Secondary Author(s)

Fenaughty, Karen; Parker, Danny; Raustad, Richard

Report Number

FSEC-PF-483-20

URL

http://publications.energyresearch.ucf.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/FSEC-PF-483-20.pdf

Keywords

Energy Conservation; Energy Efficiency; Utilities; Water Heating; Windows; Ducts

Abstract

The authors investigated the impacts of seven residential rebate energy efficiency programs offered by a municipal utility. The evaluation examined energy use pre and post retrofit using the Advanced Mete1ing Infrastructure (AMI) data, disaggregated by major end-use and weather-adjusted; and also by detailed simulations. Residences modeled were representative of typical participants for that measure based on factors such as year built, conditioned square feet and number of bedrooms.

Our analysis found the residential rebate programs to be of highly varied effectiveness, but important differences surfaced between the simulation and the AMI data evaluation. Not surprisingly, programs with larger samples tended to better match the simulation results for annual energy use.

Our evaluation showed that the following rebate segments for existing single family homes were highly effective:

  • ENERGY STAR Water Heater Program (HPWH)
  • Duct Repair Program
  • Window Replacement Program

While the effectiveness of the HPWH segment was expected, the duct repair and window replacement programs evidenced large energy savings that were generally greater than predicted by simulation. However, beyond significant energy savings, the window replacement program showed sizable reductions to both summer and winter peak demand. The other programs that were analyzed showed lower effectiveness:

  • ENERGY STAR Clothes Washer
  • Window Film Retrofit
  • Wall Foam Insulation
  • Solar Water Heating

We detail the evaluation procedures used for the heat pump water heater, duct repair and window replacement programs. Similar analysis was done for other incentives although some had small sample sizes. We summarize results for all programs.

This paper was published in the 2020 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings.

Date Published

8-17-2020

Notes

This paper was published in the 2020 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings.

Subjects

Buildings - Ducts; Buildings - Energy Conservation; Buildings - Energy Efficiency; Utilities; Water Heating; Buildings - Windows

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