Having a green home doesn't necessarily mean constructing a new home from scratch. The range of cost-efficient options is rapidly expanding, making it possible to move to greener pastures without ever leaving the home you're in.

MyHome, a full-service home-remodeling business in Mount Kisco (one of its three tri-state locations), and Clover Comfort: The Green Home Pros, a Sleepy Hollow-based heating and cooling company, are two local sources of green-home solutions that are both energy-efficient and cost-effective.
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The proof lies with their happy customers, including Alex Stein, who updated a 120-year-old five-bedroom Georgian (one of Bedford Hills' oldest homes) with a super-efficient, self-sustaining geothermal system that uses trapped heat to heat and cool while effectively saving energy and cost, and Ralph and Janine Gunderman who transformed the efficiency of their 1927 Sleepy Hollow home with, among other green modifications, a hybrid ductless heating and air- conditioning system.

In each case, the work was completed while still preserving the architectural integrity of the home.

A growing interest

Geothermal technology that Stein elected may not be new (the concept has been around for centuries), but it's getting new attention.

Geothermal systems draw heat from below the ground in the winter and discharge heat from a home or building into the ground in the summer. Systems rely on the constant underground temperatures.

According to Mayan Metzler, founding president and CEO of MyHome, renewed focus on the technology is increasing its popularity and demand.

"It can supply 95 percent of the energy needed for heating, cooling and hot water," Metzler said. "It doesn't really cost you money in the long run because in four to seven years, you own it. There are no future costs involved and it adds value to your house."

As a turnkey remodeling company, MyHome designs, supplies and installs the system, along with any other products involved in its renovation projects, all under one general contractor. Depending on the square footage of the house, the cost can range from $30,000 to $40,000 to install a geothermal system - an investment Metzler believes is well worth it.

"It's an amazing, phenomenal way to go and it's self-sustaining, Metzler said. "People don't want to pay more to go green. There's a huge demand for geothermal technology because they can save so much more."

Alex Stein was convinced of the benefits of investing in the technology even before it was installed.

"Throughout the winter, I was watching our oil bills skyrocket and decided there must be another way," added Stein, who found a better way and MyHome while researching the Internet for alternatives to an oil-heating system that was "on its last legs.

"Usually, you think going green means a trade-off between economics, the work involved and comfort," he said. "The high price of oil removed the last trade-off. We were expecting to spend $15,000 in oil next year. If the price of oil stays where it is right now, we would save 80 percent on next year's oil bill. The system really pays for itself very quickly. And we expect it to be more reliable and more comfortable for both heating and cooling."

Stein estimated his upfront cost to be slightly higher than an oil-based system. "The difference in total cost is virtually zero, considering we had the repairman in once or twice a month this year," he said.

The beauty is in its simplicity

With a Ph.D. in electrical engineering, Stein had no trouble appreciating the technology.

"It's breathtaking in its simplicity and the simplest solutions are the best," he said. "It requires very low-impact ducting because it uses small pipes, not like the deep drilling needed for a water well. MyHome will be able to drill diagonally in the driveway in a way that doesn't destroy the house or our garden that's so important to us. It's like a syringe needle going into the ground versus making a huge hole. And we'll also be able to use the existing ductwork."

And if it ever needs servicing - not to worry. "I appreciate the system's underpinnings," Stein said. "I didn't want a fragile system that no one knows. Any (air-conditioning) repairman can service this system if something goes wrong. It's like an air conditioner, but more efficient."

The age of Stein's home created special (but not insurmountable) challenges, including, in Stein's words, a "cobbled together" heating system.

"It's not unusual for an old home to get updated with pieces of fixes every 10 to 20 years. Some work was done in 1906, additional work in the 1930s and still more in the 1990s," he said. "As a result, we had a combination of steam, hot water and radiant heat that's unreliable and expensive to run."'

Following MyHome's extensive analysis - the company's first step in any home project - Stein is expecting a smooth installation. He anticipates one week's worth of work inside the house (which he scheduled around the sleep-away camp schedule of the Steins' three children) and two days to drill the holes outside for the piping.

The last thing Stein wanted to do to the house he bought 11 months ago precisely for its beauty, character, landscape and charm, was to take it apart for heavy-duty construction.

"The geothermal system allows us to do good by our heart and our wallet, all without trashing the home we love," Stein said.

 

Geothermal won't work everywhere

But not every home is a good candidate for geothermal technology, as the Gundermans found when they decided after 17 years to transform their three-bedroom Colonial to be greener, healthier and more comfortable.

"The house had a history of additions, which created an intriguing set of problems. As an old house, there was no insulation in the walls at all" said Ralph Gunderman, who turned to the heating and cooling expertise of Clover Comfort for a creative green solution.

"There's a huge demand for geothermal technology that can be used for both heating and cooling, but not every home has the luxury of drilling wells for a geothermal system," said Anthony Marmo, founder and owner of Clover Comfort (formerly Clover Heating & Cooling).

Installing a geothermal system, Marmo believed, would be counterproductive in an older home with only one temperature zone and without a single heat distribution system.

In unique situations such as the Gundermans faced, from Marmo's perspective, a hybrid system that combines a heat pump system that runs on electricity with the home's existing steam system proved to be a simpler (no major construction required to add missing ductwork or lowering ceilings), more effective and less expensive solution. The electricity of the heat pump is only used incrementally as needed in each bedroom.

"There was no place for ductwork in the bedrooms, so we had to create a hybrid system that uses electricity to heat each bedroom," Marmo explained. "Since the house also had issues with moisture and mold, we added insulation and a whole house dehumidifier. The key to comfort is humidity control. If you don't manage it properly, you can end up with a mold problem. We made the house tighter and more comfortable through air sealing so the humidity can be more easily maintained."

Marmo offered the analogy of a balloon in explaining his hybrid solution: "Think of the house like a balloon. If the balloon has a lot of holes for the air to leak, you can keep the balloon inflated if you blow hard enough. But if you use a more efficient approach and close some of the holes, the leaking would stop and it would take much less blowing to inflate the balloon."

The Gundermans were motivated by a desire to reduce their carbon footprint and save on energy and its cost. "I'm completely convinced by the science of global warming, but I also want to foster a solution to it," Ralph Gunderman said. "In addition, we knew the amount we spent would increase the value of the house."

"As a citizen of the planet, this is morally the right thing to do," said Janine Gunderman. "It was a big problem for me to have uneven heating and cooling in the house. I would even feel claustrophobic closing the doors to some rooms when I was trying to heat or cool other parts of the house. Now all the doors are open and it frees the entire house."

Start with an energy audit

Work on the Gundermans' home began with a comprehensive energy audit (including measuring sealant levels) that produced a complete list of recommendations, prioritized for the long and short term.

"The audit was the most interesting part of the process and it showed where we could get the biggest bang for our buck," Ralph Gunderman said. "It became apparent on the day of the audit that our biggest problem was a dangerously inefficient furnace that was on the verge of carbon-monoxide problems and needed to be addressed immediately."

The furnace work became the focus of phase one in December, followed by adding insulation, tightening the house, installing programmable ventilation, a dehumidifier, professional-grade carbon-monoxide detectors and super-quiet ductless air-conditioning with a compressor neatly tucked under the eaves on the back of the house. By the end of March all work was completed.

Even the Gundermans' concerns about drilling holes on the outside of the house proved to be unfounded. "They drilled 2-inch holes behind the siding to blow in cellulose insulation, then patched the holes and replaced the siding," Ralph Gunderman said.

Janine Gunderman was thrilled with the advantages of cellulose insulation: "It's fire-retardant, termite-resistant and made from recycled newspaper."

Ralph Gunderman was pleasantly surprised to find the entire process minimally disruptive, including adding cellulose insulation through discretely cut and patched square openings in two first-floor rooms.

For the Gundermans, the resulting benefits were immediate, tangible and worth any inconvenience. "It's been a night-and-day change. I noticed decreased moisture, more fresh air and an evening out of the temperature," Janine Gunderman said.

"The house is warmer, more comfortable, healthier and we saved on our utility bills," Ralph Gunderman said.

The Gundermans also met criteria to qualify for a $6,500 incentive from Con Edison and New York State Energy & Research Development Authority (NYSERDA).

Next on the Gundermans' agenda is retrofitting their fireplaces.

By Karen Odom • Special to The Journal News • August 2, 2008. The Journal News, a Gannett Co. Inc. newspaper serving Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties in New York.