IB Students Test Energy Use in Campus Housing

Buildings account for about 40% of America's total energy use, and NHS's usage pattern is probably similar.  So how do we decrease our increasing fuel bills?  New windows?  More insulation, and what kind?  How much will sealing air leaks save, and how much will it cost to do?  Do new appliances make sense? A new boiler?  Without doing a "home energy audit" first, it's mostly guesswork. An energy audit uses specific measuring equipment, such as 'blower doors' and infrared cameras, in addition to information about the building and the actual fuel bills, to figure out just how a building uses and loses energy.  It then uses computer modeling to estimate energy savings and payback periods for different improvements, helping decision-makers choose the best alternative.

The "IB Energy group"  is presently using equipment donated by PAREI (Plymouth Area Renewable Energy), our partner for our two current solar installations, for some energy auditing at NHS, under the direction of faculty member and part-time PAREI auditor Ted Stiles. 

The group measured the "leakiness" of Pillars house, one of our oldest buildings, and measured its wall and window orientations/dimensions for input into the computer energy modeling program.  They found a knee-wall area — infamous for being weak spots in the thermal boundary — which is very leaky and uninsulated. Figuring out the most effective and efficient way to remedy this will be a focus on the report, which will be done by the end of the winter term.  This is too late to make a difference this heating season, but hopefully by next year, we will take the remediation measure recommended by the students, which will carry the weight of building science and have reliable costs and savings estimates.