Technology Tuesdays: Powering Up Profits with EE Measures for Businesses
A dollar saved is a dollar earned. This is a mantra I learned, having come from two generations of small business owners.
Energy end use in the United States is measured and tracked by sector. There are four sectors: transportation, industrial, residential, and commercial. The commercial sector is the smallest energy user by comparison. However, do not be fooled by this fact; it still represents a significant amount of energy usage, which is why several energy efficiency measures are geared toward helping commercial sector customers reduce their energy usage without compromising business operations (U.S. Energy Information Administration).
There is a sizable variety of measures through which commercial customers can get an incentive or a rebate through their utility service provider. However, I will focus on a few measures that offer the biggest bang for your buck!
Before discussing measures, I would like to point out that lighting is not on this list. There are several reasons for this, the primary reason being that there have not been any significant innovations in lighting since LEDs. Utilities create incentives and rebates to influence the market to adopt new technology. Now that the market has adopted LEDs, these influences are needed to increase the adoption of other technology.
Water Heating
Across the board, some of the most significant savings opportunities is in water heating. We have talked at length about heat pump water heaters recently. Below are some fun reads about heat pump water heating technology:
Advances in Water Heating Technology
Heat Pump Water Heaters
Heat Pumps in the Wild
Don’t Be Scared, They’re Just Heat Pumps
Water heating opportunities have expanded beyond heat pumps and include such technologies as:
Commercial Natural Gas Storage Water Heaters
Commercial Natural Gas Tankless Water Heaters
Commercial Boilers
Split System Heat Pump Water Heaters
Pump Measures
Solar Thermal Collectors
Incentive and rebate opportunities for these measures can be found through the Statewide Midstream Water Heating Program or through your utility service provider.
Pipe Insulation
Pipe insulation is one of the biggest energy-saving measures available and most often overlooked. It works by reducing heat loss from hot water pipes, resulting in less work for the heating system to maintain temperature settings. Additionally, pipe insulation, where pipes are located outside, protects them from extreme cold, reducing the likelihood of damage due to freeze. This type of damage can be extensive and costly to repair.
Pipe insulation rebates are available by linear foot for hot water pipes and steam pipes as follows:
Hot Water (HW) ≤1 Inch
Hot Water (HW) >1 Inch and ≤4 Inch
Hot Water (HW) >4 Inch
Steam <15 psig ≤1 Inch
Steam <15 psig >1 Inch and ≤4 Inch
Steam <15 psig >4 Inch
Steam ≥15 psig ≤1 Inch
Steam ≥15 psig >1 Inch and ≤4 Inch
Steam ≥15 psig >4 Inch
If you would like to take a deeper dive on pipe insulation, check out these articles:
Heat Recovery
Heat recovery measures yield significant energy savings by capturing waste heat for reuse in other processes. This reduces the overall energy used because the need for additional heating is reduced and sometimes eliminated. Some measures in this category include the following:
Heat Recovery Rooftop Unit
Steam Traps
Recirculating Pump Control
Recirculating Pump Time Clock