
• Use room fans to keep the air moving! This is a very low cost way to reduce the feeling of heat in your home.

Higher-Cost Tips

• Upgrade your attic insulation to the recommended R-50. This will not only keep your house cool in the summer but comfy cozy in the winter.
• Be sure to upgrade your attic ventilation if your home is already well insulated.
• Replace single-pane windows with energy –efficient multi-pane, thermal broken, vinyl framed windows. Not only will this stop excess heat from coming in during in the summer, and keep heat in during the summer it will add value to your home!
• Keep appliances clean and maintained                                               
  

Stay tuned for more Tips and Tricks for keeping your home cool and efficient this summer with the Northern Alberta Energy Savers…

This is our limited-time exclusive online coupon for attic insulation service.

For both commercial and residential insulation needs, we will provide the best advice and service. Northern Alberta Energy Savers, is a Natural Resources Canada certified energy advisor.

We use high-quality insulation systems to do the job for:

• Attic upgrades
• Condo upgrades
• Re-insulation of existing walls
• Blow-in-blanket system
• and much more…

Also, you maybe eligible for a government insulation rebate up to $1312.50.

 
Call us today for details and free evaluation!

If you own a home and you know that you need to reinsulate you may delay it due to the amount of money it will cost you. Of course you know that you will save money because your energy bills will be lower but that does not change the amount of money that it will cost you to get the work done. Well, have no fear the government is here! I bet you don’t hear that every day! However, it is true.

Albertans are still eligible for up to $2,1312 in insulation rebates.

All Albertans who participate in the federal government’s ecoENERGY Retrofit Program, perform qualifying insulation upgrades, and undertake a post-retrofit evaluation on or after January 1, 2009 are eligible for a provincial rebate. You need to do is get a home evaluation report done and then perform qualifying insulation upgrades as identified in the report. Qualifying work includes ceiling insulation, exterior wall insulation, exposed floor insulation, basement header insulation and foundation insulation (inclusive of basement insulation and crawl space insulation).

Once the work is complete, and have completed your post-retrofit energy evaluation, your Natural Resources Canada-certified energy advisor submits the required documentation to the ecoENERGY Retrofit Program which then provides Climate Change Central with the required information to issue a rebate cheque.

This may seem complicated but don’t worry! Just contact Irene and she will explain how the entire process works. Northern Alberta Energy Savers is a Natural Resources Canada – certified energy advisor and can take care of all of your insulation requirements as well as get you your rebate cheque!

Beware of Insulation contractors who tell you that one type of insulation can not be blown over top of another. This is misleading information to get you to use their product. It makes no difference if you install fiberglass over cellulose. This is about as ridiculous as saying you can’t wear a wool sweater over a cotton shirt.

Beware also of contactors who tell you that you need to remove existing fibreglass insulation before you can install cellulose. This is another ploy to get you to spend more money.

The only insulation that needs to be removed is one that contains asbestos. A common name brand that was used in the 1960’s was Zonolite which was made of vermiculite. If you suspect you have a product containing asbestos you must hire a professional trained and certified contractor to remove it.

There are many homes across Canada including Edmonton that have Zonolite in their attics.